National Assessment: The APU Science Approach

In this publication, the Assessment of Performance Unit (APU) set out how it was to approach the assessment of science teaching and learning in schools. The APU was set up to promote the development of method of assessing and monitoring the achievement of children at school, and to seek to identify the incidence of under-achievement.

Contents:
Section 1. Introduction
Section 2: Forging an assessment framework
Section 3: Choosing a testing method
Section 4: Creating question pools
Section 5: Question-banking
Section 6: Sampling strategies
Section 7: Question administration and marking
Section 8: School and pupil questionnaires
Section 9: Information processing
Section 10: Performance estimation
Section 11: Interpreting performance
Section 12. Summary and implications
Appendices
1. Other publications relating to the APU Science programme
2. Membership of the APU Science Team and of relevant APU Committees over the decade
1977-87
3. Concept lists underpinning the 'concept application' subcategories
4. Question descriptor lists for domain-sampled subcategories
5. Sampling fractions and participation rates for school types in England
6. School questionnaire used at age 11 in 1984: completed by Pupil X's primary school
7. Pupil questionnaire used in 1984 survey at age 11 as completed by Pupil X
8. Documentation of school questionnaire information at age 11
9. Variance component and measurement error estimates for ages 13 and 15