Analysis of Turkish high-school physics-examination questions according to Bloom’s taxonomy

The purpose of this study was to analyse and compare the physics questions of the university entrance exam (OSS) with those asked at exams at different schools in Turkey in terms of the levels of cognitive domain of Bloom’s Taxonomy. The study was carried out in four types of high schools (student age: 14–17): ‘Ordinary’, ‘Vocational, ‘Anatolian’and ‘Science’ from Diyarbak r, with 19 physics teachers. It was found that 72.5 per cent of the questions were of the lower-order cognitive skills (LOCS) type. Statistical tests showed that the question types were related to school type (P<0.001). On the other hand, about half of the questions asked in the university entrance examination (OSS) were of the higher-order cognitive skills (HOCS) type 50.9 per cent and of the lower-order cognitive skills (LOCS) 49.1 per cent. This contradiction causes a problem between the assessment at high school and that at the OSS.