KANSAN.COM THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN MONDAY, MAY 10, 2010 FINALS GUIDE
17
Scantrons provide convenient, accurate grading
10
BY SARAH PLAKE editor@kansan.com
Many students here at KU are familiar with a pink sheet filled with rows and rows of tiny bubbles lettered A-E. Whether receiving this pink sheet at test time is accompanied with anxiety, worry, or total composure, most of America's students have probably felt the same way.
According to the website, www.scantron.com, about 80 percent of America's schools use Scantrons. The Scantron form, a diagnostic testing method, is a multiple choice, fill-in-the-bubble system arranged in columns. The form is usually scored by a grading machine, which has been used since 1972, helping to eliminate mistakes and speed up the grading process.
At the University of Kansas, Scantron testing is used mainly for large classes, student-teacher evaluations and surveys.
"I use the Scantron sheets purely for convenience," Allan Hanson, professor of anthropology, said. "With multiple-choice questions, it is very time consuming to grade them by hand. With a large class, the Scantron is by far the best way to grade them."
As for grading, instructors take their Scantron sheets to Testing Services, which is located on the second floor of Watkins Health
Center. Testing Services provides exam grading for more than 39 departments on campus, exam proctoring and Survey Design and Scanning.
An instructor must provide a key so the Scantron forms can be graded. Testing Services guarantees a 24-hour turnaround, but the scanning process usually takes about two hours, Celeste Smith, assistant director of Counseling and Psychological Services said.
While there is a place on campus to grade K-12 Scantron forms, Watkins Health Center is the only location where the University's forms are grad
"Scantrons minimize grading errors and provide good diagnostic tools for determining which questions were most often missed."
through the machine and another person prepares the reports after they are graded. After the tests are done, the instructors are called and they receive the report, which is a statistical assessment that helps the instructor evalu
ed. Testing Services is a division of Counseling and Psychological Services that grew out of psychological testing into academic testing. When they are not scanning Scantrons, they are proctoring exams for students taking distance education courses at other universities.
There is one machine that grades the tests. During busy times, there are three people working in the office. One person arranges the Scantrons in order, one person runs them
EDWARD WILEY Biology professor
ate how the questions on the test were answered and what scores were received.
"I would prefer to ask short answer and essay questions. However, Scantrons minimize grading errors and provide good diagnostic tools for determining which questions were most often missed." Edward Wiley, biology professor, said.
This ensures a more efficient test next time and a
"It is nice to get the data that accompanies corrected Scantrons, things like mean, median and mode on class totals or individual problems," Daniel Katz, mathematics professor, said.
way to know percentages. Wiley said.
The grading process is very fast, however the process can be slowed down if a student makes a mistake, a Scantron is ripped or a coffee stain expands the paper.
"Then there are always people who try to game the system, but it really can't be because the system rejects it," Smith said. "There are rumors on how to cheat the system, but most of them are myths."
While using Scantrons is convenient and quick, it comes with a price. It costs about $0.07 per sheet and the average charge for reports is between $.50 and $2.00. The charges are billed directly to the instructor's department.
"Scantrons are awful. They're always multiple choice, so you can work out an entire problem and do most of the work correctly, but you can't get partial credit. I think it hinders the students," Lauren Lacey, a sophomore from Troy, Missouri, said.
"They are ridiculously expensive," Stephanie Russell, western civilization instructor, said. I can see using them for objective courses like biology, but it doesn't show meaningful learning in a course like this, but I do have to use them for evaluations."
Testing Services is open Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. After hours, there is a drop-off box outside the office.
Professors show mixed reactions to the use of Scantrons, but the students seem to have a unified opinion.
- Edited by Becky Howlett
Major in communications.
Keep up with friends, stay ahead of your coursework and stay in touch with family near and far. As a student, you can take advantage of instant savings on monthly service plans.To make it easy, we ill even waive the activation fee.Get it on the Now Network." Save with your discount for students of University of Kansas
Save 10%
on select regularly priced monthly service plans Requires two-year service agreement.
Activation fee waived for new activations.
up to $336 value.
Requires two-year service agreement
For New Service, Upgrades, or Questions
Visit Your Local Sprint Store
www.sprint.com/storelocator
***Mention the code: GEMCT_UKS_ZST
If you're already a customer, call for your discount and mention the code below 866-265-8306
Corporate ID: GEMCT_UKS_ZST
May require credit approval & deposit $200 early termination fee line applies **Individual-Liable Offer**: Applies to individual late lines eligible for a discount under their university's participation with the MCITA services agreement **NVP Empl. Discount**: Discount available to eligible students of the university participating in the NVP program. Subject to change according to the university's agreement with Sprint. Available on select plans only. Discount applies to monthly service charges only. Other Terms: Coverage not available everywhere Nationwide Sprint and New Zealand Networks reach over 276 and 277 million pieces, respectively. Offers not available in all market-specific locations or for all phoneworksbooks. Pricing, offer terms, fees & features may vary for existing customers not eligible for upgrade. Other restrictions apply. See store or Sprint.com for details. ©2010 Sprint Sprint and the logo are trademarks of Sprint. Other marks are the property of their respective owners.
N085774
M1103450
74