Improvement of the Existing Examination and Evaluation System for Competency for Graduates of the IAMU Member Maritime Universities/Faculties

E. A. Islam
Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport, EGYPT

E. A. Islam

Abstract

Assessment and evaluation are basic elements which determine the performance and competency of a given system. The fact that maritime education is an international activity that cannot be validated within national boundaries, initiated the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to engineer and outline an international maritime education system. This is reflected in the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW95); and the IMO model courses which are internationally implemented by maritime schools, institutes and colleges worldwide; thus setting the solid minimum grounds for global maritime education.

The International Association of Maritime Universities (IAMU), has clear objectives in setting the International excellence ground for the maritime education system and to design the optimum uniform examination systems for evaluating the level of competency.

This paper highlights and analyses a number of examination procedures followed by some countries, particularly written examinations, in an attempt to set standard parameters for question setting and selection. The paper focuses, as well, on computerizing the whole procedure of question selection from a databank of questions according to proposed rules and constrains.

The implementation of this proposed approach complements the IMO and IAMU global concept in reaching a global assessment tool based on databank. A computer programme determines questions and examinations according to pre-analyzed standard set of procedures, which ensures reliability and validity as well as security.