Two exams are spookily similar. Discuss (1 Viewer)

jase_

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http://www.smh.com.au/news/National...similar-Discuss/2004/11/05/1099547388616.html

From SMH 06/11/04



Not long after the HSC ancient history exam finished about lunchtime on Thursday, students were on a popular website comparing notes about their feelings of deja vu.

They had noticed that the exam had many questions similar, or in some cases identical to, the Catholic schools trial HSC paper thousands of students sat in August.

"HSC paper practically identical to Catholic trial," one student posted on boredofstudies.org

"Yep, the Xerxes questions were incredibly similar, too. I had the strangest feeling of deja vu," another wrote.

Both papers were set months apart by separate committees. The HSC paper was stored under lock and key in a warehouse from July. The Catholic schools paper was finalised on February 4, and students at Catholic, independent and public schools sat it in early August.

An analysis of both papers shows that a third of the 76 HSC questions had similar wording and content to the Catholic paper.

In the "Personalities" section, accounting for a quarter of the exam mark, every (a) and (c) question for the three-part essay had the same content. Three of the 12 elective options had the same content for all parts of the question.

The NSW Board of Studies, which sets the HSC exams, said in a statement: "It is pure coincidence that two separate groups of ancient history educators have developed some similar questions in this exam."

Many students could not believe their luck. One gloated on the boredofstudies website: "He, he ... I got 25/25 in the trial ... and wrote fairly similar things. So here's hoping."

Catholic school students account for a quarter of the 66,000 HSC candidates. More than 9700 students from all schools sat the history exam.

Public school teachers who contacted the Herald, but cannot make unauthorised media statements, were concerned that Catholic school students would have benefited from teacher feedback after the trial exams.

The Board of Studies spokeswoman said the two exam committees that set the questions had no common personnel.

The ancient history exam committee included only public school teachers and university academics.

Both the board and the Catholic Secondary Schools Association of NSW, which set the Catholic schools paper, said the best explanation was that both committees had stuck closely to the year 12 syllabus.

The slight differences in wording in the Personalities section, for example, "can be quite significant in terms of assessment", the board's spokeswoman said.

The HSC paper asked about Alexander the Great's "relationship with his army and generals", while the Catholic schools paper quizzed students on his "relationship with his generals".

"That both papers would include a question on Alexander's relationship with the military is unsurprising given the significance of military campaigns to his life," the board's spokeswoman said.

John Cook, convener of the Catholic schools trial HSC exam program, said the similarities showed that "both agencies have picked the central elements of the syllabus".

Mr Cook said his organisation supplied trial exam papers to 52 per cent of schools doing the HSC, including a number of independent and public schools.

It was not uncommon for exam papers to have similar questions. "We would simply stress the integrity of both of the [exam] processes, which ensure that no student has an unfair advantage," Mr Cook said.

"Significant numbers of government schools use the Catholic trial paper because it is a good examination.

For the first time since the HSC overhaul in 2000 more students this year took ancient history than modern history. It is now the ninth most popular subject.
 

Trigger189

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omg... how fricken weird reading those quotes from bored of studies!! haha
 

*rinney*

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that's freaky hey - that the media are reading all our posts eeek!
and i spose its just "arent you lucky" to the catholics who got a practically identical paper! :uhhuh: we public schools aint, ha!
 

Jezzabelle

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*rinney* said:
that's freaky hey - that the media are reading all our posts eeek!
and i spose its just "arent you lucky" to the catholics who got a practically identical paper! :uhhuh: we public schools aint, ha!
i go to a public school, we bought most of our trials, independent science trials, catholic english trials. you dont have to go to a catholic school to do their trials... i though the "telling the truth" module for Advanced had a VERY similar question to the Catholic trial english paper... but i think just coincidence... running out of ways to ask us the same question based on the entire HSC system of making us learn by rote and regurgitate
 

Sabbo

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They even put it on the front page. Scanned it if anyone's interested.
 
T

timbk2

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lol good work guys. .. told ya they look at these forums.
 

Gemstone

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Yeah I saw that. It kindda freaked me out to know there reading our posts I mean we say some stupid stuff on here. Oh well I didn't get quoted. We did the catholic trials too and I'm not from a catholic school. All schools can do them it's not limited. Anyway it's happened before with other questions it's just that because Ancient the same question is repeated so many times it's more noticeable. It's happened in English before.

~ Gemma
 

Sonik

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Pretty crazy but if you're like me & my mates...it can work against you...heaps of my mates were like...it was on the trial so it probably won't be on the HSC...but yeah...if they'd done it before...chances are that they'd still be able to come up with a good answer, even if they hadn't fully revised it again. The Alexander The Great ones were so identical haha I can't even remember if Agrippina II's were like that though.
 

RCMasterAA

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Hehe I was reading the article this morning and was like 'whoa, BOS on SMH front page!'
Well you know what they say, all publicity is good publicity.
 

Senator04

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Apparently I gloated :shy: I can't believe this. They can't take my posts and plant on the front page of one of the biggest newspapers in the country. Can they? This is so wierd
 
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Senator04

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yes I want money. :p whatever happened to chequebook journalism. Nah but seriously I mean I could have made the entire thing up and it would still be on the front page.
 

somechick

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good for u guys.
as for the poor old others who didn't have that advatange and gonna get compared to you guys, well we're screwed. Not only is ancient the ninth most popular now, everyone else is gonna get a good mark, which means that i'm (and others who are disadvataged) gonna do shite compared to you peoples. That is so unfair (sobs).
 

Gemstone

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The questions were taking straight from the syllabus and are much the same as they always are so really you should've been prepared for a question like that anyway. In the personalities they always ask something along the lines of social position and how they got to power (well at least in my one) and they ask something about their contributions. It's not like it was a huge supprise or anything.
 

somechick

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yeah but i can sure as hell say that if my trial popped up in my hsc i would have been jumping for joy in te exam room. Sure i was prepared, but you have to admit it was an advantage for the others.
 

silvermoon

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somechick said:
yeah but i can sure as hell say that if my trial popped up in my hsc i would have been jumping for joy in te exam room. Sure i was prepared, but you have to admit it was an advantage for the others.
exactly - theres a difference between studying and being prepared on a question thats likely to occur and having done the same amount of study...but also having gone over in class with your teacher those exact questions and what you needed to put in to get full marks. i would have been ecstatic if that had been the case for me.
 

Gemstone

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Well the questions I got for personality weren't exactly the same anyway but yeah I get what you guys mean about having gone through what you needed to do and stuff.
 

da_butterfree

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quite slack!

although i think i did ok in teh exam, i guess its still slack coz all those who didnt do teh catholic trials missed out on 'improving' their answers as the teachers wouldnt check them... moreover the board of studies also seems to be bullshitting when it says "it was a mere coincidence" as if they dont get access to catholic trials.. plus the board sets abt 3 hsc papers each year in case something goes wrong.. so how come they didnt do teh same this year! its so unfair...
 

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