Do Low Scores Mean Less Knowledge? - The Effects in the international Economic Understanding Test

초록

In order for us to internationally compare students' level of economic understanding, we generally have to translate a standardized test written in English into our own languages. The test results can differ based on how the researcher translates the English-written exam into one in his own language. In order to confirm this research, two differently translated versions of the BET, which is a test made in the US for elementary school students in grade5 and grade6, were given to elementary school students in Korea. As a result of this test, we could find many questions that had disputed answers according to the different versions of translation, and we also identified some reasons that could bring about such a translation bias. This result indicates the possibility of overestimating or underestimating the levels of economic understanding due to the fact that differently translated tests significantly affect the end results. Hence, it is important for us to carefully interpret the international comparison of the level of economic understanding, and there exists the need for researchers to pay close attention when translating a standardized test.