A Comparison of Placement in First-Year University Mathematics Courses Using Paper and Online Administration of a Placement Test

Phyllis A. Schumacher; Richard M. Smith

doi:10.29333/iejme/226

Full Text (PDF)

Phyllis A. Schumacher, Richard M. Smith

More Detail

Abstract

Today, many universities in the United States use mathematics placement tests in combination with high school grades and SAT scores to place students in freshman mathematics courses. In an attempt to make this process more convenient for students and universities, these tests are beginning to be given online. This paper describes the history of a university mathematics placement test, originally given in 1992, which was converted to an online format in 2005. The placement method is described and a logistic regression is used to evaluate the accuracy of the online placement procedure in comparison to the placement with the paper test.

Keywords

Mathematics Placement
Online Placement Tests
First-Year Mathematics Courses

License

This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Article Type: Research Article

INT ELECT J MATH ED, Volume 3, Issue 3, October 2008, 193-202

https://doi.org/10.29333/iejme/226

Publication date: 12 Dec 2008

Article Views: 2801

Article Downloads: 1883

Open Access References How to cite this article

References

Ager, T. (1993). Online placement testing in mathematics and chemistry. Journal of Computer-Based Instruction, 20(2), 52-57.
Baron, J., & Norman, M. (1992). Sats, achievement tests, and high-school class rank as predictors of college performance. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 52(4), 1047-1055.
Bettinger, E. & Long, B. (2005). Addressing the needs of under-prepared students in higher education: Does college remediation work? National Bureau of Economic Research, Pp. 1-28.
Bridgeman, B. (1982). Comparative validity of the College Board Scholastic Aptitude Test Mathematics and the Descriptive Tests of Mathematics Skills for predicting performance in college mathematics courses. Educational and Psychological Measurements, 42, 361-366.
Casey, B. (1997). Mediators of gender differences in mathematics college entrance test scores: A comparison of spatial skills with internalized beliefs and anxieties. Developmental Psychology, 33, 669-680.
Dalton, S. (1976). A decline in predictive validity of the SAT and high school achievement. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 36, 445-448.
Edge, O. & Friedburg, S. (1984). Factors affecting achievement in the first course in calculus. Journal of Experimental Education, 52, 136-140.
Fair Test: (2006). The National Center for Fair and Open Testing. http://204.3.298.20/facts/satvalidity.html on 6/14/2006. Accessed on June 14, 2006.
Fincher, C. (1974). Is the SAT worth its salt? Evaluation of the use of the Scholastic Aptitude Test in the university system of Georgia over a thirteen-year period. Review of Educational Research, 44, 292-305.
Gougeon, D. (1985). CEEB SAT mathematics scores and their correlation with college performance in math. Educational Research Quarterly, 8-11.
Gusset, J.C. (1974). CEEB SAT scores as a predictor for college mathematics grades. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 34, 953-955.
Howlett, J. (1978). A study of placement methods for entering freshmen in the proper mathematics sequence at Michigan Technological University. The Mathematics Teacher, 62, 651-659.
Jacobs, L. (1995). GPA prediction procedures and normative data for freshmen. Indiana studies in higher education number fifty-two. Bureau of Evaluative Studies and Testing. Indiana University, Bloomington, IN. Mauger, P. &
Kolmodin, C. (1975). Long-term predictive validity of the Scholastic Aptitude Test. Journal of Educational and Psychological Measurement, 31, 939-945.
Noble, J. & Sawyer, R. (1982). Predicting grades in college freshman English and mathematics courses. Journal of College Student Development, 30, 345-353.
Odell, P. & Schumacher, P. (1995). Placement in first-year college mathematics courses using scores on SAT Math and a test of algebra skills. Primus, 5(1), 61-70.
Pearson, B. (1993). Prediction validity of the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) for Hispanic bilingual students. Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences, 15, 342-356.
Pfeifer, C. & Sedlacek, W. (1971). The validity of academic predictors for black and white students at a predominately white university. Journal of Educational Measurement, 8(4), 253-261.
Shermis, M., Mzumara, H., Brown, M. & Lillig, C. Computerized adaptive testing through the World Wide Web. (1997). Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Society. http://eric.ed.gov/ERICDocs/data/ericdocs2/content_storage_01/00000000b/80/23/9e/21.pdf. Accessed on March 19, 2007.
Smith, R. & Schumacher, P. (2005). Predicting success for actuarial students in undergraduate mathematics courses. College Student Journal, 39, 165-178.
Sutherland, S. (2006). Improving the administration of mathematics placements tests. Campus Technology. http://www.campustechnology.com/article.aspx?aid=41024. Accessed on May 29, 2007.
Troutman, J. (1978). Cognitive predictors of final grades in finite mathematics. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 38, 401-404.
Wainer, H. and L. Steinburg. (1992). Sex differences in performances on the mathematics section of the Scholastic Aptitude Test: a bidirectional validity study. Harvard Educational Review, 62, 323-336.

How to cite this article

APA

Schumacher, P. A., & Smith, R. M. (2008). A Comparison of Placement in First-Year University Mathematics Courses Using Paper and Online Administration of a Placement Test. International Electronic Journal of Mathematics Education, 3(3), 193-202. https://doi.org/10.29333/iejme/226

Vancouver

Schumacher PA, Smith RM. A Comparison of Placement in First-Year University Mathematics Courses Using Paper and Online Administration of a Placement Test. INT ELECT J MATH ED. 2008;3(3):193-202. https://doi.org/10.29333/iejme/226

AMA

Schumacher PA, Smith RM. A Comparison of Placement in First-Year University Mathematics Courses Using Paper and Online Administration of a Placement Test. INT ELECT J MATH ED. 2008;3(3), 193-202. https://doi.org/10.29333/iejme/226

Chicago

Schumacher, Phyllis A., and Richard M. Smith. "A Comparison of Placement in First-Year University Mathematics Courses Using Paper and Online Administration of a Placement Test". International Electronic Journal of Mathematics Education 2008 3 no. 3 (2008): 193-202. https://doi.org/10.29333/iejme/226

Harvard

Schumacher, P. A., and Smith, R. M. (2008). A Comparison of Placement in First-Year University Mathematics Courses Using Paper and Online Administration of a Placement Test. International Electronic Journal of Mathematics Education, 3(3), pp. 193-202. https://doi.org/10.29333/iejme/226

MLA

Schumacher, Phyllis A. et al. "A Comparison of Placement in First-Year University Mathematics Courses Using Paper and Online Administration of a Placement Test". International Electronic Journal of Mathematics Education, vol. 3, no. 3, 2008, pp. 193-202. https://doi.org/10.29333/iejme/226