Assessment Workload Management Seminar: Reducing Burden & Best Practices

1. Principal’s NomineeSeminar 2018

2. Seminar Programme 8.45 -10.30 Managing teacher and student assessment workload 10.30 – 10.50 Morning tea 10.50 – 11.25 STEM and support for Maori and Pasifika students 11.25 – 12.00 Digital Assessment: Next Steps 12.00 – 12.45 New in 2018, Changes from 2017, Good Practice, Reminders

3. The NCEA would be doing NCEA “What wasn’t the dream? That all students would roll through all three levels. That students would be enrolled for twice as many credits as required to complete their qualification. That assessment processes would constrain how the school day is organised, and keep teachers buried in record keeping until late at night.” Josh Williams Chief Executive, Industry Training Federation 30 January 2018

4. A qualified achievement Asked how long it will take to carry out changes recommended by the review, Mr Hipkins said that would depend what the changes were. But, he added, schools do not need to wait. "Tackling this issue of over-assessment is something they can start working on now.” "When you look at the list of credits kids are getting, they are often getting far more credits than they need to achieve NCEA. So, schools can already start to reduce the assessment burden.” Bruce Munro Journalist, Otago Daily Times 5 February 2018

5. Changes in Assessment Practice to Reduce Workload • Reduce credits • Review internal / external balance • More optional standards • Fewer further assessment opportunities • Increase evidence use e.g. portfolios, for more than one standard • Use of feedback / feedforward / milestone checks

6. Activity In the Handbook there are examples of changes to assessment practice reported by schools. Choose: 2 from assessment programmes approaches: Page 6 1 from assessment practice / evidence gathering: Page 7. Identify: the potential benefits of the change barriers to change, and ways to reduce identified barriers.

7. Principles of Assessment Best Practice • Meets assessment needs of students • Maximises student engagement • Focuses on quality not quantity • Individualises assessment programmes, where manageable • Maintains credibility of assessment

8. Resubmission - Mythbuster Summary • At grade boundaries • Teacher determined • No requirement to offer • For minor errors a student can identify and correct • General feedback only • No further teaching and learning • Offered soon after the assessment completion

9. Resubmission The context of the original assessment will guide what constitutes: a minor error length of time given conditions of assessment.

10. Reducing the Need for Further Assessment http://www.nzqa.govt.nz/providers-partners/assessment-and-moderation/assessment-of-standards/generic-resources/gathering-evidence-of-achievement/ Further assessment can be minimised when teachers: ensure students understand the standard, achievement criteria and assessment discuss exemplars of successful work in different contexts provide adequate practice opportunities give extensive feedforward and feedback assess when ready, as appropriate.

11. Verification and Assessment Workload 75% of results reported to NZQA are from internal assessment (range in schools is between 60% - 95%). Robust internal moderation ensures credible assessment and the NCEA qualification. However: reducing over-selection will help reduce teachers’ workload, without compromising the quality of the assurance process.

12. Activity Discuss: • What are your school’s expectations for internal moderation verification? • What influences the number of samples of student work selected for verification?

13. Verification Best Practice • Student work should be purposefully selected and sufficient to ensure that the assessor judgments are consistent with the standard. • Student work must be verified but there is no fixed number of samples. • Quality of the sample selection rather than the quantity ensures the integrity of the verification. Focus on: • identified grade boundaries • assessor experience with the standard • number of teachers assessing • past external moderation feedback.

14. Managing Assessment Workload of Unwell Students How are the assessment programmes of known unwell students managed in your school? Do staff assisting these students understand the NCEA qualification and how its flexibility can be used to support them?

15. School Response A review of the assessment programme should prioritise student well-being. It is okay to reduce student workload. An actively managed assessment programme could include: • reduced credits in programme • no assessment • internal standards only • minimal external assessment, to reduce exam stress / anxiety • review of the necessity of particular standards for school and career pathways. The flexibility of the NCEA qualification should be well understood by the supporting staff

16. Future State STEM for Māori and Pasifika students Digital Assessment: NCEA Online

17. NZQA’s Future State PortfolioSTEM for Māori and Pasifika NZQA’s role in STEM*: supporting schools to use assessment data to review Māori and Pasifika student achievement in STEM subjects partnering with other educational agencies to focus on providing the opportunity of pathways onto STEM related tertiary opportunities and careers for higher numbers of Māori and Pasifika. *STEMis learning within selected fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics

18. STEM Achievement Data 2016 national figures of Level 3 STEM achievement*: Māori and Pasifika 26% Others 55%. * achievement of 14 credits at NCEA Level 3 in one or more STEM subjects

19. Background Context Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment forecasts employment growth will be strongest in STEM – related occupations. 60% Māori working population are employed in unskilled and semi-skilled occupations.

20. NZQA’s Response NZQA Goal: NZQA partners with education system agencies to support a 50% lift in Māori and Pasifika student achievement (14 credits) at NCEA Level 3 in one or more STEM subject areas by 2020.

21. School’s Response Activity: Using Post-it Notes, record possible ideas and strategies to support the goal of raising the 50% lift, for individual and groups in the short and long term. Consider: what could teachers do? what could the school do? how could whānau be engaged?

22. NZQA Support 2014 - 2017 STEM figures for Māori and Pasifika shared with Principals and Principal’s Nominee. SRM support during school visits: discussion of school’s response to data school’s progress towards lifting STEM achievement of Māori and Pasifika students.

23. Future State: NCEA Online Our strategic goal is: NCEA examinations available online, by 2020. Where are we at? Stage One: Paper First 2019 – 2020 focusing on support and encouragement for schools to engage in digital external assessment.

24. 2017 Experience: Digital Trials and Pilots • 15 Level 1 Trials, 3 Level 1 Pilots and 3 new Level 2 Pilots • 112 schools and 8,500 students entered in Trials • 55 schools and 5,130 students entered in Pilots • 2017 entries significantly increased • Involvement of around 75% of schools and 30,000 students since 2014. What have we learned? • 98% of student respondents agree or strongly agree that the digital pilot examination was a positive experience.

25. Student Impressions Likes: Dislikes: sore eyes from staring at the screen for too long battery/network issues room/sound is distracting internet slowing/being accidently locked out. Summary of findings from 13 co-managed schools and kura trial case studies and 2017 Pilot Student Surveys • natural extension of the way we work in class • easier to edit – add or change anything, and not worry about making mess • easier to go back and correct mistakes • avoid poor handwriting • faster and easier to type • familiarisation activities were good preparation.

26. 2018 Opportunities • Level 1, 2 and 3 Trials and Pilots: English, Media Studies and Classical Studies • Level 1 Science Trial: June and September/October • Support for schools to participate in digital examinations • STEM Online teaching and learning resources: Auckland University www.stemonline.auckland.ac.nz

27. Digital Assessment and Moderation Consider your own school’s position: what % of internal assessment is completed digitally? what % of moderation was submitted digitally? did you meet your 2017 goal for digitally submitted external moderation? what are your next steps?

28. New in 2018Changes from 2017Good PracticeReminders

29. New in 2018UE Literacy List Review Proposal: • add 12 standards; remove 11 standards • Reading: increase from 132 to 140 standards • Writing: decrease from 91 to 79 standards. • Consultation from 19 February - 13 April 2018 • Updated UE literacy list finalised in August 2018

30. Maintaining List of UE Approved Subjects Following the 2017 UE consultation, NZQA has developed processes and criteria for: a) modification to the approved subject list i.e. the addition and/or removal of subjects and standards b) a regular periodic review of the list. See Handbook Page 34

31. Changes from 2017New Zealand Certificates • New Zealand Certificates are progressively replacing National Certificates • Supporting material: • a checklist and mapping exercise for preparing the documentation for programme approval • the process for reporting completion of a New Zealand Certificate to NZQA. See Handbook Pages 36 and 37

32. Good Practice • Credible use of exemplars will illustrate key aspects of grade levels and achievement to support teacher understanding and student achievement. • School processes should identify rote learning of exemplars, including from the NZQA website, as plagiarised work.

33. Reminders “Quality over quantity” in external assessment Relationships with external providers New and changed achievement standards Assessor Support Refer to the Handbook Pages 38 - 41

34. Reminders“Quality over Quantity” Quality is more important than quantity in external assessment. This approach supports the management of student assessment work load for external assessment. All examination papers are designed to be completed within one hour.

35. Relationships with External Providers Applications for extensions to consent are made online through school’s high security area. Ensure MOUs are in place where an external provider code is used to report a grade. Subcontracting arrangements require NZQA approval – contact your SRM.

36. New Achievement Standards 2018 • Level 2 and 3 Business Studies (Agribusiness) 91865 - 91871 • Level 3 Psychology 91872 - 91876 • Level 1 Digital Technologies 91877 - 91887 • Level 1 HangarauMatihiko 91888 - 91889 Includes additions to: - NCEA qualifying literacy and numeracy standards - UE literacy standards and approved subjects. 

37. Changes to Achievement Standards 2018 Agriculture/Horticulture (Level 2 and 3) Drama (Level 2 and 3) English (Level 1 and 2) Geography (Level 1 and 2) The standards, new version numbers, changes made and the reasons for these are in the Handbook Page 40.

38. Assessor Support • Best Practice Workshops offer targeted support with greater flexibility around choice and mode of delivery • See Assessment Matters Circular 2017/32 and updated Best Practice Workshop pages • Any queries - email workshops@nzqa.govt.nz