Researching Closed-Book Policy for PE and PS Exams
( From the NCEES publication LICENSURE EXCHANGE, June 2010, ISSN NO. 1093-541X, VOLUME 14, ISSUE 3 – PAGE 8 )
Researching Closed-Book Policy for PE and PS Exams
In order to address security concerns and computer-based testing issues, the EPE and EPS committees were charged with recommending a transition plan to move open-book exams to closed-book exams using an NCEES-supplied reference or with developing a plan to reduce the number of references. (Both the [Professional Engineer] PE and [Professional Surveyor] PS exams are open-book, while the FE and FS exams allow only an NCEES-supplied reference.)
The EPS Committee will introduce a motion at the Annual Meeting to charge the EPP Committee with amending the applicable exam policies to 1) limit the number of references permitted for PS examinees to five, effective with the October 2012 exam administration and 2) implement a closed-book policy with an NCEES-supplied reference for the PS exam beginning no later than the October 2014 exam administration.
The EPS Committee recommends that the transition plan include reviewing the item bank to determine which exam items require formulas or other reference material to solve, replacing items with ones that could be answered with an NCEES-supplied reference, and assembling a list of the formulas and other reference material that need to be included in the NCEES-supplied reference. After surveying PE exam candidates about the number of references actually used during the exam, the EPE Committee set a goal to develop a plan to limit the number of reference books to 15 by the April 2013 administration. The committee recommends that the president create a task force to research and address the impacts of a closed-book exam, including the feasibility and cost of developing and maintaining a reference manual for each PE exam.
