Archived material
Some aspects of the documents in this section no longer apply, however they have been archived for reference.
Newsletter No. 16 – 27 August 1999
The New South Wales Government Reforms for the School Certificate and the Higher School Certificate
Frequently Asked Questions about the New Higher School Certificate
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If a student achieves an HSC mark of 50 does it equate with Band 1 or Band 2?
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What percentage of students can be expected to be placed in Band 1?
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Will internal assessment continue to count as part of the HSC result?
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What is to be the method for determining the moderated assessment mark?
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Can a one unit course be counted as the fourth subject to meet pattern of study requirements?
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How does the Board distinguish between a subject and a course?
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How will achievement in Band 1 be different from an N determination?
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Do the required 10 units of HSC courses have to be Board Developed?
As schools prepare to implement the New HSC syllabuses questions
on aspects of the curriculum and its implementation are being raised
with Board officers attending forums and meetings.
The Board has established a question and answer page on its website
(www.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au) so that teachers are provided with
accurate and timely information to support planning and implementation.
The page answers questions that are being frequently asked and will
be updated regularly.
A selection from the first set of questions and answers on the website
is included below.
Will it be possible for a student who completes Year 11 in 1999 to enter Year 12 in 2001 and sit for the HSC examination in that year?
Yes. The Board's Pathways provisions allow for this. Students who
have completed the current requirements for the Preliminary course
of study will be deemed to have satisfied the requirements for the
new Preliminary course of study even if they have only completed
11 units of the current Preliminary courses.
Preliminary courses completed up to 1999 can be counted towards
completion of HSC courses in and after 2001.
Will the HSC examination test all HSC course outcomes?
The examination will test a sample of the course outcomes in any one year. Values and attitudes outcomes will not be included in the examination.
If a student achieves an HSC mark of 50 does it equate with Band 1 or Band 2?
A mark of 50-59 equates with Band 2, 60-69 equates with Band 3 and so on.
What percentage of students can be expected to be placed in Band 1?
There is no predetermined percentage of students to be placed in each band. The standards reached by candidates will determine the distribution in each subject.
Will internal assessment continue to count as part of the HSC result?
The internal assessment and the external examination will carry equal weighting in the determination of the student's HSC result. Each component will be worth 50%. For more information about internal assessment in the New HSC see the Board publication, The New Higher School Certificate Assessment Support Document, which was distributed to schools at the beginning of Term 3 1999.
What is to be the method for determining the moderated assessment mark?
For each course the internal assessment marks submitted by the school will be moderated by using the performance of the school course group in the examinations. The moderated assessment and the examination mark will be averaged to provide a composite mark.
Can a one unit course be counted as the fourth subject to meet pattern of study requirements?
Yes. A one unit course can be counted as the fourth subject. This one unit course can be either a Board Developed Course, a Content Endorsed Course or a Board Endorsed Course.
How does the Board distinguish between a subject and a course?
A subject is the general name given to an area of study that may
have several different courses for example, within the subject English
the courses will include English (Standard), English (Advanced),
English as a Second Language, etc.
A course is a branch of study within a subject. There can be more
than one level of study within a course.
How long will the performance bands remain in draft form?
The performance bands will remain in draft form until the 2001
HSC examinations. The descriptions in the performance bands will
be reviewed immediately following the 2001 examinations before being
used to report student achievement for that year. Where refinements
to the descriptions are made this will ensure that they appropriately
summarise the different levels of achievement students are demonstrating
in the new HSC courses.
It is possible that in some areas further refinements may follow
from the 2002 HSC examinations.
How will achievement in Band 1 be different from an N determination?
Students who gain an HSC mark that places them in Band 1, and so
below the minimum standard expected, may be still deemed to have
met the criteria for completion of the course. Students who, after
the appropriate processes have been followed, receive an N determination
(previously called a U determination) are considered not to have
satisfactorily completed the course.
Students who achieve a mark for a course in Band 1 will have the
course credentialled on their Record of Achievement while students
receiving an N determination will not.
Are all subjects in the New HSC of an equivalent standard?
A standards-based approach is about establishing meaningful standards
in particular subjects not about equating standards across them.
All courses in the New HSC will be rigorous in terms of the standard
of knowledge, skills and understanding expected of the students
undertaking them.
The process of setting standards for each new HSC course has involved:
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an evaluation of the content and outcomes of existing courses
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an analysis of the standards of performance that students are currently demonstrating through HSC examinations. This involved experienced HSC markers analysing student responses to questions in recent HSC examinations including written answers, major works, projects and performances.
The use of information about current standards of performance has
meant that the learning outcomes and content for each of the new
HSC courses are set at an appropriate standard.
Do the required 10 units of HSC courses have to be Board Developed?
No. To be awarded a Higher School Certificate only 6 of the 10 units need to be Board Developed. However, for students wanting a Universities Admission Index (UAI) the calculation will be based on the best 10 Board Developed units including 2 units of English.
New Higher School Certificate Terminology
The Board of Studies has endorsed the following definitions for
terms to be used in a range of Board documents and publications
relating to the new HSC.
Standards
Standards are the knowledge, skills and understanding expected to
be learned by students as a result of studying a course, together
with the levels of achievement of the knowledge, skills and understanding.
Performance bands
Performance bands are levels of achievement in a course. Each band
has a statement that describes observable and measurable features
of students' knowledge, skills and understanding in a course. These
statements are arranged hierarchically to describe the different
levels of achievement typically demonstrated by students in each
of the bands.
Performance scale
A performance scale is a scale of marks between 0-100 or 0-50 with
performance bands. On a scale of 0-100 there are six performance
bands aligned to the scale of marks. On a scale of 0-50 there are
four performance bands aligned to the scale of marks.
Where the scale is 0-100 a mark less than 50 (Band 1) indicates
that a student's performance has not reached the minimum standard
expected for the course. Where the scale is 0-50 a mark less than
25 (Band 1) indicates that the student's performance has not reached
the minimum standard expected for the course.
Course report
A course report is a report of individual student achievement in
a particular course. It will consist of:
- the name of the course;
- the performance scale including the band descriptions;
- the internal assessment mark;
- the external assessment mark;
- the HSC mark located on a performance scale;
- a histogram which shows the statewide distribution of HSC marks.
Standards-referenced assessment
Standards-referenced assessment is the assessment of students' achievement
against specified standards of performance that are established
for each course.
Sample examination information
Sample examination information is the set of possible questions
and the marking guides for external assessment items, in particular,
the HSC examination written paper.
Specimen examination paper
A specimen examination paper is developed from the subject examination
specifications. It illustrates the ways in which a sample of outcomes
and content may be tested across a range of question types set at
various levels of difficulty. It also incorporates instructions,
layout and formatting.
Common examination component
The common examination component is the part of the HSC examination
in a course, based on the common component of that course, that
all candidates must attempt.
External assessment
External assessment refers to the externally set and marked HSC
examination including written papers, submitted projects and products,
performances and practical demonstrations.
Internal assessment
Internal assessment refers to the school-based assessment tasks
that are developed, administered and marked by teachers and which
comply with the Board's mandatory assessment requirements.
Student performance
Student performance refers to what students demonstrate in order
for their achievements in a course to be assessed.
Student achievement
Student achievement refers to what students know, understand and
can do in relation to the outcomes of a course.
Subject
A subject is the general name given to an area of study that may
have several different courses (eg within the subject English the
courses will include English (Standard), English (Advanced), English
Life Skills, etc).
Course
A course is a branch of study within a subject; there can be more
than one level of study within a course.
Unit
A unit denotes the indicative time allocated to a course; one unit
= 60 hours; most courses are 2 units = 120 hours
Pattern of study
Pattern of Study refers to the arrangement of courses and their
unit value which must be successfully completed for the award of
the Higher School Certificate.
Syllabus
A syllabus is the document for each course which describes what
students are expected to learn in terms of aims, objectives, outcomes,
content and assessment requirements.
Extension course
An extension course builds on the content of the 2 unit course and
requires students to work beyond the standard of the 2 unit course.
Where there is a second HSC extension course, the extension 2 course
requires students to work beyond the standard of the extension 1
course.
Industry curriculum framework
An industry curriculum framework describes the range and groups
of units of competency that have been endorsed by the Board for
inclusion in the Higher School Certificate as specific VET subjects
and/or courses.
Moderation
Moderation involves statistical procedures of aligning internal
assessment marks so that students' results across the state can
be compared accurately and fairly.
(Professor) Gordon Stanley
President
Board of Studies NSW
27 August, 1999