Assessment of practical work in Physics SEC

Abstract

This study explored the way in which physics teachers in Maltese State Secondary schools assess the practical component of the Physics SEC examination. The study involved working with two teachers from a girls’ secondary school and two teachers from a boys’ secondary school within the same College in order to explore how they actually assess practical work. Observations and interviews were the main research tool adopted in the methodology of this qualitative research project. The main aim of this dissertation was to gain insight into the teachers’ methods of assessing Physics practical work. Some of the major findings of this study revealed how the participants give different levels of importance to the same section of the practical work. There were participants who awarded 2 marks for the conclusion and others gave it 4 marks. It was also found that different teachers within the same College assess the practical work using different criteria, which to some extent, are also different from those presented by MATSEC.