Keywords
educational measurement
graduate education
school admission criteria
Abstract
QUALITY TEST ENTRANCE EXAMINATION FOR FULL-TIME SECOND-LEVEL IN MIDWIFERY FACULTY – 5-YEAR RETROSPECTIVE ANALYSIS
Aim. Quality assessment of the test entrance examination used for selection of candidates for full-time second-level studies in Midwifery at the Medical University of Warsaw.
Material and methods. Five grade-years of candidates (N = 335, 100% of women) who took the entrance exam for Midwifery between 2009/10 and 2013/14. Data collected was related to results of the test examination for studies (total score and scores divided into thematic blocks). Parameters of descriptive statistics were set. Ease and differentiating power of questions and reliability of tests were assessed (alpha-Cronbach). Discriminatory indexes for thematic blocks of the test were set. Calculations were performed in STATISTICA 12.5.
Results. The most optimal selection of questions in terms of ease and differentiating power was recorded for the 2009/10 test. None of the editions of the exam met the minimum requirements for the internal consistency of measurement. The best results concerning the reliability of the measurement was observed for the 2009/10 test. Analysis of differentiating power of questions in thematic blocks indicates the diversity of this quality parameter. Very high differentiating index was recorded for the block of questions on specialist care in 2009/10 (0.535), and the lowest in 2013/14 exam (0.150).
Conclusions. 1. It is necessary to improve the quality of exam questions in terms of difficulty and differentiating power. 2. Quality of subsequent editions of the admission examination should be monitored, in particular with regard to the control of the reliability of this qualifying tool.
References
1. Drennan J. Professional and academic destination of masters in nursing graduates: a national survey. Nurse. Educ. Today. 2008; 28(6): 751-9.
2. Raines CF, Taglaireni ME. Career pathways in nursing: Entry points and academic progression. Online. J. Issues. Nurs. 2008; 13(3): 3.
3. Kostrzanowska Z, Zarzycka D. Struktura i zasoby pielęgniarstwa europejskiego. [w:] Wrońska I, Krajewska-Kułak E, red. Wybrane zagadnienia z pielęgniarstwa europejskiego. Lublin: Wydawnictwo Czelej; 2007, s. 27-47.
4. Muecke L. Pre- and post-admission criteria as predictors of academic success in an associate degree nursing program. Ames: Iowa State University; 2008.
5. Kuncel NR, Hezlett SA, Ones DS. A comprehensive meta-analysis of the predictive validity of the graduate record examinations: implications for graduate student selection and performance. Psychol. Bull. 2001; 127(1): 162-81.
6. Panczyk M, Zarzeka A, Belowska J, et al. Risk of attrition from Bachelor’s degree of Nursing programme – predictive evaluation. Piel. XXI. 2015; 51(2): 66-72.
7. Uchwała nr 13/2008 z dnia 25 lutego 2008 roku w sprawie uchwalenia zasad i trybu postępowania rekrutacyjnego na pierwszy rok studiów na rok akademicki 2009/2010 w Akademii Medycznej w Warszawie.
8. Niemierko B. Pomiar wyników kształcenia. Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Szkolne i Pedagogiczne; 1999.
9. Jankowski K, Zajenkowski M. Metody szacowania rzetelności pomiaru testem. [w:] Fronczyk K, red. Psychometria - podstawowe zagadnienia. Warszawa: Vizja Press & IT; 2009, s. 84-110.
10. Rhodes ML, Bullough B, Fulton J. The Graduate Record Examination as an admission requirement for the graduate nursing program. J. Prof. Nurs. 1994; 10(5): 289-96.
11. Auerhahn C. Predictors of success in master’s level nurse practitioner programs. New York: Columbia University; 1996.
12. Newton SE, Moore G. Undergraduate grade point average and graduate record examination scores: the experience of one graduate nursing program. Nurs. Educ. Perspect. 2007; 28(6): 327-31.
13. Katz JR, Chow C, Motzer SA, Woods SL. The graduate record examination: help or hindrance in nursing graduate school admissions? J. Prof. Nurs. 2009; 25(6): 369-72.
14. Megginson L. Exploration of nursing doctoral admissions and performance outcomes. J. Nurs. Educ. 2011; 50(9): 502-12.
15. Panczyk M, Rebandel H, Belowska J, et al. Entrance exam for candidates for master’s nursing studies – a 5-year retrospective analysis. Prob. Piel. 2015; 23(3): in press.
16. Panczyk M, Gotlib J. Analiza dyskryminacyjna kryteriów rekrutacyjnych na studia II stopnia na kierunku Pielęgniarstwo na Warszawskim Uniwersytecie Medycznym. Prob. Piel. 2015; 23(1): 51-6.
17. Panczyk M, Ścieglińska B, Woynarowska-Sołdan M, Gotlib J. MSc Nursing Entrance Exams - admission to full-time and part-time programmes at medical university. Prob. Piel. 2015; 22(4): 477-4483.
18. Fleiss JL. Reliability of Measurement. The Design and Analysis of Clinical Experiments. New York: John Wiley & Sons; 1999.
19. Streiner DL. Starting at the beginning: an introduction to coefficient alpha and internal consistency. J. Pers. Assess. 2003; 80(1): 99-103.
20. Guilford JP. Psychometric methods. 2nd ed. New York: McGraw-Hill; 1954.
21. Tarrant M, Ware J. Impact of item-writing flaws in multiple-choice questions on student achievement in high-stakes nursing assessments. Med. Educ. 2008; 42(2): 198-206.
22. Harasym PH, Leong EJ, Violato C, et al. Cuing effect of „all of the above” on the reliability and validity of multiple-choice test items. Eval. Health. Prof. 1998; 21(1): 120-33.
23. Boland RJ, Lester NA, Williams E. Writing Multiple-Choice Questions. Academic Psychiatry. 2010; 34(4): 310-6.
24. Downing SM. The effects of violating standard item writing principles on tests and students: the consequences of using flawed test items on achievement examinations in medical education. Adv. Health. Sci. Educ. Theory. Pract. 2005; 10(2): 133-43.
25. Rozporządzenie Ministra Nauki i Szkolnictwa Wyższego z dnia 9 maja 2012 r. w sprawie standardów kształcenia dla kierunków studiów: lekarskiego, lekarsko-dentystycznego, farmacji, pielęgniarstwa i położnictwa (Dz.U. 2012 nr 0 poz. 631).
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 Unported License.
Copyright (c) 2016 Authors