A group of specialists aiming to transform not only entrance exams but also university education will be born
The "Common Test for University Admissions" was held this spring.The university entrance examination reform has been expected to be "once every 50 years" over this new test.However, this reform also attracted attention because many of the major parts were postponed.

Of course, not all reform issues have been forgotten.One of them is the full-scale training of the university staff "Admission Officer" who is in charge of high school connection at the entrance examination site, which was explained from the beginning of the reform discussion.Recently, the "University Admission Professional Association" was launched with the main purpose.Expectations are rising for the birth of a full-fledged university admission officer in Japan that connects "learning" from high school to university.

Professor Takuya Kimura, the president of the association, and Professor Rikito Obata, who was the first to introduce and lead the entrance examination reforms that are common in many private universities at Ritsumeikan University, are presenting today's university entrance examinations and future prospects, required educational reforms, Japan. We talked about "admission professionals" in the background of the future of the university.

I want to improve my college entrance exam

Kimura: In 2016, there was a budgetary measure from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (hereinafter referred to as the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology) for the establishment of an admission office, and admission specialists were assigned to national universities nationwide.When we conducted an admission officer training course on behalf of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, many teachers and staff members gathered regardless of whether they were national, public or private.

　Although the entrance examination is an important matter for each university, it is difficult to share information with other universities because it includes confidential matters.Under these circumstances, it was found that such a training place is very effective for building relationships with a group of experts.In addition, the faculty members in charge of entrance examinations from national universities and the staff of the entrance examination section from private universities are participating, but let's improve the university entrance examination beyond the differences in the establishment of universities, job ranks, and professions. It has become an atmosphere.

Obata: I have high expectations for the role played by a group of experts called admission officers in the implementation and reform of university entrance examinations.It has been said that the key points of this entrance examination reform are the educational reform and high school connection reform of each university and high school.The Admission Officer is an important person who is directly involved with each student about the transition from high school to university "learning", talks about the university and the future that will spread beyond it, and is friendly and counseling.

　Having been involved in university education and university entrance examinations for many years, I have become keenly aware of the need for a "profession" as a university.High schools, cram schools, and preparatory schools are enthusiastic about admission and learning guidance for university entrance exams for students, but there are still few direct approaches to students from universities.I would like the Admission Officer to reach out to both high school and university students and talk about "living" information beyond pamphlets and the Internet about the fascination of university education and research and university life.In order to obtain a wide range of knowledge for that purpose, a mechanism that can gather wisdom from universities all over Japan is necessary, and this university admissions professional association will play an important role.It is possible to aim not only for the profits of individual universities but also for the overall optimization of university education.

Kimura: We are in contact with the person in charge of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology in advance, and are proceeding while staying close to the direction of the entrance examination reform that the country is aiming for.Thankfully, an increasing number of people are joining us when they hear about this professional association from a person in charge of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. An establishment symposium was held in April.In the future, we would like to hold monthly workshops and build a qualification system in the future.

　The evaluation axis of university entrance exams is diversified, and it is difficult to deal with them without an entrance exam specialist.For example, when incorporating an external test such as TOEIC or IELTS into an entrance examination, it is necessary to always incorporate the latest information such as what kind of characteristics the test has and how it is recognized in high school.

　Recently, the themes presented by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology have become specialized. )and so on.Training on these themes is very exciting, and even when a university applies for a grant, it is difficult to be adopted without understanding the trends.It is difficult for national university faculty members to collect all of this information by themselves, as they must conduct education and research.Therefore, I have a passion for learning together and thinking about new projects together, including members of private university faculty and staff.

　The advantage of gathering specialists involved in entrance examinations is that they can share the latest information and learn from each other.The online entrance examination was introduced in Corona, but the method is different for each university, and the examinees may be confused.By unifying the methods in the future, it may be possible to reduce the labor of the examinees.In addition, since it is a gathering that transcends positions, it is possible to think about entrance exams from multiple perspectives, and it is also possible to send specialized proposals to society and the country for future entrance exam reforms.

Obata: Looking back, the bachelor's degree report was published after discussions from 2008 to 2012.Ten years have passed since the educational reforms such as active learning proposed there.During this period, university education has changed drastically, and university education is in the midst of even more dramatic changes due to the Web lessons of Corona (below).Looking at the "Grand Design for Higher Education for 10" reported in November 2019 just before the Corona disaster, the universities from the "unpredictable era" to the "unpredictable era" in the 11 report. It is advocating a shift to education.On the other hand, from 2040, the new high school curriculum guidelines will be fully implemented.

　University education and high school education will change, and entrance exams will change and diversify.The independence evaluation mentioned earlier is one of them.The diversification of entrance exams and their evaluation are important issues even from the standpoint of high school students.In the future, the tendency of the paper test for entrance exams will change, but how do you evaluate high school students who have demonstrated their abilities in extracurricular activities, etc., in a "comprehensive" manner?This is a problem that has been asked in the entrance exams so far.By incorporating independence evaluation, it is possible to evaluate various students and welcome them to the university.This issue is important for universities, but the entrance examination-related work will continue to improve over the diversification, compounding and evaluation of entrance examinations in the future.It's a tough task, but that's the "arm show" of the university admission profession (teachers).

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