Using Microcomputers to Score Placement Tests By Judith S. Shoemaker, [Information Systems Analyst University of California at Irvine] and Elizabeth A. St. John, [Placement Testing Coordinator University of California at Irvine] _T.H.E. JOURNAL_, November 1985, pp. 82-84. -ABSTRACT- The University of California at Irvine (UCI) offers placement tests to new students to determine enrollment in courses. In order to provide placement testing infor- mation to students and academic counselors in a timely fashion. UCI is using microcomputer software to score, report, and analyze placement testing results. This arti- cle describes the placement testing program, the use of microcomputer software for scoring and analyzing test results and the integration of the computerized test re- sults into a comprehensive microcomputer-based student information system. -UCI's Placement Testing Program- UCI invites all newly admitted students to partici- pate in the New Student Assessment Program, which offers placement tests in five academic fields: chemistry, mathe- matics, reading, writing, and English as a second lang- uage (ESL). Since the tests are used to place students in a given sequence of university courses, their content closely parallels course demands. The UCI academic depart- ments are solely responsible for the selection of the tests and the criteria used in making placement decisions. In some cases, students are exempt from taking the place- ment tests based on their admissions test results or test scores from the College Board Advanced Placement Program. Placement tests do not replace tests used to determine eligibility for the university, such as the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) and the College Board Achievement Tests. Students are required to take admission tests before entering the university; the UCI placement tests are specific to UCI courses and are only required for certain areas of study. Seven UCI placement tests are offered covering the five areas of study: one in chemistry; two in mathe- matics (intermediate algebra and precalculus); one in reading; one in writing; and two ESL tests (reading and writing). The chemistry test is required for students wanting to enroll in general chemistry. The intermediate algebra test is recommended but not required for mathe- matics courses; however the precalculus test is required for students planning to enroll in calculus. The reading test is recommended for those who may have difficulty with university-level reading assignments (defined as SAT Verbal 400 or below). The writing test (a two-hour essay) is required of those students who have not satis- fied the university's entrance requirement of an accept- able level of ability in English composition. The ESL tests are required of some international students who are non-native speakers of English. The tests are offered six times a year, starting in May and ending the week before classes begin in the Fall quarter. Approximately 2,600 new students (freshman and transfers) will participate in the testing this year (to- tal undergraduate enrollment is approximately 10,000). Students take two to three tests, depending on their course of study. Although students are not encouraged to repeat tests unless substantive learning has taken place between test dates (such as a summer school course), they may do so, with the exception of writing and ESL. If a student repeats a test, the highest score is used to de- termine course placement. The academic departments determine the grading cri- teria for each test, based on performance of prior stu- dents and on the availability of course offerings. The chemistry and mathematics departments assign students to one of three groups: 1) ready to take the first course in the sequence; 2) may take the first course but should do more studying before the course begins; and 3) not ready for the first course. In the latter case, students are advised to take a lower-level course at UCI or at a community college and are not allowed to enroll. The department of English uses two raters for each writing test. Each rater assigns a holistic score of one to six for a total number of points from two to 12. Students with high scores (ten to 12) automati- cally satisfy their lower-division writing requirement. Students with mid-range scores are asked to take a writing course to satisfy this requirement. Those with lower scores (two to three) are asked to enroll in special sections of the course and to enroll in ad- junct writing workshops. Some students are referred to the ESL department for further evaluation. Results from the reading test are used to deter- mine enrollment in non-credit reading courses, such as Vocabulary Development, or Critical Reading, which are offered by the Learning Skills Center. The ESL test results are used to place students in one of four credit-bearing ESL writing courses. -Microcomputer Scoring and Analysis- In 1985, the New Student Assessment Program pur- chased an IBM and a SCANTRON 2100 optical reader to score and analyze the placement test results. Prior to 1985, test results were scored by a SCANTRON ma- chine connected to a Sigma 7 mainframe computer housed at the university's computing facility. The change from mainframe to microcomputer was precipitated by by several factors. One of the most significant factors was the development of a microcomputer-based student infor- mation system by the Office of Undergraduate Studies which manages the New Student Assessment Program. The information system, which will consist of six to seven IBM PC XTs and ATs (one of which will be connected to a host computer) will contain informa- tion on students' use of academic support services, grades in courses, demographic information, and aca- demic background. The placement test information is a critical part of this larger microcomputer-based system. The decision to use a microcomputer to score the placement tests was also a cost-effective move. In two years, the microcomputer, scoring machine, and software will be paid for by savings from the computing facility accounts which are no longer needed. A user-owned system also frees the testing pro- gram from dependence on the priorities of other campus units. For example, access to the optical card reader connected to the Sigma 7 could not be guaranteed since it was a multi-user machine serving the entire campus community. Since turnaround time is a critical component of the placement testing pro- gram, especially during the summer, the best way to ensure a quick response was to have a user-owned system. The interface between the SCANTRON machine and the IBM PC XT is accomplished using a software pro- gram called ParSYSTEM, developed by Professor Ralph Lewis of Orange Coast College and John Lucas of Economics Research, Inc. The system is a comprehensive test preparation, analysis, and record keeping software program which has been in development for two years and field-tested in a dozen high schools, colleges, and universities. The program accommodates up to 600 students per class and 90 different tests per student. Results can be combined across a maximum of nine classes for cumulative reports. Grades are assigned based on user-defined criteria, including weighting of items and of tests. Student rosters for each class can be created three different ways: from SCANTRON forms, mainframe computer systems, or the IBM PC keyboard. An error log identifies students' multiple marks and omitted items, a feature which is useful in identifying stray marks or poor erasures which are interfering with the test scores. The software also can be used to assign student codes, such as sex and major, which can be used for analysis. From the program's main menu, the user may select one of the following options: 1. Create a class roster or add student(s) to a class; 2. Grade or re- grade a test; 3. Display or edit a class roster; 4. Inspect or modify the grading criteria; 5. Generate printed reports; 6. Other options; 7. Quit. The user selects one of these options and then is prompted with another set of menus to complete the process selected. For example, option 5 eventually leads to this menu: 1. Item Analysis; 2. Distribution of Scores; 3. Range and Grade Distribution; 4. Historgram; 5. Individual Student Responses; 6. Error Log. Another menu can be used to print rosters and cumulative reports. The pro- gram is able to create ASCII files which can be "un- loaded" to create external files for further analyses (e.g., using a statistical analysis software package). The minimum configuration needed includes: an IBM PC or compatible with 256 Kbytes RAM; monochrome or color display; two floppy disk drives or one floppy drive and one hard disk (XT); one 80-column printer; a SCANTRON reader; one RS-232 serial port for SCANTRON; and MS-DOS 2.0 or higher. At UCI, ParSCORE is being run on an IBM PC XT with 640 Kbytes RAM with one floppy disk drive and on 10-Mbyte hard disk, and IBM graphics printer, a SCANTRON 2100, and a Persyst memory board with RS-232 serial port, clock/calendar, and print spooling software. Although the system was designed primarily for classroom instructors, at UCI it is being adapted to fit the requirements of large-scale test administra- tion and data analysis. It is used to create separate test files for each test given on a specific test date. These test files are combined on each test date and across dates to create cumulative reports. Rosters for each test file are created directly from the Card Reader forms. The front side of the form includes the student name, registration number, and special codes (e.g., major). The back side repeats the registration number and is used for students' answers to multiple- choice questions. The back side also contains a three- digit field which is used to record essay test results. Students receive the forms the day of testing. The staff of the New Student Assessment Program completes the front side, including any special codes, using lists generated by the Office of Admissions. Students use the back side to record their answers. The tests are then returned to the New Student Assessment Program by the test administrators. Multiple-choice placement tests (chemistry, mathe- matics, and reading) are scored immediately after they are administered. Forms with the essay test scores (writing and ESL) are returned from the raters within two to ten working days, depending on the number of stu- dents tested. After the forms have been read, the roster is created, the test results are posted, and grades as- signed based on user-defined criteria. In lieu of grades, UCI assigns students to specific courses based on their test results. Using a microcomputer to score and analyze the placement test results has greatly enhanced the New Stu- dent Assessment Program at UCI. Tests can be scored quickly and results sent out promptly. Summary informa- tion is available for a variety of campus decision- makers, including administrators and academic counselors. Use of the microcomputer also forges a link in the larger microcomputer-based student information system being developed at UCI by the Office of Undergraduate Studies. -30-