Austria - Questions and answers

Answers to questions 1, 2 and 4: These questions cannot be easily answered from an Austrian point of view as all these arrangements do not stem from recent developments but are part of the Austrian tradition of Reifeprüfung and are (apart from occasional speculations) fairly well-accepted. So an Austrian answer must be speculative in nature - and a matter of opinion.

Question 2. As there is no numerus clausus, the "bottleneck" is shifted from the university entry to the 1st year of studies. Could you comment on the positive and negative effects of this solution?

Answer: The question of numerus clausus is a complicated one as the ministry of science, in charge of the universities, is involved and as the European context has to be considered, where most states have some form of numerus clausus. In addition this question is a highly political one as in practice the introduction of a numerus clausus system would mean a further limitation of access to universities for young people who have not too many alternatives these days. There is a broad political consensus against the introduction of it. It has to be borne in mind that the Austrian system is rather selective in itself. If a student fails in one of the many compulsory subjects he has to take, he can be granted a conditional pass by the teachers' conference. Otherwise he has to repeat the whole year in all subjects. Matura is selective as well, so one could say that an academic career in Austria is based on a continuous selection process.

One of the main legal aims of upper secondary education, and even more so of secondary academic schools, is to prepare students for university. So in the Austrian context it does not make much sense to add an additional selection process. Besides, international organisations always emphasize the importance of permeability and access to further/higher education.

Furthermore it is felt that there are no ideal solutions for numerus clausus systems. These are mainly based on supply and demand and often lead to paradox situations (e.g. students take easier choices to achieve a higher average if they want to follow a demanding career). There is a shortage of students interested in studying sciences at university level. The obvious answer in a numerus clausus context would be to lower standards, which would be unacceptable.

Question 3. Compulsory mathematics (on one level) in the form of the written examination for all candidates is considered to be an essential ingredient of general education. On the other hand, it can be an obstacle to passing the examination for some candidates who are specifically gifted or motivated. Could you comment on this issue?

Answer: It is true that mathematics can be an obstacle to some candidates, although rarely to the highly motivated ones. More often, however, it is an obstacle to candidates that are weak in all subjects. In any case, mathematics at the standard required in Austria after intensive preparation in the preceding years is believed to be not too difficult for the average candidate. The rate of failure is - generally speaking - not higher than that in foreign languages.

Apart from the fact that mathematics has always been an important subject in the Austrian Matura, it has gained even more importance for the understanding and application of the sciences (Naturwissenschaften) and the new technologies. So a reduction would be the wrong signal at the wrong time. But of course the questions of what is taught in mathematics and how it is taught must be considered on a regular basis, with a lot of input through in-service-training. In this context the results of TIMSS have been taken very seriously. At present an in-depth-study is carried out that will result in examples, tasks, etc. which will be published on the Internet, mainly to help teachers in their self-assessment. It is expected that such measures will have a strong influence on teaching and examining, thus becoming quasi-standards.

Different levels in mathematics (and in any other subject, for that matter) do not seem a practical solution for Austria for other reasons: To split a subject into achievement groups is more expensive. Furthermore pilot projects with achievement groups at upper secondary level in mathematics and the foreign languages in the eighties were not successful.

Question 4. Candidates are allowed to choose one of two different assignments in the written examination or one of two given assignments in the oral examination. Could you give us more details about it? Is this a general practice that introduces additional options within the subjects in general?

Answer: In the written examinations in mathematics, biology, physics and descriptive geometry there is no choice. In German and the foreign languages there is a choice for the candidates, which can be interpreted as a remainder of essay writing . In German there is a choice between three different tasks (e.g. dealing with a problem or a fictitious situation, text interpretation, the discussion of a book read). In the first foreign language there is first a listening comprehension (no choice), then there is a choice between text production based on either a longer text (together with guiding questions) or on shorter impulses (texts, pictures, graphics, ...).

In the TVE sector there is more differentiation as the subject areas often require testing in different working methods and skills. Generally the respective ordinance says that the design of exam papers and oral assignments should allow a candidate to prove his knowledge and skill in the respective subject area, his insight into correlations between various fields, his ability to apply his knowledge in different situations and to present and explain his ideas accordingly. The assignments should also contain aspects or elements relevant to professional life.

In German there is a choice between two different assignments that can be subdivided into several tasks that are not directly linked to each other. As for the foreign language, there is no choice but the assignment has to be divided in at least two tasks that are not directly linked to each other (usually some kind of text production on the basis of a given job-related situation, e.g. they have to produce a flyer for tourists on their region; a business letter, e.g. a travel agency needs particular information from a tour operator; a text to test their reading comprehension or some listening). Subjects that comprise graphic or practical elements usually are subdivided into different tasks (e.g. the 40-hour project can contain the following tasks: testing & measuring with certain devices, work in labs, computer-tests, tables, calculations etc.).

One of the reasons for this elaborate set-up is that many experts believe that only tasks that are part of Matura are properly prepared in the classroom from the very beginning (washback effect).

Matters are more complicated with oral examinations, especially in the case of academic secondary schools. In these schools the candidate normally has to answer two questions: "Kernfrage" (basic subject knowledge) and "Spezialfrage" (deeper insight in special areas). Kernfrage: At the beginning of the final year the teacher has to give the students an outline of the main aims and areas of the subject in upper secondary. In practice this often results in a set of questions covering the whole subject matter. Two questions ("Kernfragen") are prepared by the teacher for every student on an individual basis, one of which has to be chosen.

Spezialfrage: In the middle of the final year student and teacher have to agree on a subject area in which the student will be asked to prove his deeper insight, his special knowledge and his abilities. Of course the subject area must be sufficiently wide. At the examination there is only one "Kernfrage" (no choice).

For a pass mark in the examination both "Kernfrage" and "Spezialfrage" must receive a pass mark.

In practice the subject area of "Spezialfrage" is often agreed upon much earlier. Its introduction (1992) has been a success. The candidates are better motivated although generally speaking the examinations are more difficult now. The average rate of failure has not been affected. It is also believed that this arrangement also provides better preparation for university.

The students have at least 15 minutes to prepare (this depends on the number of subject areas the assignment comprises); for the exam itself there is also a time limit: e.g. 15 min. for an assignment referring to one subject. Examiners can stop the exam earlier, once they know which grade to give.

In the TVE sector it again depends on the subject. But similar rules apply as in the written exams. The project presentations of course are rather comprehensive, in particular if they involve complete teams, and are difficult to describe. There is a booklet available providing examples (in case of interest, please contact us).

Question: Which procedures (statistical or rational) are being used to compare the standards of knowledge assessment (especially in written examinations) between the teacher and/or different schools within the same subject and between different subjects?

Answer: There are no statistical procedures. There are fairly extensive rules on how to examine in the legal regulations. In addition, provincial teacher bodies ("Lehrerarbeitsgemeinschaften") produce guidelines and a lot of in-service-training is dedicated to this field. Within schools the co-operation between teachers examining the same subject is promoted. Most schools publish the questions after the examination. The questions/tasks for the written exams have to be approved by "Landesschulrat" (provincial education board). After having been marked by the teacher they are controlled by the chairman (in most cases a school inspector or experienced heads of other schools). In this process the papers are often handed over to experts.

As the chairpersons see different schools or courses every year they get an overview of the performances and one of their tasks is to provide feedback. Besides, the grades are proposed by the examiners, but the decision is taken by the exam body. These teachers are also familiar with the performance of other classes.

At present quality assessment relies on the close co-operation of these experienced people and on many self regulating effects. However, recent developments (see TIMSS, above) may lead to quasi-standards.