Sylvia Vitello

Sylvia Vitello

Here at Cambridge Assessment, I conduct research into various areas of education and assessment for different types and levels of study. I use a range of methods including statistical analyses, questionnaires, interviews and literature reviews. My projects have looked at marking reliability, progression to university, tiering at GCSE, gender differences, and comparisons between academic and vocational qualifications. I am currently researching effects of the recent reforms to AS/A Level on students and centres, as well as analysing uptake of and performance in vocational qualifications.

I came to Cambridge Assessment from a psychology background, having completed a BSc in Psychology and a PhD in Experimental Psychology, both from University College London. My PhD focused on the cognitive neuroscience of language processing.

When I’m not working, I enjoy spending as much time as possible with family and friends.

Publications

2020

A way of using taxonomies to demonstrate that applied qualifications and curricula cover multiple domains of knowledge

Suto, I., Greatorex, J., Vitello, S., and Child, S. (2020). A way of using taxonomies to demonstrate that applied qualifications and curricula cover multiple domains of knowledge. Research Matters: A Cambridge Assessment publication, 30, 26-34.

Educational taxonomies are classification schemes which provide the terminology that educationalists need to describe and work with different areas of knowledge. It is good practice to use taxonomies to formulate and review curricula, learning objectives, and associated assessments. Demonstrating sufficient coverage of each of an adequate range of knowledge domains is critical for authenticity, for assessment reliability, and for transparency surrounding what students are learning.

In this study we explored whether any educational taxonomies that were designed for general educational contexts (sometimes called ‘academic’ contexts) could be utilised in applied educational contexts (often called ‘vocationally-related’ in England) . To do this, we identified nine published taxonomies with sufficient potential, and selected and combined the most appropriate. This process led us to develop a new model of demand.  We then applied the selected taxonomies experimentally to existing curricula in a range of applied subjects which are taught at secondary and tertiary level in England. We also used the selected taxonomies to develop a tool for writing educational objectives. This article ends with suggestions for applying the selected taxonomies in other areas of assessment.

Research Matters 30: Autumn 2020
Vocational Qualifications at Key Stage 4 and Key Stage 5: who takes them and how they fit into students' programmes of study

Vidal Rodeiro, C. L., & Vitello, S. (2020). Vocational Qualifications at Key Stage 4 and Key Stage 5: who takes them and how they fit into students' programmes of study. Cambridge Assessment Research Report. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge Assessment.

2019

Moderation of non-exam assessments: a novel approach using comparative judgement
Chambers, L., Vitello, S. and Vidal Rodeiro, C.L. (2019). Moderation of non-exam assessments: a novel approach using comparative judgement. Presented at the 20th annual AEA-Europe conference, Lisbon, Portugal, 13-16 November 2019.
How do vocational qualifications fit into students' programmes of study following government reforms to 14-18 education?
Vitello, S. and Vidal Rodeiro, C.L. (2019). How do vocational qualifications fit into students' programmes of study following government reforms to 14-18 education? Presented at the Journal of Vocational Education and Training International Conference, University of Oxford, UK, 28-30 June 2019.
The effect of adaptivity on the reliability coefficient in adaptive comparative judgement.

Bramley, T. and Vitello, S. (2019). The effect of adaptivity on the reliability coefficient in adaptive comparative judgement.  Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy and Practice, 26(1), 43-58.

2018

AS level trends 2018
Williamson, J. and Vitello, S. (2018). Cambridge Assessment Research Report. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge Assessment.
Reformed A level results: Do candidates who take the AS level achieve better grades?
Williamson, J. and Vitello, S. (2018). Cambridge Assessment Research Report. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge Assessment.
Effects of AS/A level reforms in England: extra insights from the National Pupil Database
Vitello, S. and Williamson, J. (2018). Effects of AS/A level reforms in England: extra insights from the National Pupil Database. Presented at the 44th conference of the International Association for Educational Assessment, Oxford, UK, 9-14 September 2018.
Faster, higher, stronger? A comparison of content coverage and teacher pedagogy in Technical Awards and GCSEs in sport-related subjects
Child, S. and Vitello, S. (2018). Faster, higher, stronger? A comparison of content coverage and teacher pedagogy in Technical Awards and GCSEs in sport-related subjects. Presented at the annual conference of the British Educational Research Association, Northumbria University, Newcastle, UK, 11-13 September 2018.
Vocational qualifications for 14-16 year olds: Exploration of knowledge, skills and teacher perceptions
Vitello. S. and Child, S. (2018). Vocational qualifications for 14-16 year olds: Exploration of knowledge, skills and teacher perceptions. Presented at the 5th International Conference on Employer Engagement in Education and Training, London, UK, 5-6 July 2018.
AS level trends 2017

Vitello, S. and Williamson, J. (2018). Cambridge Assessment Research Report. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge Assessment.

Which tier? Effects of linear assessment and student characteristics on GCSE entry decisions
Vitello, S. and Crawford, C. (2018). Which tier? Effects of linear assessment and student characteristics on GCSE entry decisions. British Educational Research Journal, 44(1), 94-118.

2017

The effect of adaptivity on the reliability coefficient in comparative judgement
Vitello, S. and Bramley, T. (2017). Presented at the annual conference of the Association for Educational Assessment - Europe, Prague, 9-11 November 2017.
Internal versus external assessment in vocational qualifications: a commentary on the government’s reforms in England
Vitello, S. and Williamson, J. (2017). Internal versus external assessment in vocational qualifications: a commentary on the government’s reforms in England.  London Review of Education, 15(3), 536-548.
Foundation or higher tier? Effects of moving from a modular to linear system of GCSE assessment
Vitello, S. and Crawford, C. (2017). Presented at the annual conference of the British Educational Research Association, University of Sussex, Brighton, UK, 5-7 September 2017.

2016

Research Matters Special Issue 4: Aspects of Writing 1980-2014
Employers' views on assessment design in vocational qualifications: a preliminary study
Vitello, S., Carroll, P., Greatorex, J. and Ireland, J. (2016). Paper presented at the European Conference on Educational Research (ECER), Dublin, Ireland, 23-26 August 2016.

2015

Gender differences in GCSE
Bramley, T., Vidal Rodeiro, C.L. and Vitello, S. (2015) Cambridge Assessment Research Report. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge Assessment.
Linking instructional verbs from assessment criteria to mode of assessment
Greatorex, J., Ireland, J., Carroll, P. and Vitello. S. (2015) Paper presented at the Journal for Vocational Educational and Training (JVET) conference, Oxford, 3-5 July 2015.

Events

2019

2017

Research Matters

Research Matters 28: Autumn 2019

Research Matters is our free biannual publication which allows us to share our assessment research, in a range of fields, with the wider assessment community.