How can language affect the accessibility of exam questions? How do exam writers decide how long to make the questions? And who comes up with the contexts?

Craig Barton meets AQA Assessment Design Manager Georgina Holmes to explore how words are carefully chosen by exam writers, and talks to maths teacher Kate Brewer about the principles behind making learning accessible to EAL students.

Watch our YouTube video: The Power of Language: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsTUBOR8nqE&t=9s

Read about how our questions have changed over time: https://filestore.aqa.org.uk/content/inside-exams/AQA-INSIDE-EXAMS-QUESTIONS-THROUGH-TIME.PDF

Read more about the COBUILD dictionary: http://news.collinselt.com/cobuild-dictionary-online/

Read more about the Frayer model: https://www.theconfidentteacher.com/2018/04/vocabulary-knowledge-and-the-frayer-model/

Read more about the Kagan structure: https://www.t2tuk.co.uk/StudentTeacher.aspx

How can language affect the accessibility of exam questions? How do exam writers decide how long to make the questions? And who comes up with the contexts?
Craig Barton meets AQA Assessment Design Manager Georgina Holmes to explore how words are carefully chosen by exam writers, and talks to maths teacher Kate Brewer about the principles behind making learning accessible to EAL students.
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsTUBOR8nqE&amp;t=9s">Watch our YouTube video: The Power of Language</a>: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsTUBOR8nqE&amp;t=9s
<a href="https://filestore.aqa.org.uk/content/inside-exams/AQA-INSIDE-EXAMS-QUESTIONS-THROUGH-TIME.PDF">Read about how our questions have changed over time</a>: https://filestore.aqa.org.uk/content/inside-exams/AQA-INSIDE-EXAMS-QUESTIONS-THROUGH-TIME.PDF
<a href="http://news.collinselt.com/cobuild-dictionary-online/">Read more about the COBUILD dictionary</a>: http://news.collinselt.com/cobuild-dictionary-online/
<a href="https://www.theconfidentteacher.com/2018/04/vocabulary-knowledge-and-the-frayer-model/">Read more about the Frayer model</a>: https://www.theconfidentteacher.com/2018/04/vocabulary-knowledge-and-the-frayer-model/
<a href="https://www.t2tuk.co.uk/StudentTeacher.aspx">Read more about the Kagan structure</a>: https://www.t2tuk.co.uk/StudentTeacher.aspx

How are exams made accessible for students from different backgrounds? How are clever multiple choice questions written? And just how are grade boundaries awarded? 
Teacher Craig Barton meets the people involved in producing and marking exams to get the answers to your most pressing questions, as well as talking to fellow teachers about how you can apply all this new knowledge in the classroom.

Advertisement