Rozas Assael, Tamara Camila;
(2022)
Assessment & Social Justice in a Context of High-Stakes Testing: Conceptions and Experiences of the SIMCE test in Three Chilean Schools Orientated by Inclusive Principles.
Doctoral thesis (Ph.D), UCL (University College London).
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Abstract
Based on a wide range of positive assumptions about educational assessment, large-scale and highstakes testing has become globally popular. In Latin America, Chile was one of the first countries to adopt a national test (SIMCE), introducing high consequences for schools and teachers. International literature has warned of the negative effects of this kind of testing on minorities and students from disadvantaged groups, leading researchers to reflect on consequential validity and sociocultural perspectives regarding the fairness of assessments. In the case of Chile, few studies have explored the relationship between social justice and high-stakes testing, which is relevant considering the high levels of socioeconomic and academic segregation. Using a qualitative multiple case study, I investigated conceptions and experiences regarding assessment and social justice based on the SIMCE test in three state schools in Chile with an inclusive orientation (serving students with special needs, cultural diversity, and delayed school paths). The data collection methods included interviews, workshops, focus groups, surveys, observations, and documentary analysis with school community members including staff, students, and parents. The data were analysed using thematic analysis and a theoretical framework based on a concept of social justice taken from the philosopher Nancy Fraser. The findings showed that SIMCE had a significant impact on school life but as a way of control that tended to impoverish education, and it had limited contribution to dimensions of social justice. In addition, the school staff's conceptions of social justice regarding assessment diverged significantly from SIMCE policy, which led them to see SIMCE as unfair. The staff tended to have a Rawlsian perspective of social justice, based on equity, pedagogical purposes, and a notion of fairness close to a sociocultural perspective, whereas SIMCE was more in line with a utilitarian perspective based on the purpose of accountability and fairness focused on equality.
| Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Qualification: | Ph.D |
| Title: | Assessment & Social Justice in a Context of High-Stakes Testing: Conceptions and Experiences of the SIMCE test in Three Chilean Schools Orientated by Inclusive Principles |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | Copyright © The Author 2022. Original content in this thesis is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) Licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/). Any third-party copyright material present remains the property of its respective owner(s) and is licensed under its existing terms. Access may initially be restricted at the author’s request. |
| UCL classification: | UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education > IOE - Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education UCL |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10156919 |
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