EduStat Software
Items Banks Version
We present the "items Banks" version of the software; this version includes software options for preparing items banks and developing tests.
EduStat is a data analysis software adapted to support the implementation of evaluations projects, surveys or research in education. Its users are especially those who use opinions collection, measurement of attitude, estimation of knowledge or appreciation of the performance in order to evaluate learning. This software, available in several versions, assists the staff involved in evaluation activities. We present, in this brochure, the “items bank version” of the software.
EduStat software includes options in order to create items banks, to save relevant information in databases and to use these databases to create tests. It is also possible to produce questions banks in order to develop questionnaires.
Several persons may be associated to the creation, updating and using the items banks. While one person may carry out all the work linked to items banks, it is possible to identify three categories of staff usually associated to some specific jobs. Here is the summary presenting staff associated to activities related to the preparation of items banks and their use.
A. Preliminary work may be performed by regular users of EduStat software. These specialists will be responsible for creating the EduStat databases as well as the integration of the items in the database.
B. The inclusion of items in Word files should be entrusted to persons with knowledge of the appropriated word processing software.
C. The creation of items should be done by specialists in the evaluation of learning or achievement of questionnaires or surveys. It is these people who will use the items banks to prepare tests or questionnaires.
Here are the steps that should be retained for the creation and use of items or questions banks.
Step 1 – Preparing questions
First, create the items or questions that meet the table of specification already available. In addition to the text of the question, administrative instructions and correction instructions could be prepared. It will also be necessary to indicate, for each question, its link to the table of specification and possibly a difficulty index defined a priori by the specialist in measurement and evaluation.
Step 2 – Creating the database
A limited number of items or questions on a same subject should be grouped to allow the creation of an EduStat database. Some fields of information provided in such a database should be detailed to allow optimum use of this information when preparing tests or questionnaires.
Step 3 – Integrating the items or questions
You must enter the text contained in each question for inclusion in the database.
Step 4 – Use the items banks
At the end of the process described above, all information linked to an items bank is included in an EduStat database.
Multilingual items banks
It is possible to prepare multilingual items banks. A same items bank may include up to three different languages.
EduStat software is used since several years to realize national and international evaluation mainly in education. In addition to the evaluation copy, four software versions allow to meet the needs of various officials in education for doing different works in evaluation activities:
- a version for preparing items banks and their use;
- a version for selecting samples;
- a version for running statistical compilations;
- a full version including all data processing options.
Each of the complementary versions is designed for staff performing specific activities in the development and administration of an evaluation.
After experimenting the operations of the software using the evaluation version, it will be possible to retain the more adapted version and to obtain a file that will customize the software accordingly.
EduStat software is developed by the Canadian company Micro Centre Pythagore. This firm is associated, since many years, to the realization of evaluation projects in education; EduStat is adapted to execute technical tasks involving the data entry, to prepare databases, to select samples, and to accomplish the quality control on assessment procedures and on the collected data. This software can process information and produced a series of statistical compilations.
Email : info@mcpythagore.com
