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    Making a Grade
    Victorian Examinations and the Rise of Standardized Testing

    James Elwick (Author)

    9781487508937

    Hardback, published 18 March 2021

    304 pages, 6 b&w illustrations
    23.5 x 15.9 x 2.4 cm, 0.58 kg

    "This is a book which is committed, from the outset, to the reconstruction and analysis of numerous aspects of the rise of examinations. It involves some excellent detailed recovery of individual cases from a range of archives, and the author is to be congratulated on his nose for a good source."

    - Roy Lowe (British Journal of Educational Studies)

    "Making a Grade makes an important contribution to the world of science and educational assessment research. Elwick’s thorough review of Victorian examinations helps to historicize key stakeholders’ perspectives in the science of measurement (i.e., standardized testing) in recent educational history."

    - Peiyu Wang and Liying Cheng, Queen’s University (Historical Studies in Education/Revue d’histoire de l’éducation) "Elwick’s systemic approach allows him to accommodate both the incredible pluralism of Victorian education and the growing homogeneity of its exam culture." - Peter Mandler, University of Cambridge (Victorian Studies)

    Starting in the 1850s achievement tests became standardized in the British Isles, and were administered on an industrial scale. By the end of the century more than two million people had written mass exams, particularly in science, technology, and mathematics. Some candidates responded to this standardization by cramming or cheating; others embraced the hope that such tests rewarded not only knowledge but also merit.

    Written with humour, Making a Grade looks at how standardized testing practices quietly appeared, and then spread worldwide. This book situates mass exams, marks, and credentials in an emerging paper-based meritocracy, arguing that such exams often first appeared as "cameras" to neutrally record achievement, and then became "engines" to change education as people tailored their behaviour to fit these tests. Taking the perspectives of both examiners and examinees, Making a Grade claims that our own culture’s desire for accountability through objective testing has a long history.

    List of Figures
    Preface and Acknowledgments

    Introduction

    Part One: Examinations
    1 "The Age of Examinations": A Historical Sketch
    2 Monetizing Marks: The Political Economy of Examinations
    3 An Epistemology of the Mundane: Dissecting One Examination

    Part Two: Examiners
    4 Daguerreotypes of the Mind: Paper, Partition, and Specialization
    5 Machining Minds: Commensuration, Tabulation, and Standardization
    6 Thin Descriptions: Credentials and Other Signals

    Part Three: Examinees
    7 Learning and Earning: Coaching or Cramming?
    8 Immoral Economies: How to Cheat on a Victorian Exam
    9 Economies, Remoralized: Examinations as Technologies of Inclusion

    Conclusion

    Appendix A: Important Dates
    Appendix B: Biographical List
    Notes
    Bibliography
    Index

    List of Figures
    Preface and Acknowledgments

    Introduction

    Part One: Examinations
    1. "The Age of Examinations": A Historical Sketch
    2. Monetizing Marks: The Political Economy of Examinations
    3. An Epistemology of the Mundane: Dissecting One Examination

    Part Two: Examiners
    4. Daguerreotypes of the Mind: Paper, Partition, and Specialization
    5. Machining Minds: Commensuration, Tabulation, and Standardization
    6. Thin Descriptions: Credentials and Other Signals

    Part Three: Examinees
    7. Learning and Earning: Coaching or Cramming?
    8. Immoral Economies: How to Cheat on a Victorian Exam
    9. Economies, Remoralized: Examinations as Technologies of Inclusion

    Conclusion

    Appendix A: Important Dates
    Appendix B: Biographical List
    Notes
    Bibliography

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