Examination-type preferences of secondary school students and their teachers in the science disciplines

A specially developed questionnaire was used: Types of Preferred Examinations (TOPE) to assess examination-type preferences of secondary school students in the Science disciplines according to school type affiliate and gender. Structured interviews were employed to assess both the rationale of students towards these preferences as well as teacher awareness about the preferences — in contrast to their actual "examination practice." Our findings suggest that (a) secondary school students prefer written, unlimited time examinations which, according to their perception, stress learning with understanding rather than mechanical rote learning, and in which the use of supporting material ("open book exams") is permitted; and (b) secondary school Science teachers are aware of student examination-type preferences, yet they continue to use the traditional written, time-limited — class examination which is definitely not preferred (disliked) by their students. In view of the special emphasis in current science education research on students' development of higher-order cognitive skills (HOCS) and the need for consonance between the new curriculum goals and examination types used, it is proposed that provisions be made to facilitate teachers' compliance with students' examination-type preferences provided the latter are congruent with learning objectives and our educational aspirations.