Quantitative and qualitative effects of dictionary use on written examination scores

Abstract

The introduction of dictionaries into modern language GCSE written examinations raised a wide range of questions, not the least of which was the effect of dictionary use on examination scores. At both Foundation and Higher Tier, dictionaries enabled candidates to obtain higher marks. Although the difference between dictionaries was less marked with Foundation candidates, dictionary use had a direct bearing on the marks obtained on different types of questions in both Tiers. The way in which candidates used the dictionaries in both Tiers varied. Foundation candidates needed them primarily to understand the rubrics, Higher Tier candidates primarily to answer the questions. It is evident that candidates require far more training in using dictionaries since a large majority of candidates from all bands failed to use them for checking gender or spelling words. There was widespread ignorance of the differences between verbs and nouns, made worse in many cases by a lack of understanding of dictionary abbreviations for word categories. There were also several examples of a number of phrases being taken directly from the dictionary. Some candidates were evidently unable to find particular word meanings, probably due to their inability to recognise personal forms of verbs.