Research Projects

The Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA) was concerned about the impact that electronic aids, such as calculators, and other aids, such as sheets of notes and dictionaries, are having in open-book examinations of the Victorian Certificate of Education. Central to this concern are issues of fairness and equity and the potential for breaches in examination security. In the case of calculators, for example, increasingly sophisticated technology has made it difficult to properly monitor the acceptability of calculators that some students wish to bring to examinations. The VCAA was seeking a discussion paper that looked at these issues, described how other education agencies are conducting open book examinations, and examined the impact of such examinations on teaching.