An Analysis of the Big-Fish-Little-Pond-Effect in PISA 2012 Computer-based Mathematical Assessment

Based on the previous study (Kim & Ham, 2014), which confirmed the negative effect of the school average ability on students’ individual self-concept (i.e. the Big-Fish-Little-Pond Effect, BFLPE) using PISA 2012 paper-and-pencil assessment results, the purpose of this study is to investigate the existence of BFLPE in computer-based assessment. Based on PISA 2012 data set which was composed 1,443 students aged 15 at 134 secondary schools for computer-based mathematical assessment, we employed two level hierarchical linear model. We found that (a) the proportion of between school variance in total dispersion is as small as 6% in the self - concept of mathematics; (b) the assumption that the main individual and school characteristics are the same, the higher the school average achievement, the lower the self-concept of mathematics, which supports that the BFLPE existed for both types of assessment; (c) there were school type, educational computer for students, parent counseling participation, class atmosphere, and belonging sense of school, which had significant influence on self-concept of mathematics. The results implies that the affective characteristics such as the self-concept of mathematics formed over a long period of time are influenced by the reference group, and that this phenomenon exists regardless of the type of assessment.