Understanding NCEA

NCEA has been around for a number of years now. However it is more complex than the previous system. This should explain what is required at each level.

NCEA Level 1

This takes place in Year 11 (Fifth Form) and replaces School Certificate...

To gain NCEA level 1, students must achieve the following...

• 60 Credits at level 1
• 20 Credits at level 1 or above
• 8 credits in literacy
• 8 credits in numeracy

• This is a total of 80 credits

NCEA Level 2

This takes place in Year 12 (Sixth Form) and replace Sixth Form Certificate.

To gain NCEA level 2, students must achieve the following...

• 60 Credits at level 2
• 20 Credits at level 1 or above

• This is a total of 80 credits.

• There are no literacy or numeracy requirements

• It is not necessary to gain NCEA Level 1 before gaining NCEA Level 2

• Credits gained and counted towards NCEA Level 1 can be re-used for NCEA Level 2

NCEA Level 3

This takes place in Year 13 (Seventh Form) and replaces Bursary.

To gain NCEA level 3, students must achieve the following...

• 60 Credits at level 3
• 20 Credits at level 2 or above

• This is a total of 80 credits.

• There are no literacy or numeracy requirements

• It is not necessary to gain NCEA Level 1 or NCEA Level 2 before gaining NCEA Level 3

• Credits gained and counted towards NCEA Level 2 can be re-used for NCEA Level 3

NCEA With Merit

This is a new qualification starting in 2007. Students may now gain NCEA with Merit.

The requirements are

•  50 Credits or more must be achieved with Merit or Excellence

• The Credits must be at the same level or above the qualification attained

• The Student must meet the other requirements for NCEA at that level

NCEA With Excellence

This is a new qualification starting in 2007. Students may now gain NCEA with Excellence.

The requirements are

•  50 Credits or more must be achieved with  Excellence

• The Credits must be at the same level or above the qualification attained

• The Student must meet the other requirements for NCEA at that level

University Entrance

With the change to NCEA, all Universities now have the following minimum standard before they allow a student under 25 to enter University...

• A minimum of 42 credits at level 3 or higher

• 14 credits at level 3 or higher in each of two subjects from the approved subject list

• 14 credits at level 3 or higher taken from no more than two additional domains

• 14 credits at level 1 or higher in Mathematics

• 8 credits at level 2 or higher in English or Te Reo Māori from the approved list (4 credits must be in Reading and 4 credits must be in Writing)

Scholarship

Scholarship allows students who excel in one or more subjects to sit a more rigorous exam to prove they are amongst the best in New Zealand. Passing Scholarship is very prestigious opening a number of doors for students. There is also a financial reward.

Enrolments for Scholarship are discussed with students at the time registration is due. These subjects have Scholarship.

Achievement Standards

Achievement standards were introduced with NCEA. Unlike the previous percentage based assessments Achievement Standards have a number of criteria that students must reach before 'achieving' in a standard. Depending on how well a student does there is potential to gain an 'Achieved', 'Achieved with Merit' or "Achieved with Excellence' grade.

Unit Standards

Unit Standards pre date NCEA and were introduced as a means for industry to evaluate a students ability in a specific task at a specific level. This could be the ability to type at a certain number of words-per-minute or weld a joint to a specific standard. Unit Standards have also been introduced in traditional school subjects such as mathematics. Again these standards assess the students ability to compete a specific task at a certain level.

GPA

In an attempt to provide a single grade to judge how well a student is doing NZQA introduced GPA. It works as follows...

• An Excellence grade gives a score of 100

• A Merit grade gives a score of 75

• An Achieved grade gives a score of 50

• Failed and Unit Standard grades do not count towards GPA

• The total score is then averaged to produce the student's GPA

Internal Assessments

Many Achievement Standards and all Unit Standards are internally assessed. These assessments are as rigorous as External Assessments, however, they have a number of advantages to them.

• More time can be given than a 3 hours exam slot. This allows more complex tasks to be assessed.

• There is less time pressure on students, this can be a help to some students.

• There is often a reassessment opportunity. If a student makes a good effort but has not fully learnt one area they can be re-taught/learnt and be retested in the area

• In certain subjects students may be able to resit the assessment later in the year.

External Assessments

These assessments are held at the end of the year and are completely run by NZQA employees. Students still sit one subject at a time, however, they will often sit a number of standards at the same sitting.