Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2016 Dec 9;11(12):e0167544.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0167544. eCollection 2016.

Washback Effect of University Entrance exams in Applied Mathematics to Social Sciences

Luis J Rodríguez-Muñiz  1 , Patricia Díaz  1 , Verónica Mier  2 , Pedro Alonso  3
Affiliations

Washback Effect of University Entrance exams in Applied Mathematics to Social Sciences

Luis J Rodríguez-Muñiz et al. PLoS One. .

Abstract

Curricular issues of subject Applied Mathematics to Social Sciences are studied in relation to university entrance exams performed in several Spanish regions between 2009-2014. By using quantitative and qualitative analyses, it has been studied how these exams align with curriculum and how they produce a washback on curriculum and teachers' work. Additionally, one questionnaire about teachers' practices has been performed, in order to find out how the exams are influencing teaching methodology development. Main results obtained show that evaluation is producing a bias on the official curriculum, substantially simplifying the specific orientation that should guide applied mathematics. Furthermore, teachers' practices are influenced by the exams, and they usually approach their teaching methodology to the frequent types of exams. Also, slight differences among the teachers lead to distinguish two behavioral subgroups. Results can also be useful in an international context, because of the importance of standardized exit exams in OECD countries.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1. Cluster analysis.
Clusters plotted over the two main dimensions in scores (biggest points represent group average)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Datos y cifras del sistema universitario español. Curso 2014–2015 [Internet]. Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deportes [cited 2015 May]. Available from: http://www.mecd.gob.es/dms/mecd/educacion-mecd/areas-educacion/universid...
    1. Jefatura del Estado. Ley Orgánica 2/2006, de 3 de mayo, de Educación. Boletín Oficial del Estado 2006 May 4; 106:17158–17207.
    1. Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia. Real Decreto 1467/2007, de 2 de noviembre, por el que se establece la estructura del Bachillerato y se fijan sus enseñanzas mínimas. Boletín Oficial del Estado 2007 Nov 6; 266:45381–45477.
    1. Ministerio de la Presidencia. Real Decreto 1892/2008, de 14 de noviembre, por el que se regulan las condiciones para el acceso a las enseñanzas universitarias oficiales de grado y los procedimientos de admisión a las universidades públicas españolas. Boletín Oficial del Estado 2008 Nov 24; 283:46932–46946.
    1. Klein ED, van Ackeren I. Challenges and problems for research in the field of statewide exams. A stock taking of differing procedures and standardization levels. Studies in Educational Evaluation 2011; 37:180–188.

LinkOut - more resources