Monitoring fields of CN OPORA:
• assessment of the level of external testing directly on the point of testing;
• monitoring of the regulatory commissions that consider students’ complaints about breaches of procedures or determine the procedure for solving all problem situations related to the testing;
• participation in the UCEQE Appeals Board, which primarily considers the requests of applicants that disagree with the results of independent testing.
In addition, the observers of OPORA provide free legal consulting to students and their parents, if the rights of the testing participants were violated. Assistance can be obtained both directly from the observer, and through the hotline number: 044 225 32 81
CONCLUSIONS
In general, an external independent testing in unit of language (Ukrainian language and literature, foreign languages) and mathematics were good at organizational level, due to the experience of employees of testing points during previous years of IET. However, it should be noted that testing of 2011, already at an intermediate stage revealed a number of organizational deficiencies that require prompt removal:
No large-scale information campaign on innovations in EIT organizing resulted in the loss of individual applicants ‘ chance to take part in the admission process. The problem occurred for those participants who were not familiar with the list of documents necessary to carry on the testing. Unfortunately, not all the graduates understood well enough the difference between a certificate and an invitation-permit that were sent via mail at different times, and this confused students. In addition, full information regarding innovations would require extensive involvement of the media, which was not done. Although the reminder for the applicants stated the papers they need to bring to participate in the EIT, the lack of live communication problem deepened the problem of participants’ misunderstanding of rigid procedural requirements.
Problems with delivery of EIT certificates was found out directly on the tetsing points by OPORA observers. Applicants reported that they were not delivered the certificates with the help of Ukrposhta and because of not knowing of their rights, they did not understand how they can get a duplicate document. OPORA appealed to the UCEQE for an explanation and found that for various reasons Ukrposhta returned certificates of 2639 entrants to regional centers. According to the result of corrections of personal data it was manageable to resend 2085 documents, however, 556 are still not given. Of these 9 is the fault of Ukrposhta.
Use of mobile phones by staff was reported in 13% (63 cases) of the testing points. In order to prevent the information leakage during the external evaluation, only the responsible for the testing premises, or an authorized person from UCEQE can use the phone. .Applicants, on-duties, instructors are deprived the right to use mobile devices that is reasonable disciplinary order. Thus, the contents of the test could be revealed until the end of EIT that puts participantsin an unfavorable conditions . Therefore OPORA has intended to appeal to UCEQE asking about the number of graduates who answered 100% of the test questions in the Ukrainian language and literature. If the difference in the results of the first and second day of the EIE within one subject will be significantly different, we can assume the possibility of information leakage.
Discussions of variable complexity of tests in the Ukrainian language and literature during EIT on June 2 and 3. It is worth noting that similar issues arise each year on various subjects, but the discussion fades after checking papers and publication of evaluations by the participants. However, the institutional weakness of UCEQA is the lack of timely explanations for the current issue, which could form the general distrust to EIT. It is impossible to develop exactly the tests of same complexity , so, really, the content and depth of tasks is somewhat different. However, the situation has much improved due to the fact that applicants who are tested on different days, get rated only within their group. That is, applicants who passed tests on June 2, were evaluated in comparison with all other members of the EIT first day. To avoid any abuse of the division of participants into different sessions, the center uses a sample that takes into account the even / odd months of birth, sex, place of residence in a large or small village, residence geography of students. Test scores for each of the sessions are translated into a 200-point system, which adjusts the potential difference and complexity.
The delayed coming to the testing is a typical problem for 2010-2011.This year's cases of untimely appearance were recorded in 28% (141 incidents) test points. We remind that until 2010 the participants were pupils and the responsibility and control over their logistics belonged to the school. The transportation of the graduates to the testing points was provided at public expense, teachers also checked the availability of all necessary documents. But in connection with the transfer of EIT beyond the study process in schools, students are often left alone with organizational issues. The delay without any serious documented reasons leads to the termination of participation in the admission campaign for ill-disciplined and often underage persons.
The attempt to give or get help from other test participants may be the finish of EIT for violators. Such cases were reported about in 18% (88 incidents) testing points. Applicants try to use verbal prompts of other participants, to call for help to the third parties, to use the cribs and more. Observed cases caused the disqualification of EIT participants and the impossibility to work on the tasks of the test.
Turnout of the test participants
Turnout at the 2011 EIT is near the indicators for 2010. Reducing the percentage of students who chose to be tested, but then for various reasons have changed their position, is connected with the university admission terms. We remind that since 2010 it is allowed to take into account the test results from previous years. This unprecedented and unwarranted liberalism is difficult to explain by the experience of other countries, or logic, leads to a refusal to participate in EIT from those who are able to avoid this test of knowledge. In fact, EIT is a point rating and assesses the level of knowledge of a particular applicant compared to other test participants only in this group. In addition, each year we witness the increasing of the category of persons eligible to graduate without certificates. If in 2010 such a conditionally privileged category were graduates who finished school before 2007 and entered on the form of distant learning, then in 2011 - this right was granted to them for admission for stationery education. OPORA considers that such innovations lead to unequal distribution of participants contrary to the constitutional right to equal access to education.
So if in 2009 the absence of graduates on the Ukrainian language and literature tests was 6%, in 2010 - 11.9%, in 2011 - 11.12%. This year's most disciplined graduates on EIT in the Ukrainian language and literature during the session on June 2 were the inhabitants of Khmelnytsky region, who came to the testing in 94% of alleged cases . The lowest number of entrants turnout was recorded in Donetsk region at 85.2%. During the second session on June 3 the leaders of attendance were Khmelnytsky region (93%), but the first city in the anti rating became Kyiv (82%). It should also be noted that tests in the Ukrainian language and literature, obligatory for all entrants, are indicative for the scale of the admissions process. Thus, the number of participants in EIT compared to last year decreased by 158,274 people (from 381,435 in 2010 to 223 161 - 2011). The trend is connected with physically less number of graduates in 2011, and admitting the certificates of past years’ testing.
The similar situationis in mathematics, for which the turnout was 87.96%. 128,173 entrants participated in the tests. The most disciplined was Lviv region (91.99%), and the least is Crimea (82.75%).
This year's innovation is the testing for the Russian language as a separate subject, the certificates of which are required in specialties related to Russian Studies. However, turnout for testing of this discipline was a record low and fixed at 61.74% (3370 entrants). Traditionally, the largest turnout recorded in one of the Western regions - Ivano-Frankivsk (74%) and lowest was in Sumy (46.8%).
Meetings of regulatory commissions
Participants of testing that for objective reasons could not participate in external evaluation may apply to one of 9 regional centers of evaluation of education and get the right to participate in additional session, which begin on June 27. The first meetings of the Commission in Kyiv RCEQE, which considered the complaints and appeals of the participants, the statements concerned mainly 2 types of questions: 1) non-participation in the main session of EIT because of health issues that you need to confirm with a medical certificate, 2) lack of EIT certificates due to the problems with delivery, which prevented the applicants from participating in testing: this application should be supported by a certificate of Ukrposhta that the registered letter with delivery still has not been delivered to the applicant.
It should be noted that the commission got medical certificates that weren’t completed according to requirements. So members of the regulatory commission sought an official request to the appropriate health care institution to provide an extract from the log about a medical certificate as to the time of its receipt. After all, there have been cases when the document was issued only for 1 day, which coincided with the testing.
OPORA observers note that the work of the regulatory commission should involve representatives of health care that could more efficiently and professionally detect forged medical certificates and stop the attempts to manipulate them during the admission process. We remind that in 2009 there were certificates with fake medical diagnoses, which provided the applicants with a right for discounted admission. Therefore, fighting corruption during the admission should not provoke bribery in the health care system.
RECOMMENDATIONS
As a result of an intermediate stage of observation, OPORA recommends:
Ukrainian Center for Educational Quality Evaluation
• Ensure proper control over the use of mobile phones on test premises from both staff and students;
• Organize a full official investigation into the improper delivery of certificates to participants of the test;
• View the system of certificates’ distribution by Ukrposhta , which is resource intensive and not sufficiently reliable, in order to locate the certificates, secured by code or number on the personal students’pages in the Internet;
• More active work with the media on procedural innovations of EIT and organize full-scale information campaigns for graduates the next year;
• Ensure proper informing of the graduates about the test by updating the website www.testportal.gov.ua, upgrading the portal, ensuring the proper functioning of the search engine and release forms of complaints, appeals and applications for students.
Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of Ukraine
• Ensure the proper communication and cooperation with the Ministry of Health and its local offices during the consideration of applications by regulatory commissions about the causes of absenteeism of graduates to EIT, which were supported by medical certificate;
• Prepare a program of cooperation with the Ministry of Health to test medical certificates of applicants during the admissions process, providing the right to outside competition entry;
• Ensure timely approval of the testing program for all subjects not later than October 2011, which would create preconditions for more high-quality preparation of tests to the developers;
• Publish information on each subject, or session on the number of entrants who answered the 100% task testing and compare data from the 2008-2010 years.
Graduates and their parents
• More carefully prepare to the EIT not only on the content of the subject, but also on procedural requirements;
• In case of violations of test participant’s rights shall he immediately report the incident to public observers, UCEQE, regional CEQEs and MESYSU.
SELECTED CURIOUS INCIDENTS
Foreign languages
Observers of OPORA recorded the case when the test participant was denied the right to continue to work on tasks because of trying to get help. The graduate came down from the third floor, where the EIT was performed at first to talk on the phone. On-duties noticed the violation and made the act of removing a participant from the point of testing (secondary school № 65 of Lviv). And in the Interregional Center of Vocational Education for artistic modeling and design in Lviv, the evaluation was organized in workshops for tailoring.
At the testing point , which was located in Zaporizhzhya National University, the graduate with damaged spine had to solve the tests over 2 hours, standing on the desk on the knees. The staff wasn’t warned about the special needs of the graduate in advance, so the staff workers couldn't provide nothing further than sympathy.
Mathematics
In gymnasia number 3 of Kherson the police who should control the pass and make the verification test of participants’ documents, came to the point of testing only at 11:00. In his defense the workers of Ministry said they were told by the direction to come just at the beginning of testing. and not before.
In PT school № 9 (Rivne), the graduate tried to ask the right answers when the public observer was in the toilet.
Ukrainian Language and Literature
Violation of the procedure was recorded in Kuznetsovsk school № 1 (Rivne).The on-duties couldn’t begin the admission of the graduates at a certain time to the school building. So they had to do it in the last minute before the test without verification of documents. An authorized person that was present at this testing point didn’t give an opportunity to fulfill their legitimate duty and Import this information into the protocol. The Rivne office prepared an appeal addressed to the Director of the UCEQE about the impedion of work of observers.
To the testing point, which is located at the Zaporizhzhya Institute of Economics and Information Technology (Melitopol), some students could not get in time. The reason for delay was the major test by SAI for the local carriers. Most taxis in the city are illegal and they did not leave on schedule at work, and test participants who were not prepared for such force majeure could not appear on the testing spot at a specified time. However, for those students who were late for 5 or 10 minutes was an exception and they participated in testing.
In the Mykolayiv School number 50, the on-duty did not allow public observers to the testing room. He demanded an unknown document entitled: "napravleniye".Although the problem was resolved in favor of an observer, it’s a shame that some organizers were not sufficiently knowledgeable in the procedures.
In testing points in Vinnytsia the guards use metal detectors, and it was previously known by the graduates. Everyone who comes from audiences is checked for the mobile phones and other technical devices. This makes a very positive effect on discipline.
In the secondary school № 4 in Colomyya the applicants who have completed work on the tasks were carrying mobile phones and used them freely at the point of testing. In the audience number 19 the instructor also abused this. Her phone called twice (at 12:15 and 12:57). She left the audience to answer the call.More than once in the audience, watched by activists of OPORA, one could hear sounds of ringtones from corridors.
In Ivano-Frankivsk (secondary school number 21) 7 instructors didn’t appear on the testing for unknown reasons. However, the replacement was found quickly and is in no way affected the course of testing.
More information:
063-617-97-50
044-286-26-70
Note: Observations are in the national EIT monitoring campaign with the assistance of the Alliance of Program to assist in independent testing in Ukraine (USETI Legacy Alliance).
To the media!
After calling on the hotline number of the organization (044) 225 32 81, you can get expert help or report the abuse. OPORA hopes that it will help to protect the rights of those students who wish honestly get a student ID. If you want to be our media partner and place a banner of free telephone hotline, please let us know at [email protected]. For his part, OPORA will always be ready to provide you with the latest information on monitoring IET or admissions, to help prepare informational material, place a banner of socially responsible media on its website.