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Inter-subject comparability of the Spanish university entrance examinations

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dc.contributor.authorVeas Iniesta, Alejandro
dc.contributor.authorGovorova, Elena
dc.contributor.departmentPsicología Evolutiva y de la Educación
dc.contributor.otherFacultad de Psicología y Logopedia
dc.date.accessioned2025-10-28T07:11:56Z
dc.date.available2025-10-28T07:11:56Z
dc.date.copyright© 2025 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group
dc.date.issued2025-10-27
dc.description.abstractThe Spanish University Entrance Examination (PAU) has been a crucial topic of political and social debates regarding intersubject comparability. In this area, most empirical reports have relied on traditional mean score comparisons or qualitative analyses of the scoring system, usually in specific autonomous communities (Spanish regions). This study aims to expand the scientific knowledge of this field by applying psychometric analysis to a large dataset of nationwide PAU examinations in exam series from 2017 to 2021. Overall, the results of Rasch measurement indicate notable differences in difficulty parameters of the same subjects within and between academic courses for the same region and for different regions of the country. We detect a lack of comparability in difficulty levels between subjects associated with the humanities and social sciences (e.g. Latin and geography), which are easier compared with those related to health or technological sciences (e.g. chemistry and biology). Additionally, score categories (1–10 points) are inappropriately distributed on the latent scale, implying a lack of student discrimination of their performance level. Given these results, this paper provides evidence-based recommendations for improving the setting of performance standards and the equity of the university access system for all Spanish students.
dc.formatapplication/pdf
dc.format.extent18
dc.identifier.citationOxford Review of Education, 2025
dc.identifier.doihttps://doi.org/10.1080/03054985.2025.2574432
dc.identifier.eissn1465-3915
dc.identifier.issn0305-4985
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10201/169629
dc.languageeng
dc.publisherTaylor and Francis Group, Routledge
dc.relationThis work was supported by Agencia Estatal de Investigación Grant [PID2020-115248RA-I00] funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033
dc.rights.accessRightsinfo:eu-repo/semantics/restrictedAccess
dc.subjectSpanish university entrance examinations
dc.subjectExamination standards
dc.subjectInter-subject comparability
dc.subjectPartial Credit Rasch Model
dc.subject.odsObjetivo 4: Educación
dc.titleInter-subject comparability of the Spanish university entrance examinations
dc.typeinfo:eu-repo/semantics/article
dspace.entity.typePublicationes
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relation.isAuthorOfPublication.latestForDiscovery8f4d62a6-2423-4b1f-9f13-d2a8838aacff
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