Assessment Specifications

Level 2 Digital Technologies and
Hangarau Matihiko 2020

(Updated in March 2020)

General information

Information relating to both achievement standards

Digital Technologies and Hangarau Matihiko (DT&HM) common assessment tasks (CATs) will be available online. The CATs tasks will ask candidates to respond to a series of prompts or questions drawn from the achievement standards. Candidates should aim to write between 800 and 1500 words in total.

In each following year, the questions, prompts and range of samples may change.

Schools will download the CATs, test them and make them available to individual candidates at the start of the scheduled assessment session(s).

Schools must choose when their candidates will undertake the DT&HM CATs and inform NZQA via an online form. Schools will choose dates within the time period notified to them at the start of Term 1.

Candidates must complete DT&HM CATs under supervision. NZQA will digitally sample candidate responses to ensure authenticity requirements are met.

Each candidate’s assessment responses will be uploaded to an NZQA drive as a single portable document format (.pdf) file. NZQA markers will mark an exact copy of the file. The uploaded file and the marked file will remain online until the completion of the reconsideration process.

Administration instructions will be published on the subject page at the end of Term 2 each year. Detailed explanations of processes are provided in the administration instructions.

Exemplars from the 2019 papers will be provided in Term 1 2020.

Specific information for individual achievement standards

91898: Demonstrate understanding of a computer science concept

Candidates must respond to a series of questions or prompts.

For 2020, candidates will choose from the following concepts:

• encryption 
• error control 
• or artificial intelligence (Explanatory Note 3).

Explanatory Note 4: Mechanisms (2020): There will be one question on algorithms or techniques and another question on protocols or procedures.

Explanatory Note 5: Impacts (2020): Candidates will answer a question on one impact selected from a list of two.

Only work directly keyed in by the candidate into their computer or device during the assessment session will be used in the assessment response. The candidate will not use hard copy, online course resources or notes of any type, to complete this assessment. The candidate will not access internet resources, except the CAT.

By saving an assessment response at the end of the assessment session, the candidate verifies the work is their own. NZQA may digitally sample the candidate’s work to test its authenticity.

91899: Present a summary of developing a digital outcome

Candidates must present a summary of developing a digital outcome. The digital outcome must have been developed by the candidate, within the past 12 months.

Except as stated below, only work directly keyed by the candidate into their computer or device during the assessment session will be used in the assessment response.

The candidate may access their digital outcome and may copy from the digital outcome and paste into the assessment response.

The candidate will not use hard-copy course resources or online resources, or notes of any type, to complete this assessment. The candidate will not access internet resources, except the CAT and the outcome (if the outcome is web-based or saved on the internet).

Digital outcomes developed in an electronics context: in addition, candidates may access digital copies of schematics and digital images of the outcome produced during the development of the outcome.

Candidates will choose two from the following decisions made in the development process:

• sequencing of key tasks in the project, 
• selection of methods to address requirements
• selection of methods to address implications. (Explanatory Note 4).

The Digital CAT will select two questions from the following relevant implications:

• legal implications 
• accessibility
• intellectual property and 
• health and safety. (Explanatory note 5).

The school may be required to provide a link to the candidate’s digital outcome.

By saving an assessment response at the end of the assessment session, the candidate verifies the work is their own. NZQA may digitally sample the candidate’s work to test its authenticity.  

Digital Technologies subject page

Technology standards AS91367 and AS91371 expire at the end of 2019 and will no longer be offered.