Abstract
The increasing volume of available ‘big data’ contains great potential for public policy to be evidence-based – as long as they are properly analysed and fully appreciated. This paper examines a case where that did not happen, and as a consequence an ideological-driven policy change was supported by a poor analysis of the available data. Using the same data, analyses employing a novel procedure falsify the government’s arguments: many well-qualified students for courses in
the country’s leading universities may not be offered places there in the absence of data on their academic progress during their two years of post-secondary education.
the country’s leading universities may not be offered places there in the absence of data on their academic progress during their two years of post-secondary education.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 137-155 |
Number of pages | 19 |
Journal | Policy and Politics |
Volume | 45 |
Issue number | 2 |
Early online date | 5 Apr 2016 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Apr 2017 |
Keywords
- contingency tables
- school examination performance
- university admissions
- university degree performance