SecQual

Special Assessment Conditions application process for 2011
S2010/040 - 07 Dec 2010

Special Assessment Conditions application process for 2011

Candidates with permanent or long-term medical or physical conditions or learning disabilities which they believe will significantly impair their performance in internal assessment and specified external assessments may apply to the New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA) for an entitlement to Special Assessment Conditions (SAC) in the current year. This includes candidates with physical disabilities as well as those with specific learning disabilities.

Applications for entitlement should be made for all eligible students irrespective of whether their programme is fully internally assessed or a combination of internal and external assessments. This was also notified by circular earlier in the year.

Information for SAC, including the rules and eligibility for entitlement, are included in the Assessment and Examination Rules and Procedures. Further advice for good practice for SAC, including record keeping and how to make an application, are published on the NZQA website.

NZQA continues to refine the application process for candidates entitled to SAC.

Changes for 2011

1. Entitlement to SAC must be approved for internal and external assessments
2. Applications for entitlement are required for:
   1. All new candidates not already on the Final School SAC spreadsheet for 2010
   2. Those on the spreadsheet where it is noted that a new application is required in 2011.
3. All new applications for entitlement (and those for whom we have requested a new application in 2011) must be made to the SAC mailbox before the end of term 1 (15 April 2011).
4. An updated version of the SAC spreadsheet will be returned to schools listing all candidates entitled to SAC in 2011 and those for whom their application has been declined.
5. Candidates with an entitlement for 2011 will be visible through the online facility when it opens on 1 August 2011.
6. Late applications are possible only for newly diagnosed physical or medical conditions, or for candidates transferring from another school.
7. Schools must ensure that entries for external assessment, including Scholarship, are made in the 1 August file, so that appropriate assessment conditions can be attached to examination entries for candidates entitled to SAC.
8. The online facility closes on 1 September 2011.

Lessons from 2010

Feedback was sought from schools that had experienced some issues with the new process in 2010. These are their suggestions:

1. Make sure all applications for entitlement are made to meet NZQA deadlines. This will safeguard candidates whose applications are subsequently declined from having internally assessed results invalidated.
2. Hold detailed records and make sure applications for entitlement have sufficient information for NZQA to make an informed decision about a candidate’s entitlement. Avoid unnecessary delays in processing, requiring submission of candidate files by providing sufficient information in the initial application.
3. Conduct an annual needs analysis and keep records of the types of assessment conditions that work best for a candidate. This will prevent schools and NZQA from contracting supervisors or reader/writers for candidates who refuse to use their special assessment conditions.
4. Establish a system to ensure that the Principal’s Nominee, Dean, SENCO/Head of Learning Support and all relevant staff are informed when a late entry is made into external examinations (particularly Scholarship) for a candidate entitled to SAC. [In 2010 many schools did not update applications for special assessment conditions online when standards or examination sessions were added to a candidate’s entries.]
5. Ensure parents are kept fully informed of special assessment conditions being applied for for their children.

Enquiries

Please refer any enquiries relating to this circular to:

School Relationship Manager
School Quality Assurance and Liaison
Telephone: 04 463 3000
Fax: 04 463 3113
Email: firstname.lastname@nzqa.govt.nz