Information for Christchurch schools

SecQual S2011/049 Information for ALL schools with students affected by the Christchurch earthquakes

An overview of NZQA's response to issues facing schools and assessment affected by the Christchurch earthquake is available.

Canterbury Earthquake Scholarships

To support Canterbury students whose final year of study or plans for tertiary study have been affected by the earthquakes, the Ministry of Education has introduced a one-off Canterbury Earthquake Scholarship for 2011 Year 13 students in the region.

Information and application forms for students have been sent to schools.

Detail on eligibility and how to apply for the Canterbury Earthquake Scholarship is also available from the Ministry of Education.

Relevant dates
7 November	Students return the completed application to the teacher who is helping them
28 November	Last day for the Ministry to receive applications from the school
January 2012	Students informed of results
March 2012	First $2,000 scholarship payment

 

NCEA Languages Examinations in 2011, Listening Standards

Level 2: A change

Languages teachers in Christchurch earthquake affected schools may choose to read the Listening Passages to the candidates rather than have them listen to the CD. Earthquake affected schools with Level 2 entries in Chinese, French, German, Japanese, Samoan or Spanish will be automatically provided with the relevant Listening Transcripts as well as the CD.

Level 1 and Level 3: No changes

There are no changes for earthquake affected schools. That is:

• Level 1, languages teachers may choose to read the transcript or play the CD.
• Level 3, the CD must be played.

Gathering evidence of achievement

As discussed at the Principal’s Nominees Seminars, gathering naturally occurring evidence of achievement is an approach you might consider using. Authentic, verifiable evidence could be gathered from a range of situations to contribute to the evidence needed for achievement criteria of specific standards.

Templates which will assist you in recording evidence of achievement for unit standards and internally assessed and externally assessed achievement standards have been developed and sent to schools affected by the Earthquake. Contact the Earthquake Mailbox, ChchEQ@nzqa.govt.nz for copies.

Internal assessment

Circumstances this year mean that schools affected by the Christchurch earthquake through loss of teaching and learning time and ongoing disruption may face time constraints which limit opportunities for internal assessment. NZQA has developed templates which may be used to record student achievement suitable for reporting when more formal assessment opportunities have not been possible.

The templates are designed to aid teachers with establishing a grade for learner achievement at the achievement criteria or element level. Although recommended in this format, their use is optional and the generic template may be adapted by teachers to better suit their needs.

Evidence may be sourced from a range of formal and informal assessment types, including evidence from the learning process, prior learning, naturally occurring evidence and teacher professional judgement.

The templates may provide a tool to record evidence of achievement as it occurs during the teaching and learning process. The collection and collation of evidence is not required, but may be useful when students are itinerant. If practical, the template and a portfolio of evidence could accompany them as they move between schools.

External assessment

Circumstances this year mean that schools affected by the Christchurch earthquake may face time constraints which limit opportunities to prepare students for external assessment using “practice” exams. The assessment evidence gathering template NZQA has developed may be used to record student achievement suitable for reporting as a derived grade when more formal assessment opportunities have not been possible. This template has been sent to schools affected by the Earthquake. Contact the Earthquake Mailbox, ChchEQ@nzqa.govt.nz for copies.

Evidence of achievement supplied from other schools

Students may complete or partially complete an assessment while enrolled at another school. Schools should report grades to NZQA that have been verified by the previous school. Partial evidence for a standard may be supplied by the previous school and used by your teachers as part of the evidence gathered for assessment against criteria of standards. There are challenges to authenticity if the previous school gives the work to the student. To maintain authenticity, the previous school should supply any partial evidence to the next school directly. It is advisable to send it to the Principal’s Nominee. Schools will manage further assessment opportunities for these kinds of situations as they see fit.

Earthquake impaired derived grade: guidelines for applications

See SecQual circular S2011/050 Earthquake Impaired Derived Grade Processes.

Rationale

NZQA recognises that the extraordinary circumstances faced by students attending schools within the Earthquake Affected School Zone have impaired their schooling this year as a result of lost teaching and learning time.

Eligibility

Candidates for external assessment who were enrolled at a school within the earthquake zone before the last day of term 3 are eligible to be covered by the provisions of the Earthquake Impaired Derived Grade Process. Any student who enrolled in a school within the zone after the last day of term 3 is ineligible.

To be further eligible to be considered for an Earthquake Impaired Derived Grade (EIDG) for a standard, a candidate must:

• be present at the examination session, and
• make an attempt to answer the paper by presenting standard-specific evidence.

Unless both of these conditions are met the student will not be eligible to be considered for a derived grade for the standard(s). For example, if a candidate leaves the bulk of a paper unanswered, or writes nonsense or doodles, this would not constitute a genuine attempt. This is an important message for students.

Grades

Prior to 9 November all schools within the Earthquake Affected Zone must supply NZQA with grades derived from assessment of a candidate against the registered criteria of the standard(s). Standard specific, valid and authentic evidence for these grades may come from:

• school practice examinations
• end of topic tests
• classwork.

Evidence must be verifiable by being recorded and the school must retain this documentation in support of the grades it reports. This could be in the form of completed EIDG coversheets, templates of which were supplied to schools in term 1.

• The template is designed to aid teachers with establishing a derived grade for learner achievement. Its use is optional and it may be adapted by teachers to better suit their needs.
• The template may provide a tool to record evidence of achievement as it occurs during the teaching and learning process.
• The collection and collation of evidence is not required, but may be useful when students are itinerant. If practical, the template and a portfolio of evidence could accompany them as they move between schools.
• Evidence may be sourced from a range of formal and informal assessment types, including evidence from the learning process, prior learning, naturally occurring evidence and teacher professional judgement.
• The procedure should not be applied when a discrete assessment has taken place.

EIDG appeal process

Schools or candidates may appeal NZQA’s decision not to award an earthquake impaired derived grade. To do this, write to the Manager, School Quality Assurance and Liaison, NZQA, PO Box 160, Wellington 6140 by Friday 17 February 2012 and ensure that the original answer booklet is included. We recommend that students keep a copy of the original booklet.

If not satisfied with the outcome of the appeal the school or candidate may write to the Chief Executive of NZQA within 15 business days of the date of the notification of the appeal decision. The Chief Executive will make a judgement and that decision will be final.

Quality Assurance

NZQA will monitor the grades submitted by schools to ensure they are in line with the level of performance achieved by students in previous years. We are not expecting there to be problems but it does give an assurance to NZQA, schools, students and the public in general. Any anomalies will be followed up to ensure candidates receive credible qualifications.

This message should also be conveyed to students and their parents.

Every year NZQA conducts an audit of the Derived Grade process in 10% of schools. Schools within the earthquake zone should be aware that they may be audited in 2012.

Derived grade process for Portfolios: Visual Arts, Graphics and Technology

Earthquake affected schools in the Canterbury region may apply for a derived grade for students for

• Visual Arts level 3
• Graphics levels 1, 2 and 3
• Technology levels 2 and 3

The procedure is as follows:

1. Principal Nominee's enter details and grades into the derived grade spreadsheets.
2. Schools attach a pink 'Derived Grade' label to each portfolio where the candidate has made an application. These will be sent in the NZQA mail out to schools in the final week of September.
3. Schools have Visual Arts portfolios collected by the courier on Wednesday 9 November, Graphics and Technology portfolios by Wednesday 16th November.
4. Evidence is required for marking to proceed.
5. Marking panels mark portfolios as normal.
6. Panel Leaders meet to remark derived grade portfolios from Canterbury schools, taking into account the body of evidence and the teacher's suggested grade.
7. Grades are reported as normal.

Technology - Level 1

Level 1 Technology is assessed by written reports. The derived grade process for written examination papers applies.

Visual Arts - Level 1 and Level 2

Christchurch earthquake impaired schools are exempt from submitting sample portfolios to NZQA for level 1 and level 2 Visual Arts verification for 2011.

Should a school choose to submit work, they should contact New Zealand Couriers on 0800-692-463 at least two days before the submission date, to order the collection of portfolios.

Provisional results must be entered before sending the samples. This is done through the school’s secure site.

Visual Arts Submission Dates 2011 (for schools choosing to submit sample portfolios)

Level 1: Thursday October 27

Level 2: Wednesday 2 November

Courier tickets have been provided in the school’s pack for those schools submitting work for verification. These must be attached to the blue and/or red art bag/s. If a school is not submitting work, they are asked to return the courier tickets to NZQA in the provided pre-addressed envelope.

Those schools not sending work for verification should enter final grades only. These should be entered through the school’s secure site between following dates:

Level 1: Friday 11 November to Friday 25 November

Level 2:Thursday 17 November to Friday 25 November

2011 Due Dates for Assessment of Achievement Standards Externally Assessed by Portfolio for Earthquake Affected Christchurch Schools

Note: Examinations commence 10 November

Subject	Existing Deadline	New Deadline
Visual Arts Levels 1 & 2	Friday 25 November Deadline for completed entry of all final results online	None - 25 November deadline remains. The following dates for submission for verification no longer apply: 27 October for level 1; and 2 November for level 2.
Visual Arts Level 3 & Scholarship	Wednesday 9 November All level 3 portfolios must be collected by the courier by Wednesday 9 November	None
Technology (including DVC) Levels 1-3 & Scholarship Graphics Levels 2&3 and Scholarship	Wednesday 2 November This is the date for collection by courier	Wednesday 16 November
Education for Sustainability Level 3	Wednesday 2 November

Course endorsement for students affected by the 22 February earthquake

NZQA has amended one of the rules for course endorsement. Students at Christchurch schools affected by the earthquake or students who may have transferred to or from Christchurch schools between 22 February and 1 September 2011 are eligible and will not require that the 14 credits needed for course endorsement include that three credits be internally assessed and three credits be externally assessed.

More detail on eligibility and how to apply for the ‘Earthquake exemption’ is published in SecQual Circular S2011/021 Response to the 22 February 2011 Christchurch Earthquake for Course Endorsement.

Application form for Christchurch earthquake Course Endorsement exemption (PDF, 60KB)

PN guidelines for Course Endorsement (PDF, 11KB)

Emergency evacuation and student pack

To address concerns arising from the earthquakes in Christchurch this year, candidates will be allowed to bring an emergency evacuation pack into the exam room with them. This must be a named, clear, sealable plastic bag no larger than A4 size which may contain personal items such as a cell phone, keys, money, and bus or train tickets. This is to be placed under the candidate’s chair during the examination and not touched unless an emergency evacuation is required. Candidates who open their pack during the examination will be reported as a breach of the rules.

Credit inclusion for level 3 and UE

SecQual circular S2011/047 Eligibility for Credit Inclusion for earthquake-affected students for NCEA Level 3 and University Entrance in 2011 outlines which students will be eligible to apply for Earthquake Credit Inclusions and how they can apply.

All students who were enrolled in an earthquake affected school on 22 February or who enrolled in one after 22 February but before 1 September, and who have narrowly missed being awarded their Level 3 NCEA or University Entrance may apply for up to six unspecified credits towards their level 3 NCEA. Three of these unspecified credits may also be used towards the 42 credits required for University Entrance.

These unspecified credits will not be assigned to any subject or course and they will not contribute to either the University Entrance literacy or numeracy requirement.

Applications will be made after the release of results in January, with a closing date of 17 February 2012. Students will need to obtain a strong supporting statement from their school as part of the application process. Universities will be advised where unspecified credits were used towards University Entrance.

For more information see the Guidelines for Principal's Nominees (PDF, 8.9KB), and then download the Application Form.

External moderation

Christchurch schools are not required to send materials for external moderation. However, some schools have indicated they wish to participate so courier and labels are being sent to all schools as usual.

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