PERCEIVED EFFECTIVENESS OF COMPUTER-BASED EXAMINATIONS AND ITS ASSOCIATION WITH ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE AMONG UNDERGRADUATE NURSING STUDENTS IN SWABI, PAKISTAN

Abstract

Computer based examinations (CBE) are becoming more common in higher education due to their ability to run tests efficiently, score them automatically and provide feedback rapidly to the students. However, in the context of nursing education there is limited evidence in the literature of the local experiences of students in relation to the effectiveness of CBE and its connection with academic outcomes. The purpose of this study was to assess the effectiveness of CBE and academic performance of undergraduate nursing students and to explore the relationship between the two. The study was an analytical cross-sectional study conducted in Swabi, Pakistan on 264 BSN students using convenience sampling. The information was gathered by using a structured questionnaire with 10 five-point Likert scale questions for perceived CBE effectiveness (total score, 10-50) and a section that noted the student academic performance in terms of CGPA. SPSS was used to analyze the data using frequencies, percentages, and Pearson's correlation coefficient and p value was set at < 0.05. The respondents were nearly equally distributed between male and female with 62.5% of men and 37.5% of women, while the four academic years were almost equally represented with 24 respondents in the first year, 70 in the second, 84 in the third and 86 in the fourth year. No one reported low level effectiveness of CBE; 87.9% reported a high level effectiveness and 12.1% reported a moderate level effectiveness. Regarding academic performance, 84.5% had moderate, 8.0% high and 7.6% low performance. There was a weak positive and statistically significant correlation between the effectiveness of CBE and academic performance (r = 0.210, p = 0.001). The majority of nursing students thought that the computer-based examinations were very effective, and the majority of them had moderate academic performance. The positive relationship is weak; it is not a causal effect. Orientation and practice sessions, and the availability of computer systems and technical support, are recommended.