How schoolchildren will take the UNT in 2021

In 2021, Kazakhstani schoolchildren will take a new Unified National Test. In addition to the fact that the main school exam will be held electronically, graduates will be given the opportunity to try their luck twice. The zakon.kz correspondent talked with the vice minister of education and science Miras Daulenov and found out what future applicants should prepare for.

 - The transfer of the Unified National Testing to the electronic format has been discussed more than once. And so, from 2021, testing will begin in a new way. Miras Mukhtarovich, tell us how it will be?

-In terms of content, everything remains the same, but the format changes. If earlier a student sat at his desk and was given a paper version of a book and an answer sheet, now the test will be taken at a computer in electronic format. Each graduate will have his own place, fenced with plexiglass.

 It will be possible to register electronically on the website of the National Testing Center. But, the convenience is that the student himself will be able to choose the date, time and place of testing.

 In addition, this year the Unified National Test for applicants for a grant will last three months, and it will be possible to pass it twice within 100 days.

- Tell us in more detail?

 - In March, testing will take place for those wishing to enroll on a paid basis, and for those applying for a grant, we have introduced new rules. To apply for a grant, a schoolchild can, if desired, pass the Unified National Test twice in April, May or June, and send the best result to the competition. But there is a limitation - you cannot take the test twice a day. For example, if you passed the Unified National Testing in April, then you can retake it a few days later or in May, June. We recommend that you take a short break to prepare yourself even better. But in any case, this is the student's choice.

- Will the grading system remain the same?

 - The number of subjects remains the same - three compulsory subjects and two to choose from. If the filled-in answer could no longer be corrected in paper format, then in electronic format the student will be able to return to the question and change the answer, but before completing the test.

 Most importantly, the test results can be obtained immediately after clicking the "end testing" button. It used to take a lot of time to check the answers, children and parents worried, waited for the evening to find out the result. Now we have automated everything and the accumulated number of points will be displayed immediately after testing is completed. The maximum number of points remains the same - 140.

- And the appeal?

  - If the examiner does not agree with some questions, considers them incorrect, then he will be able to immediately file an appeal on the spot. There will be no need to wait for the next day, go to a testing center, university or school, all this will be electronic.

- Given the fact that schoolchildren do not have to manually paint over the answer sheets; will the time for passing the test be changed?

  - We decided to leave the previous time - 240 minutes. But now, as you noted, schoolchildren will not need to spend an hour to correctly fill in the answer sheet, they can easily use this time to solve problems.

- It's no secret that in some villages and remote settlements there are not enough computers. How will rural schoolchildren pass the Unified National Test according to the new format?

  - The challenge is to choose the right time and date for testing. There are testing centers in all regions; there are several of them in Nur-Sultan, Almaty and Shymkent. Schoolchildren living in remote settlements, as before, will be able to come to the city where there are these centers and take tests.

- How much will the question base be updated?

  - The question base is updated annually by at least 30%. This year we have added contextual assignments that the students have always asked for. We paid great attention to the history of Kazakhstan and world history - we excluded almost all dates. The main thing for us is not memorizing dates, but understanding the meaning of historical events. But there will be contextual questions for each subject.

- In your opinion, the system will cope with possible hacker attacks, hacks?

 - Information security is a top priority issue. The central office of the entire system is located in Nur-Sultan. Communication with the regional centers for passing the Unified National Testing is carried out through a closed VPN channel. Correct answer codes are only found at the National Testing Center. In addition, in addition, through the State Technical Service of the National Security Committee, all tests are checked for possible interference. Everything is not simple here. There are are special secure communication channels.

- And what about the sanitary requirements? Will schoolchildren need to take the Polymerase Chain Reaction test before the National Uniform Test?

  - You will not need to take the Polymerase Chain Reaction test. There will be a requirement for masks. If necessary, the National Testing Center will issue masks to schoolchildren during the delivery of the Unified National Testing. And, of course, we will measure the temperature. Social distancing will be observed in each classroom.

- How many people will sit in one audience?

  - Participants of the Unified National Testing will take the test not in seven days, as it was before, but within three months. Therefore, there will be no questions about audience occupancy.

- Will the discipline requirements, prohibited items be toughened?

 - We place great emphasis on academic integrity. There will be metal detectors at the entrance to the testing centers, as in previous years. The list of prohibited items remains the same - telephones, cribs, and more. But, in addition to the front camera, which will broadcast what is happening in the audience, one more camera will be installed above each table. It will also be used as a student's identification - like Face ID. I sat down, registered and started my assignments. We use a proctoring system.

It is clear that every movement of the applicant will be visible to us. If, during the delivery of the Unified National Testing, we find that the applicant used a phone or a cheat sheet, then the testing will be automatically terminated, the system will turn off.

- Will observers be present during testing?

  - When we conducted the Unified National Testing in paper format, we involved a lot of on duty. There were 3-4 people in one audience. With electronic delivery, this will not happen, at most one observer, because everything will be visible from the cameras.

- According to your observations, schoolchildren began to use less prohibited items, for example, use telephones?

 - Practice shows that schoolchildren have become more responsible for the Unified National Testing. In 2019, for 120 thousand schoolchildren, we seized 120 thousand prohibited items, in fact, each handing over had a telephone. Last year, we found only 2.5 thousand phones for 120 thousand schoolchildren, and the results were canceled for all.

Let me remind you that in 2020 we also started using the artificial intelligence system. This is a video analysis that is done after testing. So, last year, 100 applicants lost their grants for using prohibited items during the delivery of the Unified National Testing.

- How much money has been allocated for the Unified National Testing this year?

  If earlier the Unified National Testing required 1.5 billion tenge because of the printing of books and answer sheets, now the costs have been significantly reduced due to the transition to the electronic format. They will be, but insignificant.

- Still, why exactly in 2021 it was decided to conduct the Unified National Testing in electronic format. Has this something to do with the pandemic?

  - This is not related to the pandemic. You just need to move to a qualitatively new level. We have tested this format on school teachers; you know that they pass the qualification test for undergraduates, so why not use the same format when passing the Unified National Testing. Moreover, it is convenient, and now there will be many advantages for schoolchildren.

A source: https://www.zakon.kz/5059188-kak-shkolniki-budut-sdavat-ent-v-2021.html

 

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