Dutch secondary education is a multi-tiered system, and many students are placed in a single track in the first year (seventh grade) of secondary education. As part of the placement procedure, all sixth-grade students take an end of primary school test. Although these standardised attainment tests (SATs) are considered high-stakes tests, the…

Launched in late November 2022, ChatGPT, a large language model chatbot, has garnered considerable attention. However, ongoing questions remain regarding its capabilities. In this study, ChatGPT was used to complete national high school exams in the Netherlands on the topic of English reading comprehension. In late December 2022, we submitted the…

Virtual learning environments have increased in frequency in the years following the COVID-19 pandemic. There are differences in the social learning structure between virtual learning environments and traditional learning environments. A growing body of scholarship has aimed to investigate the impacts of the virtual learning environment on student…

This report is focused on the uptake of General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) subjects in England in 2023. Uptake in a GCSE subject is defined as the number or percentage of students at the end of Key Stage 4 (KS4) taking the subject. This report was produced using publicly available data from the Department for Education's (DfE). The…

Dialogue, listening, and compromise are essential elements of living in a democracy. In a highly partisan time, is it possible to reestablish common ground when it comes to how best to educate our children in and for democracy? Authors Brendan Sheran, Ashley Carey, Jack Schneider, Rebecca Woodland, and Kathryn McDermott, who are affiliated with…

This research investigates the impact of class size on student performance in Azerbaijani public secondary schools, utilizing State Examination Center (SEC) final exam scores as a key indicator. Data from the Ministry of Science and Education is analyzed, covering approximately 80,000 9th and 11th-grade students in 4,400 schools. The primary…

The COVID-19 pandemic caused unprecedented disruption to education systems around the world. In England, as part of the government's response to the pandemic, schools and colleges were closed and lessons were moved partially or entirely online. Furthermore, public examinations in June 2020 were cancelled, meaning that methods had to be developed…

This quantitative study examines the relationships among Scranton City School district students' scores on standards-based report cards and end-of-year TCAP (Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Plan) mathematics scores. Specifically, relationship levels between teacher-reported levels of mastery by students on five state-directed mathematics…

Although information related to mathematics achievement and participation are accessible, there is limited data associated with the simultaneous intersections of race and gender as it pertains to mathematics achievement. The purpose of this study was to determine the degree to which differences were present in overall mathematics achievement by…

Assessment is often described as the tail that wags the curriculum dog. Curriculum has featured more prominently than assessment in Irish scholarship. Drawing on relevant policy documents and interviews with senior National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) and State Examinations Commission (SEC) officers, and relevant documentation,…

This report is focused on the uptake of A level subjects in England in 2023. Uptake in an A level subject is defined as the number or percentage of students at the end of Key Stage 5 (who have entered for at least one AS or A level) taking the subject. This report was produced using publicly available data from the Department for Education's (DfE)…

Core maths (CM) is a Key Stage 5 qualification aimed at students who achieve a grade 4 or higher at GCSE Maths but do not go on to take AS or A level Maths. Its stated main purpose is to increase participation in post-16 maths and to help develop students' mathematical knowledge and its application to a range of different areas. This means CM…

This paper describes the Berlin "Abitur" examination in the twentieth century and its written documentation in files. By the late nineteenth century, the "Abitur" examination was fully established in Prussia and with it a graduation certificate that was obligatory for university entrance. Thus, the "Abitur"…

In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) has been for the last 35 years the most common qualification by which students' attainment at age 16 has been measured. The range and balance of processes by which the GCSEs' programmes of study have been assessed have varied over the decades, to include…

This paper addresses the question of how classroom-based peer assessment practices can be improved in relation to student interpretations of subjective assessment criteria. To achieve this, this research study considers the possible pedagogic benefits and implications of using a comparative judgement (CJ) approach to the peer assessment of GCSE…