NCEA Information

NZQA Candidate Information Sheet (0.90MB) 

NCEA Exam Timetable 2012 (0.02MB) 

What is NQF?

The National Certificate of Educational Achievement (or NCEA) is the national qualification for senior secondary school students. It is part of the National Qualifications Framework (NQF) which includes a range of other certificates and qualifications such as National Certificates in:

• Early Childhood
• Electronics Technology
• Computing

How does the Framework Work?

For many courses, most assessment is through exams (external assessment) but all courses will have parts that are internally assessed (marked in the school). Internal assessment is used for parts of the curriculum that an exam is unsuitable for (such as research skills or practical performance), or as preparation for external assessment.

NCEA is administered by the NZ Qualifications Authority (NZQA)which runs the external exams and makes checks on schools to ensure that internal assessments are done fairly and consistently across all schools in New Zealand. The NCEA is awarded at three levels. Level One is worked towards mainly by Year 11 students, Level Two by Year 12 students, and Level Three by Year 13 students (there is also a separate Scholarship exam available for outstanding Level 3 students). Many students take multi-level courses, both as extension and to complete a NCEA certificate they may have started in a previous year. Each subject has developed a number of Achievement and/or Unit Standards at each level. Achievement Standards are either externally or internally assessed; Unit Standards are all internally assessed. They make it clear what level of work and knowledge is necessary.

‘External assessment’ means your work will be assessed by someone outside the school. In almost all cases this will be as a result of NZQA exams sat at the end of the year. Each Achievement or Unit Standard is worth a set number of credits. If you meet the set level you will receive all the credits for that Standard. If it is for an Achievement Standard you will have the opportunity to be recognised as achieving it at either a satisfactory (Achieved) level, a very good level (Merit), or at an outstanding level (Excellence). The grade does not affect how many credits you get however – if you pass at any level you will still receive all the available credits for that Achievement Standard. To receive a Level One NCEA, you will need to gain a total of 80 credits, of which at least 10 must be related to literacy skills, and 10 to basic numeracy skills – these may be gained through a range of subjects as well as through English and Mathematics courses.

To receive a Level Two or Three NCEA, you will need to gain a total of 80 credits of which a minimum of 60 credits must be at the appropriate level. Getting your certificate endorsed with Merit or Excellence is straightforward and says a lot about the quality of the work you do.  At Level 1, 2 or 3 you must achieve 50 credits or more at Merit or Excellence level to receive your endorsement.

If you have a combination of 50 or more Merit and Excellence credits you will receive your certificate endorsed with Merit. It is possible to gain an endorsement over more than one year.  For most academic scholarships having your certificates endorsed with Excellence has become the minimum entry requirement for consideration and the endorsement with Merit backs up applications for university hostels and other scholarships such as Sporting, Leadership and in the Arts.  Individual courses can also be endorsed although this must be done in a calendar year. The requirement is 14 credits at Excellence, for an Excellence endorsement, or 14 credits at Merit, for a Merit endorsement.  A mix of Internal and External standards must be obtained (except in Physical Education, Religious Studies or Level 3 Art).

How is NCEA Reported?

By the end of January in the following year you will receive a Results Notice which will show what standards you gained, how many credits they are worth, and at what level you achieved in them. A record of Achievement is an official transcript of all the standards you have received. You are entitled to one free copy in a year and can request one through your leaner log-in.

What about University Entrance?

University Entrance requires a minimum of:

• 42 credits at Level 3, including a minimum of 14 credits or higher in each of two subjects from the ‘approved’ subject list, and the other 14 from no more than two subjects
• 14 numeracy credits at Level One (or better)
• 4 reading credits at Level Two (or better)
• 4 writing credits at Level Two (or better)

If you are in danger of not meeting the numeracy or literacy requirements for University Entrance it is very important that you talk to your relevant teachers as soon as possible. They will advise on what Achievement or Unit Standards are required for this and will offer guidance on achieving these.

Costs

The following are NCEA fees for NZ students in 2011: All NCEA subjects plus up to 3 Scholarship subjects $76.70 Scholarship (if entered for more than 3 scholarship subjects) $76.70 per extra subject

Financial assistance is available for:

• Where the fees for a family would exceed $200

• Community Service Card holders or those on a benefit

The school collects these on behalf of NZQA and requests payment by the end of August each year.

St Peter's Procedures and Guidelines

Except for circumstances clearly beyond your control late work will not be assessed for NQF purposes. You are expected to attend class regularly to ensure educational progress and to fulfill course requirements.  It is important that appointments (e.g. orthodontist, doctor…) are not made during times when assessments are to be handed in, or when there is a test or practical assessment. In exceptional circumstances (e.g. severe illness, bereavement…) an extension to the due date for work may be granted by your teacher (in very clear cases) or the school NQF Co-ordinator. You will need to apply to your teacher or the NQF Coordinator ( Mrs Lynch) on the ‘Request for Extension’ form on the first appropriate day after the work was due, or several days before the date if the reason can be foreseen (e.g. sports trips). If you are away on the day of assessment, due to sickness, your parent/caregiver must ring and inform the office of this before 9.00 am that day. The office will then notify the teacher.

Often you will need supporting evidence from an independent source (such as a Medical Certificate). Teachers have a responsibility to give fair and reasonable time to complete assessment work, and to let you know relevant assessment dates well in advance. In rare situations, it may be appropriate for a teacher to shift the assessment date later than first notified. If this is the case, you can expect at least one week’s notice.

Appeals

You have the right to lodge an appeal if you believe that you have been unfairly disadvantaged in the assessing or recording of work completed for NQF qualifications.

Grounds for appeal include:

• a mistake made by the marker
• unfairness in the way marks were awarded
• incorrect recording or transfer of results to NZQA
• failure to be given a reassessment opportunity where it is obviously part of the department’s practices
• a decision regarding ‘breaches of rules’

The main principle that will be considered is fairness.

If you believe that you have grounds for appeal you must approach the teacher within 3 days of receiving the assessment back and attempt to sort it out then.
If you are still dissatisfied, then you must approach the HOD of the subject area (or if the HOD is your teacher, another teacher the HOD nominates) with your concern. This second teacher will reassess the work in question and let you know.

If you still believe that you have been wrongly assessed you may appeal in writing to the NQF Co-ordinator (Mrs Lynch) on the ‘Assessment Appeal’ form. The NQF Co-ordinator will investigate fully and let you know the decision in writing. The NQF Co-ordinator’s decision is final.

Breaches of Rules

This is about guaranteeing that the work you present for NQF assessment is your own. You are required to sign a statement in your senior diary affirming this. For many assessments it is appropriate to learn at home and gain information from a variety of sources. This must be suitably acknowledged. However, you must NEVER claim that work necessary for assessment is your own when this is untrue. It is vital that you are very clear how much outside help you are allowed for any assessment work. CHECK WITH YOUR TEACHER FIRST. Teachers will use a number of different practices to reassure themselves that the work you submit is legitimate.

Cases of suspected cheating will be thoroughly investigated and submitted to NZQA. If the cheating is confirmed you may suffer some or all of the following:

• no grade being awarded
• no opportunity for reassessment
• be brought before the Board of Trustees Disciplinary Committee and subject to any of the sanctions they have at their disposal
• being barred by NZQA from entering other qualifications if the breach occurs in external exams

Similarly, if you help another student cheat, such as by deliberately allowing them to copy work you produced, this will result in the same procedures being applied to you. In other words, the case will be considered as if you had cheated yourself.

Opportunities for Assessment

In some courses you will be given more than one opportunity to achieve an internally assessed standard. This is where such additional assessment is reasonable and practicable.

Teachers will inform you for which internal standards additional assessment opportunities will be given.

Special Assessment Condition

If you feel that you have a disability that hinders how well you do in examinations, there is a possibility that additional assistance may be available for you. This may be in the form of someone to help with reading and/or writing in exam situations.
There are very strict rules that must be met before you can receive this assistance.
If you think this may apply to you it is very important that you see the HOD Learning Support as soon as possible. It is too late to apply for this half way through the year.

NQF Management at St Peter’s College

If you have concerns about NCEA or the NQF you may talk to your subject teachers about it, your dean, or Mrs Lynch. We are all concerned that you are given the best opportunities to show whether you can meet the standards required of this qualification in a way that is fair to all.

Good Advice about NCEA

Initially you will be focused on getting enough credits for your Level One Certificate (ie. 80, including the right number of literacy and numeracy credits).

• However, you must not stop there, because:
• for future study or employment it is in your best effort to show what you are able to do. To do this you need to show, through assessment that you can do more.
• you may not be able to get into courses you want at higher levels in the school if you haven’t got the right number of credits in that subject. Some subjects also require you to gain particular standards before you can advance to a higher level.
• some people think that it doesn’t matter what grade you get – as long as you pass a standard that is all that matters. They think this because if you pass a standard you get the same number of credits regardless of what grade (Achieved, Merit or Excellence) you get.
• this is a big mistake. Although it won’t affect the number of credits you get, a Merit or Excellence pass in an Achievement Standard is better than an Achieved because:
• it shows an employer that you know the material better than someone who just got an Achieved
• it is more challenging to get a higher grade and therefore more rewarding when you do succeed
• some tertiary courses require higher grades – check with the Careers Department.

• standards offered in each course
• what standards assessment activities relate to and when they are coming up
• Ways you can keep track of these include:
• making use of the tracking sheet in your Student Diary
• regularly referring to the Course Booklets given to you in each course at the start of each year

It is also important to check that results are recorded accurately by the school. All results are entered onto the computer at school and this is used to generate your reports and to send to NZQA. Therefore if you think your report does not show accurately everything you have done it is vital you see your teacher about it and quickly sort it out.

You also have two other useful ways to check results:

• the school will give you a list of standards you have entered for late in the third term or early in the fourth term for you to check. Make sure you do this carefully.
• your entries will be available to check online at the NZQA website using your learner log-in.