ERIC Number: EJ1272476
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2020
Pages: 9
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-1305-8223
EISSN: N/A
Physics Teachers' Views and Practices on the Assessment of Students' Practical Work Skills
Zezekwa, Nicholas; Nkopodi, Nkopodi
EURASIA Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, v16 n8 Article em1865 2020
Practical work must be assessed in a way that will promote the development of key skills necessary for destinations beyond the physics school laboratory. This paper reports on a study which sought to find out teachers' views and practices on the assessment of Advanced Level ('A' level) physics students' practical work skills. Individual interviews and focus group discussions were conducted to get physics teachers' views and practices on practical work skills assessment. The views of physics teachers were that the current method of practical work assessment used by the Zimbabwe Schools Examination Council (Zimsec) is not efficient in encouraging students to develop a variety of practical work skills as students concentrated on mastering presentation and analysis skills at the expense of other crucial practical work skills like equipment manipulation, observational, planning and designing. The study recommends that alternative methods of practical work assessment that integrates both direct assessment of practical work skills (DAPS) and indirect assessment of practical work skills (IAPS) should be used to ensure valid and reliable assessment of practical work skills of 'A' level physics students.
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, Science Teachers, Teacher Attitudes, Physics, Student Evaluation, Advanced Students, Science Process Skills, Performance Based Assessment
Modestum. No: 1 Windrush Road, Hilton Derbyshire, DE65 5LB, UK. e-mail: ejmste@ejmste.com; Web site: https://www.ejmste.com/
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Zimbabwe
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A