A Comparative Study of the Purchase, Management and Use of Large-scale Research Equipment in the UK and US Universities (report for Evidence Ltd on behalf of the Higher Education Funding Council for England)

As coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) continues to disrupt pretertiary education provision and examinations in the United Kingdom, urgent consideration must be given to how best to support the ...

Supporting students during the transition to university in COVID-19: Five key considerations and recommendations for educators

Increasing evidence has shown that the Covid-19 outbreak, and subsequent school closures and exam cancellations that followed, has impacted adolescent mental health. The current cross-sectional study examined rates of depression, anxiety and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)-like symptoms about Covid-19 in adolescents and whether current or past mental health support, additional support in school, keyworker status, poorer household relationships since the outbreak of Covid-19 or reduced physical activity were associated with elevated levels of depression, anxiety or PTSD-like symptoms. Lastly, it examined perceived changes in mental health due to the Covid-19 pandemic, school closures and the cancellation of exams. A total of 899 adolescents (14–18 years) took part in the ’in isolation instead of in school’ (INISS) project. Findings indicated that older adolescents, females, those who currently or previously received mental health support or additional support in school and adolescents who reported poorer relationships at home since Covid-19 were more likely to meet clinical threshold levels for their mental health. Adolescents highlighted worsening of their mental health due to Covid-19 and school closures with mixed positive and negative impact of exam cancellations. Adolescents experiencing clinical threshold levels of depression and anxiety uniquely reported worsening of their mental health since the Covid-19 pandemic, school closures and exam cancellations. Understanding the rates, perceptions and factors associated with increases in depression, anxiety and PTSD-like symptoms in adolescents during the Covid-19 pandemic will inform national policy in supporting adolescent mental health and recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic.

Rates, perceptions and predictors of depression, anxiety and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)-like symptoms about Covid-19 in adolescents

Calculated A-level grades will replace actual, attained A-levels and other Key Stage 5 qualifications in 2020 in the UK as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. This paper assesses the likely consequences for medical schools in particular, beginning with an overview of the research literature on predicted grades, concluding that calculated grades are likely to correlate strongly with the predicted grades that schools currently provide on UCAS applications. A notable absence from the literature is evidence on whether predicted grades are better or worse than actual grades in predicting university outcomes. This paper provides such evidence on the reduced predictive validity of predicted A-level grades in comparison with actual A-level grades. The present study analyses the extensive data on predicted and actual grades which are available in UKMED (United Kingdom Medical Education Database), a large-scale administrative dataset containing longitudinal data from medical school application, through undergraduate and then postgraduate training. In particular, predicted A-level grades as well as actual A-level grades are available, along with undergraduate outcomes and postgraduate outcomes which can be used to assess predictive validity of measures collected at selection. This study looks at two UKMED datasets. In the first dataset we compare actual and predicted A-level grades in 237,030 A-levels taken by medical school applicants between 2010 and 2018. 48.8% of predicted grades were accurate, grades were over-predicted in 44.7% of cases and under-predicted in 6.5% of cases. Some A-level subjects, General Studies in particular, showed a higher degree of over-estimation. Similar over-prediction was found for Extended Project Qualifications, and for SQA Advanced Highers. The second dataset considered 22,150 18-year old applicants to medical school in 2010 to 2014, who had both predicted and actual A-level grades. 12,600 students entered medical school and had final year outcomes available. In addition there were postgraduate outcomes for 1,340 doctors. Undergraduate outcomes are predicted significantly better by actual, attained A-level grades than by predicted A-level grades, as is also the case for postgraduate outcomes. Modelling the effect of selecting only on calculated grades suggests that because of the lesser predictive ability of predicted grades, medical school cohorts for the 2020 entry year are likely to under-attain, with 13% more gaining the equivalent of the current lowest decile of performance, and 16% fewer gaining the equivalent of the current top decile, effects which are then likely to follow through into postgraduate training. The problems of predicted/calculated grades can to some extent, although not entirely, be ameliorated, by taking U(K)CAT, BMAT, and perhaps other measures into account to supplement calculated grades. Medical schools will probably also need to consider whether additional teaching is needed for entrants who are struggling, or might have missed out on important aspects of A-level teaching, with extra support being needed, so that standards are maintained. “… the … exam hall [is] a level playing field for all abilities, races and genders to get the grades they truly worked hard for and in true anonymity (as the examiners marking don’t know you). [… Now we] are being given grades based on mere predictions.” Yasmin Hussein, letter to The Guardian, March 29th 2020 [1]. “[Let’s] be honest, this year group will always be different.” Dave Thomson, blogpost on FFT Educational Lab [2] “One headmistress commented that ‘entrance to university on teachers’ estimates may be fraught with unimagined difficulties’. … If there is in the future considerable emphasis on school assessment, some work of calibration is imperatively called for.” James Petch, December 1964[3].

/pdf/calculated-grades-predicted-grades-forecasted-grades-and-3x5ejl3k3g.pdf

Calculated grades, predicted grades, forecasted grades and actual A-level grades: Reliability, correlations and predictive validity in medical school applicants, undergraduates, and postgraduates in a time of COVID-19

Medical schools in the UK typically use prior academic attainment and an admissions test (University Clinical Aptitude Test (UCAT), Biomedical Admissions Test (BMAT) or the Graduate Medical School Admissions Test (GAMSAT)) to help select applicants for interview. To justify their use, more information is needed about the predictive validity of these tests. Thus, we investigated the relationship between performance in admissions tests and the Membership of the Royal College of Surgeons (MRCS) examination. The UKMED database (https://www.ukmed.ac.uk) was used to access medical school selection data for all UK graduates who attempted MRCS Part A (n=11 570) and Part B (n=5690) between 2007 and 2019. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression models identified independent predictors of MRCS success. Pearson correlation coefficients examined the linear relationship between test scores and MRCS performance. Successful MRCS Part A candidates scored higher in A-Levels, UCAT, BMAT and GAMSAT (p The utility of admissions tests is clear with respect to helping medical schools select from large numbers of applicants for a limited number of places. Additionally, these tests appear to offer incremental value above A-Level performance alone. We expect this data to guide medical schools’ use of admissions test scores in their selection process.

https://pmj.bmj.com/content/postgradmedj/early/2021/03/09/postgradmedj-2021-139748.full.pdf

Performance at medical school selection correlates with success in Part A of the intercollegiate Membership of the Royal College of Surgeons (MRCS) examination

Objective To describe medical applicants’ experiences of education and their views on changes to medical school admissions, including the awarding of calculated grades, following the 2020 closure of schools and universities, and the cancellation of public examinations in the United Kingdom due to the COVID-19/coronavirus pandemic. To understand how applicants from diverse social backgrounds might differ in these regards. Design Cross-sectional questionnaire study forming part of the longitudinal United Kingdom Medical Applicant Cohort Study (UKMACS). Setting United Kingdom medical school admissions. Participants 2887 participants (68% female; 64% with at least one degree-educated parent; 63% with at least one parent in the highest socioeconomic group) completed an online questionnaire between 8th and 22nd April 2020. To be invited to complete the questionnaire, participants had to have registered to take the University Clinical Admissions Test (UCAT) in 2019 and to have agreed to be invited to take part in the study, or they needed to have completed one or more previous UKMACS questionnaires. They also need to have been seriously considering applying to study medicine in the UK for entry in 2020 between May and October 2019, and be resident in the UK or Islands/Crown Dependencies. Main outcome measures Views on calculated grades, views on potential changes to medical school admissions and teaching in 2020 and 2021, reported experiences of education following the closure of educational institutions in March 2020. Results Respondents had concerns about the calculated grades that will replace A-level examinations, especially female applicants and applicants from Black Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) backgrounds who felt teachers would find it difficult to grade and rank students accurately, as well as those from non-selective state schools and those living in deprived areas who had some concerns about the grade standardisation process. Calculated grades were not considered fair enough by a majority to use in the acceptance or rejection of medical offer-holders, but several measures - including interview and aptitude test scores - were considered fair enough to use in combination. Respondents from non-selective state (public) schools reported less use of and less access to educational resources compared to their counterparts at private/selective schools. In particular they reported less online teaching in real time, and reported spending less time studying during the lockdown. Conclusions The coronavirus pandemic will have significant and long term impacts on the selection, education and performance of our future medical workforce. It is important that the views and experiences of medical applicants from diverse backgrounds are taken into consideration in decisions affecting their futures and the future of the profession.

https://medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.06.02.20116855v1.full.pdf

The attitudes, perceptions and experiences of medical school applicants following the closure of schools and cancellation of public examinations in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic

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Calculated grades, predicted grades, forecasted grades and actual A-level grades: Reliability, correlations and predictive validity in medical school applicants, undergraduates, and postgraduates in a time of COVID-19

The attitudes, perceptions and experiences of medical school applicants following the closure of schools and cancellation of public examinations in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic