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Using
Parscore to Grade Tests
Tips for ParScore:
- Call Mary Lou Ramos (x4278) at Instructional Development (located
at Kerr Hall) to set up an appointment time after the exam to score
the tests (make sure that you do this early in the quarter, so that
you can get a time slot that fits your schedule; remember that there
is only one system for everyone!)
- Make sure students (and you) have the right ParScore form. ParScore
was updated a few years ago, and the old forms will not work in the
new system. The correct form is Form No. F-1712-ERI-L. A helpful hint:
the correct form has lines (for essay-writing) on the back of the form;
the old forms did not have this feature. Students should buy their own
ParScore forms – they are available in the bookstore and in many
UCSB snack shops. TAs can get ParScore forms for answer keys from the
front desk of the psych building. Also, it is a good idea to bring extra
forms on test days, as inevitably a few students will have no form or
the wrong one. You can purchase extra PasScore forms at the front desk
for $.10 each. Be sure to get reimbursed from your students.
- Make sure students bubble in their perm numbers and the form # (or
letter) of their test (e.g. Form A or Form B) on the ParScore sheet.
Without this information, ParScore cannot correctly record grading information.
They should also write in and bubble in their names. For classes with
multiple TAs, you might also want to have them fill in a code to indicate
their TA or section time.
- If there are short answer or essay components to the test that you
would like to be included in the overall score, grade these free response
sections prior to coming to Mary Lou. Record the total score for free
response sections in the Exam Number box on the ParScore form. There
are spaces for three digits, and you must put a number in each space.
Thus, if a student’s essay score is 56, you record 056. Then,
when the ParScore system totals a student’s score for the entire
exam, it will add up the multiple choice score as well as the free response
score.
- Take a PC compatible disk with you when you visit Mary Lou so that
you can have your own copy of the exam data. You can also e-mail the
spreadsheet to yourself. Mary Lou keeps a copy of the data as well.
- To save time, bubble in an answer key for each form of the test BEFORE
your session with Mary Lou.
- How much time you’ll need to score the exams will greatly depend
on your students’ bubble-filling techniques (seriously) –
so be sure to remind your class to fill in the bubbles completely, to
erase well and to NOT leave any items blank. For a class of 900 students,
it can take 3-4 hours to run the forms through the machine.
Scoring a New Test
- Select #2 (Score a Test) on the main menu of ParScore
- Select #1 (Score a New Test)
- Select what you are scoring (e.g., quiz, midterm, final, etc.)
- Type in general information asked about the test (e.g., date, how
many test forms, multiple marks, omitted marks, weighted points)
- Scan in ParScore exam key
Problems when scanning student sheets
- ID # (not found on class list, omitted, or invalid number due to
multiple marks)
- Test form field (omitted or multiple marks)
- Exam questions (omitted or multiple marks, ParScore will tell you
exactly which questions are problematic)
Ending the Scoring Process
- Press END OF BATCH on the scantron machine
- Press ESC (it will ask you whether or not you have any more exams
to score)
- Press N for no
- Returns to the Main Menu
Printing Reports
- Select #5 (print reports and rosters) on the Main Menu
- Select the class(es) that you want the reports printed for
- Select the reports that you want. There are 5 options:
- Current test reports (item analysis, distribution of scores, range
and grade distribution, histogram, individual detail response, error
log)
- Rosters and cumulative reports
- Reports for any roster column
- Individual student reports
- Progress report
Advantages of ParScore
- Allows you to get more information about each question on the exam
(how many students got the item correct/incorrect; how many students
put A, B, C, or D; how many of the top 25% of the class got the item
correct; how many of the bottom 25% of the class got the item correct,
etc.) than you can get from using Scantrons.
- Allows you to print a separate score report for each student.
- There is less re-grading necessary since the machine spits out forms
with omitted and/or double answers (usually due to faint penciling and
to poor erasing).
- If there is an error or later alteration on the scoring key, it’s
really easy to re-score everyone’s exams.
Disadvantages of ParScore
- You have to plan ahead of time to set up appointments with Mary Lou.
- The system is only available during Mary Lou’s working hours
(9-5).
- There is only one system for all departments on campus, which means
it can get very busy during midterms and finals.
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