Equity Issues in Performance Assessment: The Contribution of Teacher-Assessed Coursework to Gender-Related Differences in Examination Performance

This article discusses the particular consequences for equity issues in testing and evaluation with the inclusion of performance assessment components in public examinations. The article outlines the relative contribution that examination components make, especially teacher-assessed coursework, to gender-related differences in performance. Since the introduction of coursework in 1988 into mainstream examining in the UK, via the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE), it has been generally welcomed as an effective motivator of pupils and has enhanced performance. However, since 1994, we have seen a considerable reduction in the amount of coursework available within the GCSE syllabuses. This has had major implications for how this type of assessment is seen within the examination system. There is also a widespread perception that while teacher-assessed coursework generally favours pupils, it actually favours girls more than boys in terms of better (GCSE) performance. The research presented in this article investigates this issue further. Two factors are considered: The extent to which examination components in reality operate as intended and whether coursework does contribute disproportionately to girls’ final grades. Both these factors have implications for the consequential and differential validity of these examinations.