Professor Raju speaks to the Wharton Journal about problems associated with the Marketing 621 final this year
Issue date: 11/13/06 Section: Insider
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WJ: What exactly happened with the Marketing 621 Final this year?
Raju: There was a common final to be taken across all 12 cohorts. In one of the clusters, more information was provided to students about what course material would be covered in the final than in the other clusters. This study information, however, was shared with some students outside the original cluster, thus creating the potential for a knowledge imbalance in these clusters.
WJ: What was its impact?
Raju: The extent of this knowledge sharing was unknown, as was its possible effect on the results of the final. While faculty suspected that the actual effect was small, the mere existence of a threat to the integrity of the final suggested the remedial action that was taken.
WJ: What steps are you taking to ensure that these kinds of issues will not happen in the future?
Raju: To ensure uniformity, core faculty will coordinate in advance the exact information that students will receive about the contents of the exam. Alternatively, in cases where such coordination is difficult, separate exams will be developed for each cluster.
Raju: There was a common final to be taken across all 12 cohorts. In one of the clusters, more information was provided to students about what course material would be covered in the final than in the other clusters. This study information, however, was shared with some students outside the original cluster, thus creating the potential for a knowledge imbalance in these clusters.
WJ: What was its impact?
Raju: The extent of this knowledge sharing was unknown, as was its possible effect on the results of the final. While faculty suspected that the actual effect was small, the mere existence of a threat to the integrity of the final suggested the remedial action that was taken.
WJ: What steps are you taking to ensure that these kinds of issues will not happen in the future?
Raju: To ensure uniformity, core faculty will coordinate in advance the exact information that students will receive about the contents of the exam. Alternatively, in cases where such coordination is difficult, separate exams will be developed for each cluster.
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