Exam stats Options

[Maizie]

Prompted by another thread, I found an old thread where I'd done some number crunching on the 2007 stats - at that time, only UK & Ireland stats were available.
So I thought I'd do a similar thing with the 2009 stats, for UK and ROW (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

Percentages of results at different grades
These four read across-ways - so the rows add up to 100%

UK & Ireland, Practical.

CODE

Grade    %P    %M    %D    %F
1    39.3    39.3    19.7    1.7
2    47.8    35.6    13.6    3.0
3    48.4    35.0    12.9    3.7
4    49.7    32.9    12.5    4.9
5    50.1    30.9    12.5    6.5
6    46.1    32.5    14.9    6.5
7    42.4    31.7    18.6    7.3
8    34.6    29.8    26.6    9.0

ROW, Practical.

CODE

Grade    %P    %M    %D    %F
1    40.4    36.3    20.6    2.7
2    47.7    31.7    14.9    5.8
3    47.8    31.0    14.2    7.1
4    49.1    28.9    12.6    9.5
5    52.4    23.6    9.9    14.1
6    52.9    19.5    7.4    20.3
7    50.5    18.4    8.0    23.0
8    41.4    14.3    7.6    36.8

UK & Ireland, theory.

CODE

Grade    %P    %M    %D    %F
1    13.2    24.9    56.8    5.1
2    12.1    27.8    56.6    3.6
3    25.2    34.5    29.3    11.1
4    29.0    34.4    23.9    12.7
5    35.0    34.2    16.8    14.0
6    51.4    16.2    3.2     29.2
7    52.2    31.9    6.9     9.1
8    42.2    26.0    3.5     28.3

ROW, theory.

CODE

Grade    %P    %M    %D    %F
1    12.0    25.9    57.7    4.4
2    13.5    30.6    52.4    3.4
3    19.5    33.8    40.6    6.1
4    28.0    35.9    27.4    8.7
5    34.2    33.4    20.9    11.5
6    56.1    22.6    1.7     19.6
7    55.3    27.5    2.8     14.4
8    53.6    20.0    1.7     24.7

What percent of the exam taken is at which grade?
This one reads vertically, so the columns are 100% (IMG:style_emoticons/default/rolleyes.gif)

CODE

Grade    UK P    ROW P    UK T    ROW T
1    27.9    13.9    17.4    16.7
2    19.9    16.8    11.7    12.5
3    17.1    16.6    11.0    12.4
4    12.1    11.6     6.1    6.9
5    11.1    15.7    50.5    42.2
6    4.8     7.7     1.9     4.1
7    3.5     7.2     0.5     1.4
8    3.5     10.6    0.8     3.7

[violinlove]

Fascinating stats. Thanks Maizie. A huge difference between practical exam failures in the UK and ROW!

[Roseau]

What would be interesting would be to have some statistics on each bit of the exam in order to try and understand why there is such a huge distance between the UK and the rest of the world.

My experience of the French music system, for example, is that most teachers wouldn't understand what is required in the supporting tests properly because music is taught in a different way.

[violinlove]

My experience of the French music system, for example, is that most teachers wouldn't understand what is required in the supporting tests properly because music is taught in a different way.

This could be part of the explanation - but you would wonder why the results don't improve over time (which they haven't) as the teachers realize that there is a problem as results come in and concentrate more on how to prepare pupils for the supporting tests. Over a few years the pass rate should gradually increase.

[Maizie]

Only if it's the same teachers who work out what's wrong, and put it right. If the teachers who get loads of fails shrug their shoulders and give up on exams, then new teachers will come along ready to make the same mistakes all over again!

[violinlove]

Only if it's the same teachers who work out what's wrong, and put it right. If the teachers who get loads of fails shrug their shoulders and give up on exams, then new teachers will come along ready to make the same mistakes all over again!

Ah! Hadn't thought of that!
Good point Maizie (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

[Czerny]

Thanks, Maizie - these are fascinating.

[angelgirls29]

Could it be the session times?
If, for example, Hong Kong has 2 sessions per year, you're more likely to chance it than if you had more sessions per year (eg if someone in the UK isn't ready in the Summer, they can take the exam in the Autumn which isn't too long to wait).
(Hong Kong was an example, I have no idea how many sessions they have!)

ETA:
Also, if you're that exam orientated to take a practical exam (I don't know how easy they are to organise) you're probably going to take the theory too? (Don't know just thinking in print but it seems kind of logical)

[Maizie]

What percent of the exam taken is at which grade - UK practical (as given in the final table above)

CODE

Grade    UK P
1    27.9
2    19.9
3    17.1
4    12.1
5    11.1
6    4.8
7    3.5
8    3.5

So grades 6-8 make up just 11.8% of entries. That means for every 17 exams an examiner has, only 2 of them will be G6 or above! (and they'll probably be on piano, at that...)


You can have some fun with this, although for accuracy it should be taken with an extremely large pinch of salt, when you combine the above with the entries taken by instrument (here).
There were, for example, 574 entries for treble recorder in 2009. Working on the assumption that the distribution for treble recorder grades is the same as that across all instruments, it means that only 20 grade 8 treble recorder exams were taken in the UK & Ireland in 2009.
Of course, that's not likely to be a reasonable assumption for some instruments - obviously, for example, those that don't have all the grades! But it still gives you a bit of an inkling - such as, in contrast to those 20 recorder grade 8s, the examiners sat through nearly 35,000 grade 1 pianos (IMG:style_emoticons/default/ohmy.gif)

[Arundodonuts]

If you like stats Maizie (and I know you do (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) ) try this.
Extract all the orchestral instrument exams
Compare the balance of instruments against a normal symphony orchestra and see which are in surplus and which are under-represented. Clue - It isn't the ones you might think (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)

[Splog]

This is fascinating. Lots of theories of course around all the statistics. Are the low fail rates because teachers don't put pupils in if they don't think they will pass. Not had a fail yet, but a couple of near misses by students who enter for the exam then don't turn up for a term of lessons.

I too would be interested in the stats for each section of the exam. Are the performance marks much higher than the supporting tests? Is there a need for teachers to be better trained in preparing students for these? I'd be fascinated to know sightreading results by instrument. Do these stats exist by instrument? That would be interesting.

[nicki_flute]

What percent of the exam taken is at which grade - UK practical (as given in the final table above)

CODE

Grade    UK P
1    27.9
2    19.9
3    17.1
4    12.1
5    11.1
6    4.8
7    3.5
8    3.5

So grades 6-8 make up just 11.8% of entries. That means for every 17 exams an examiner has, only 2 of them will be G6 or above! (and they'll probably be on piano, at that...)


You can have some fun with this, although for accuracy it should be taken with an extremely large pinch of salt, when you combine the above with the entries taken by instrument (here).
There were, for example, 574 entries for treble recorder in 2009. Working on the assumption that the distribution for treble recorder grades is the same as that across all instruments, it means that only 20 grade 8 treble recorder exams were taken in the UK & Ireland in 2009.
Of course, that's not likely to be a reasonable assumption for some instruments - obviously, for example, those that don't have all the grades! But it still gives you a bit of an inkling - such as, in contrast to those 20 recorder grade 8s, the examiners sat through nearly 35,000 grade 1 pianos (IMG:style_emoticons/default/ohmy.gif)

Jazz flugelhorn sounds amazing!

[flobiano]

This is fascinating. Lots of theories of course around all the statistics. Are the low fail rates because teachers don't put pupils in if they don't think they will pass. Not had a fail yet, but a couple of near misses by students who enter for the exam then don't turn up for a term of lessons.

I too would be interested in the stats for each section of the exam. Are the performance marks much higher than the supporting tests? Is there a need for teachers to be better trained in preparing students for these? I'd be fascinated to know sightreading results by instrument. Do these stats exist by instrument? That would be interesting.

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/agree.gif)

The stats probably exist but don't think they are published. I'd be quite happy with a break down of grades and results by instrument but only for sheer nosiness. Would be interested to see if certain instruments have clusters around certain grades and whether there are higher % of distinctions in certain instruments. While I know it isn't at all statistically significant I think most of the people I know that have taken Grade 8 oboe have got distinction and everyone I know who has failed Grade 8 has done so on piano. It would be interesting to know if these are genuine trends or just weird anomolies due to being a small sample....

[Maizie]

If you like stats Maizie (and I know you do (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) ) try this.
Extract all the orchestral instrument exams
Compare the balance of instruments against a normal symphony orchestra and see which are in surplus and which are under-represented. Clue - It isn't the ones you might think (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)

Nice to have a project for my lunchbreak tomorrow (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

[owainsutton]

Jazz flugelhorn sounds amazing!

Definitely! I recently accompanied a friend taking grade 4 flugelhorn, and one of the pieces was a jazzy number out of the Time Pieces books. The instrument was absolutely perfect for it.