End of Rotation™ Exams Proctoring Policies Extended
Earlier this year, PAEA temporarily waived proctoring policies for End of Rotation exams due to COVID-19. We are now extending this decision for at least another six months to accommodate programs that continue to require increased flexibility in exam administration due to the pandemic. Given this decision, we will not publish Version 8 of the End of Rotation exams this July; rather, Version 7 will remain active and in circulation for current and new cohorts.
Please note: PAEA will continue to support our member programs and provide ample notice prior to the recovery of our proctoring policy and the release of Version 8.
Since PAEA is continuing to use Version 7 End of Rotation exams, programs may wonder what impact this could have on their grading. The short answer is: continuing with Version 7 will have minimal to no impact on grading schema. Scale scores allow programs to compare results from the same or different versions of the exam from year to year and between cohorts. Therefore, programs can continue to compare students’ scores as they have in the past along with using the same grading system. The version of the exam does not matter regarding this analysis.
It is also worth reiterating how national data for PAEA End of Rotations exams are developed. PAEA End of Rotation exam national comparative data remains stable year-round. National comparative data are based on the performance of a reference population of student test-takers, not current student test-takers. That reference population took End of Rotation exams in past years with either live in-person or live remote proctors.
If you are currently administering End of Rotation exams in an unproctored and/or non-secured environment, caution is advised when interpreting individual student performance, comparing current unproctored scores to proctored scores from previous administrations, and making inferences based on the national comparative data provided on score reports. The integrity of unproctored administrations will rely on the honor system and codes of conduct of the educational institution, and thus cohort-level statistics may better reflect the shift in exam administration practices.
PAEA will continue to make updates to adjust to the conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic. We’re currently working on increasing access to exams, preparing resources for our member programs, and updating PAEA’s policies. We will communicate updates to programs so that they can plan accordingly. If you have questions, please contact us, and we will answer and post them on our platforms for the community’s awareness.
