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Message 2025 Student & Caregiver NCEA Handbook

1 Table of Contents Assessment Directory 1 How NCEA Works 2 NCEA Qualifications 2 Literacy and Numeracy Requirements 3 University Entrance Requirements 4 University Entrance Approved Subjects 4 Rank Score 4 University of Auckland Academic English Language 5 Internal and External Assessment 5 Gaining the standard 5 Further Assessment Opportunity 6 Resubmission 6 Certificate Endorsement 6 Course Endorsement 6 Subject Structure 6 Registering online with NZQA and Howick College Portal Login 7 NCEA External Assessment – Grade Score Marking 7 Commonly Asked Student Questions 8 Important Dates 2025 11 NCEA Examination Timetable 12 Assessment Directory I need help with: Who can help Absences Email: note@howick.school.nz Student Attendance Officer Mrs Carol Andrews Careers and Pathways Head of Careers Paula Faamalepe Bacot Ms Olivia Colenso Mrs Dominique Rossouw Mr Craig Dryden Mrs Neera Sundrum Mrs Paulette Hadley Mr Sahand Salmanpour Ms Alison Price Mrs Kirsty Gillett Mr Braden Singh Mr Steve Dymond Ms Losetta Fapiano Bell House Deans Ingham Irvine Pastoral Support Minerva MacDonald Counsellors Ms Donna Brown Ms Louise Jennings Ms Stephanie Mason Ms Roshnee Kassan Internal Assessment Relevant subject teacher Head of Department Principal’s Nominee first.last@howick.school.nz first.last@howick.school.nz shannon.nelson@howick.school.nz NCEA Entries and Administration NCEA Administration karen.perry@howick.school.nz Subject or classroom issues Head of Department (HoD) Head of Learning Area (HoLA)Please refer to the Staff page of our website Any staff member can be contacted by email if required. A full staff directory can be found on our website. Every email address is structured as first.last@howick.school.nz.

2 How NCEA Works •Each year students study several courses or subjects.•In each subject, skills and knowledge are assessed against several standards. Each standard is given a creditvalue. Most subjects have 18 – 24 credits available in their course, made up of multiple standards. For example,in a Level 1 Mathematics course we offer 20 credits in total. One of the standards is Explore data using astatistical enquiry process, worth 5 credits. Another standard Demonstrate mathematical reasoning is worth 5credits.•Howick College uses a range of internal and external assessments to measure how well students meet thesestandards.•When a student achieves a standard, they gain the credit value of that standard. Students must achieve acertain number of credits to gain an NCEA certificate (see below).•There are three levels of NCEA certificate. In general, students work through levels 1 to 3 in years 11 to 13 atHowick College.•Students are recognised for high achievement at each level by gaining NCEA with Merit or NCEA withExcellence.NCEA Qualifications Year 11 NCEA Level 1 Year 12 NCEA Level 2 Year 13 NCEA Level 3, University Entrance and Scholarship The table below outlines the number of credits required to be awarded a certificate at each level: Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 University Entrance 60 Credits at Level 1 or above. 60 Credits at Level 2 or above. 60 Credits from Level 3. Achieve Level 3 NCEA with Co-Requisites Have gained 14 credits or more in at least THREE University Entrance approved subjects. University Entrance also requires: Level 2 Literacy (10 Credits) (This includes 5 Credits in Level 2 Literacy Reading AND 5 Credits in Level 2 Literacy Writing) PLUS: All levels of NCEA require the CO-REQUISITE of L1 Literacy and Numeracy. This includes: • 10 Credits in Literacy (made up of 5 credits in Reading and5 credits in Writing)• 10 Credits in Numeracy

3 Literacy and Numeracy Requirements The changes to NCEA in 2024 mean that obtaining Literacy and Numeracy is a co-requisite to gaining any NCEA certificate.Literacy requirement for all NCEA Certificates: - Students need to achieve the Literacy Common Assessment Tasks for both Reading and Writing.Numeracy requirement for all NCEA Certificates: - Students need to achieve the Numeracy Common Assessment Task.Students attempt these tests in Year 10 and continue each year until they pass. Once a student passes, they do not need to do the test again. Students will not be awarded any level of certificate until they pass Numeracy and Literacy tests. Literacy requirement for University Entrance: Students need a minimum of 5 Level 2 reading and 5 Level 2 writing credits, available through a range of standards accessible in many subjects (for example, English, History, Statistics, Science, Music, Dance and many more).

4 University Entrance Requirements University Entrance (UE) is the minimum requirement to go to a New Zealand university. To qualify you will need: NCEA Level 3, including: •Three subjects – at Level 3 or above, made up of 14 credits each, in three approved subjects. However, it is•advisable to have four or five approved subjects.•Literacy – 10 credits at Level 2 or above, made up of: 5 credits in reading and 5 credits in writing.•Numeracy – 10 credits at Level 1 or above made up from approved standards.University Entrance Approved Subjects History History of Art Home Economics (Food and Nutrition) Media Studies Music Painting (Practical Art) Photography (Practical Art) Physical Education Physics Accounting Biology Business Studies Calculus Chemistry Classical Studies Construction & Mechanical Technologies (including Textile Technology) Dance Design (Practical Art) Design & Visual Communication (Graphics) Processing Technologies (Food Technology) Digital Technologies (including Electronics and Programming) Sculpture (Practical Art) Drama Social Studies Economics Spanish English Statistics French Technology Geography Te Reo Māori Health Education Rank Score Some universities and/or degrees also have a 'rank score' minimum entry requirement. A student’s rank score is calculated from their best 80 credits gained at Level 3, which are given weighted points for each Excellence, Merit or Achieved (e.g. Auckland University gives 4 points per Excellence, 3 points per Merit and 2 points per Achieved). Please note, a rank score is not a qualification, but a method for universities to evaluate entry suitability. Students should check the relevant pages of the course/university they are interested in to determine what rank score (and prerequisite subjects) might be required for entry.

5 University of Auckland Academic English Language Requirement The University of Auckland has an entrance requirement for domestic students called the Academic English Language Requirement. Its aim is to ensure all students are in possession of a basic level of functional competence in academic English thus having the opportunity to flourish in the University environment and in the graduate employment market. Students will need to meet the requirement stipulated below (along with other entry and programme requirements) in order to be offered an unconditional place at Auckland University. •Applicants must have gained UE Literacy and a minimum of 17 credits in English at Level 2 or 3.Internal and External Assessment Some Achievement Standards will be assessed internally and others externally. Most subjects will have approximately 30% of their Achievement Standards externally assessed. Internal Assessment means that the assessment a student does is carried out in school when the teaching for that Achievement Standard is complete. Internal Assessments are marked by teachers at Howick College with the marking of the standards checked by the New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA). External Assessment in a subject can be carried out in one of two ways: 1. An examination sat at the end of the year, along with all other students in New Zealand studying the subject2. Work carried out during the year submitted at the end of the year to NZQA for markingFor example, the externally assessed Achievement Standards in Mathematics and English are assessed by a standalone examination, whereas the externally assessed Achievement Standards for Art and Design are assessed by the submission of work done in class, during the year, to NZQA. All Unit Standards will be assessed internally. Gaining the Standard For each Achievement Standard a student gains, they will be given one of the following grades: Achieved with Excellence Achieved with Merit Achieved Most Units Standards are graded either Achieved or Not Achieved (only a small number of Unit Standards are given a Merit or Excellence grade). The grade at which the standard has been achieved does not alter the number of credits gained, e.g. a student gaining Achievement Standard AS90940 in Science with Excellence gains 4 credits as does a student who achieves the same standard with Merit. It is important to know that entry into some tertiary courses, after studying at the higher levels of NCEA, may require Merit and Excellence grades for Achievement Standards. Please refer to the specific university course for more information.

6 Further Assessment Opportunity In some subjects a further assessment opportunity may be offered for a particular standard. This is a second opportunity to attempt an assessment. This requires students to complete a whole new task, with new instructions, context and/or skills. Students are not able to submit an altered version of their original assessment opportunity. Further assessment opportunities are offered at the discretion of each department. Resubmission Resubmission is an opportunity for a student to resubmit a completed assignment with minor changes after receiving a Not Achieved grade. Only students who are sitting on the grade boundary of Not Achieved and Achieved may do a resubmission, at the discretion of their teacher. A resubmission can be done for a further assessment opportunity if it is close to the Achieved grade boundary, at the discretion of the teacher. Certificate Endorsement An overall NCEA certificate is issued when a student achieves Level 1, 2 or 3. These certificates can be achieved with Merit or Excellence overall. To achieve Level 1, 2 or 3 with Excellence, at least 50 of the credits achieved must be at Excellence level. To achieve a certificate with Merit at least 50 of the credits must be achieved at the Merit level or above. Course Endorsement A student may gain a course endorsement, for example, English Level 2 with Excellence. To gain a course endorsement, a student must achieve 14 credits at the Excellence or Merit level and at least three credits must be internally assessed credits and three credits externally assessed. The exceptions are Physical Education and Visual Arts. Physical Education students require 14 Internal credits at Excellence for an Excellence Endorsement or at Merit for a Merit Endorsement because it is an entirely internally assessed course. Visual Arts students will gain an Excellence or Merit Endorsement if they achieve Excellence or Merit for their Board or Portfolio which is worth 14 External credits or if they achieve 14 credits for their internal Achievement Standards. Subject Structure Each subject a student studies will be assessed by up to eight standards. Some, or all of these, may be Achievement Standards and some, or all, may be Unit Standards. Each standard is worth a certain number of credits. At the beginning of each course the subject teacher will provide a course outline that will inform students of: •The content of the course, subsequent study and any textbooks required etc.•The standards being studied for and whether these are Unit Standards or Achievement Standards.•The Achievement Standards that will be assessed internally and externally.•The approximate time of year each internally assessed standard will be carried out.•Whether there will be an opportunity to sit an assessment again in the unfortunate circumstance a studentis ill or does not achieve the standard. It is important that students are aware of this process becauseteachers may decide for particular standards that it is not possible to offer a second opportunity to beassessed.•The number of credits each standard is worth.

7 Registering online with NZQA and Howick College Portal Login Sometime in June this year, students will receive a card from NZQA with details including their National Student Number (NSN). The back of the card will contain instructions on how to register with NZQA so that students can log in online and check their results. Students can also log into the Howick College Portal at any time to see results during the year, using their regular school network login. NCEA External Assessment – Grade Score Marking All external achievement standards have been written with a single outcome to allow aggregation of assessment from across an examination paper. Question Marking Each question in each NCEA examination paper is awarded a single N, A, M or E grade. This grade is awarded using the criteria from the standard. Each response is marked for the quality of the evidence it contains. Markers are instructed to ensure a high-quality response is not marked down for a minor error. Marking is ‘top down’, which requires the marker to initially look for evidence of Excellence as described by the Excellence criterion in the standard. Only if this evidence is missing or deficient, do markers look for Merit evidence and then down to Achievement. The grade is based on the whole response to the question and takes account of all evidence in the candidate’s answer. Some questions may have parts, bullet points, or other scaffolding but this does not affect the award of a single holistic grade. Grade Score Marking has brought an additional refinement to marking. Recognition of the quality of evidence within each grade is made possible by assigning a number to show upper and lower levels of grades. For example, lower Merit = M5, upper Merit = M6, both 5 and 6 are Merit scores. The scores indicate that the student has met the criterion for a Merit grade in the question. Possible grade scores for a question Overall result for a standard The judgment about overall performance against the standard is made by aggregating the scores from the questions. For example, in an examination paper with three questions, a candidate may score M5 for Question One, A3 for Question Two and M6 for Question Three. For the whole paper, the candidate’s score is M5 plus A3 plus M6 equaling 14. This score will be written in the ‘total’ box on the front cover of the candidate’s answer booklet. During marking each year, cut scores are set by senior markers. The senior markers use the standard and a large sample of papers on each score to decide where the scores that separate the grades fall. These scores are called cut scores. It is essential to the integrity of Grade Score Marking that holistic judgment across actual papers is used to determine the cut scores. Not Achieved Achievement Merit Excellence N0 N1 N2 A3 A4 M5 M6 E7 E8

8 When judgment statements are published on the NZQA website, they appear as score ranges (e.g. Merit range 14-19). In this example, the lower cut score (between Achievement and Merit grades) for a Merit grade is 14, any paper with a score of 14 written in the ‘total’ box would receive a Merit grade. In this example, the upper cut score (between Merit and Excellence) for a Merit grade is 19, any paper with a score of 19 written in the total box would receive a Merit grade. All papers between and including 14 to 19 receive a Merit grade. Each set of cut scores relates only to that assessment. Each year, new grade ranges will be set using marked examination papers and the standard being assessed. These cut scores are published on the NZQA website at the same time examination papers are returned to candidates. This allows candidates to check whether their grade as shown in their online results is correct. Prior to implementation, five years of research at NZQA confirmed that Grade Score Marking is a fair and effective method of standards-based marking. Commonly Asked Student Questions I have a permanent learning difficulty which will affect my results. Is support available? You might be able to get support called ‘Special Assessment Conditions’ SAC. This might be available for External Assessments, school examinations and some of your Internal Assessments. Some students may qualify for extra time, others may get someone to help them read or write the answers or both. Based on information provided by either a professional outside of the school or from the school itself, NZQA will decide if you are entitled to a Special Assessment Condition. Just because you have a report does not mean you will automatically be granted special assessment conditions. Ask your parents to contact the College so arrangements can be made to put this in place. Can I do whatever subjects I want at school next year? To study six subjects at Level Two in Year 12, you must have gained Level One NCEA Certificate. Entry requirements for individual subjects are outlined in the Subject Pathways on our website. If you are concerned about entry into a subject, have a discussion with a teacher who teaches the subject or the Head of Department. Many subjects at Level 2 and 3 have entry requirements based on the previous year’s work. I’m a bit disorgansed – what should I do? The course outlines you were given for each of your subjects at the beginning of the year, outlines when your Internal Assessments will be due. It will also outline how much time (both in and out of class) you should spend studying and revising. You should also refer to the Assessment Calendar on the School Portal and align this with your own assessment planning. It is best to plan your social life to be less busy at the times you have assessments due. The information given with each of your assignments will give the date it must be handed in and the arrangement for doing this. If the assessment is a classroom test, the date and period will be given to you. Put these dates and arrangements into your own calendar, diary or planner. What should I do if I think I am not going to finish an assessment on time? Perhaps you qualify for an extension. If you have been ill or been unable, for some valid reason, to work on your assessment, ask your subject teacher for an extension. Apply as early as you can. My parents are taking me out of school for a holiday, but I have an assessment due, what should I do? You will not be eligible for an extension or a resubmission. You could do one of the following: 1. Arrange with your teacher to complete the assessment before you leave.2. Withdraw from the assessment if you are away for the teaching.3. Ask your teacher if there is a further assessment opportunity.Failure to discuss this with your teacher will result in a Not Achieved result being entered for you. I have decided not to do the standard. Can I withdraw from this assessment? If your teacher has entered you into an Achievement Standard and you have been present for the work, you cannot decide to withdraw from the assessment of the standard. If you do, you will not achieve the standard.

9 My assessment is due today and it is not finished. What should I do? If you do not hand in an assessment on or before the date it is due, it will not be graded unless you have been given an extension. Discuss this with your teacher. If the assignment is partly finished, you have three choices: 1. Hand it in, unfinished, and accept that you will probably not get as good a grade as you could have.2. Not hand it in and receive a Not Achieved for the standard.3. Hand it in and apply to do the further assessment task. However, if you choose this option, you must beaware that not all Internal Assessments have a further assessment opportunity. Your assessmentinformation sheet (or your subject teacher) will inform you of this.The further assessment task will be a completely new task that will involve a lot more work. I can’t go to school today because I am too sick, but I have an assessment. What should I do? Email the Student Absence Officer, note@howick.school.nz , before 8.30am. In the case of illness, a doctor’s certificate must be provided. Email your teacher that day if possible and request an extension with the doctor’s certificate attached. Talk to your subject teacher about the arrangements for sitting or handing in your assessment. Every attempt will be made to ensure you are not disadvantaged. This also applies if you have a different (genuine) reason for being absent without providing prior advice e.g. family bereavement. If you are absent for just a day or so, miss an assessment, and do not provide a doctor’s certificate, you will receive Not Achieved for the standard. If you have provided a doctor’s certificate, however, you may be asked to sit the assessment (or a similar one) when you return to school. You should be prepared for this. Extensions are possible depending on the circumstances. If you are absent for a long period, you must see your subject teacher(s) as soon as you return. In some cases, it may not be possible for you to sit or hand in your assessment. If you have concerns while you are away, please contact your Dean, alternatively Ms Nelson, the Deputy Principal who oversees NCEA (Principal’s Nominee). What should I do about being absent from school for something that requires me to represent at a national level? This includes sporting or cultural activities at a national level and not connected with the College. Only brief absences are permitted. Prior approval must be sought in writing from the Head of Faculty of each subject if an extension or further assessment opportunity is required. Permission is not guaranteed – this will depend on the nature and timing of any assessments due at or around this time. Particular times of the year are busy in terms of assessment, so careful consultation with the College is needed. Email or write, explaining the circumstances to the Head of Learning Area from any subject that is impacted before the event, supporting documentation must be provided. I missed an external Achievement Standard (end of year exam) due to illness or an accident. What should I do? You must apply for a derived grade. A derived grade means you have sat the school Derived Grade exams in Term 3 and have a recorded outcome to base your application to NCEA on. Get in touch with your Dean who will have an updated link to the NZQA paperwork you need to fill out and submit. You will need to arrange for your doctor to fill in the form verifying the reasons for your absence or have other supporting evidence for your inability to attend the external assessment. Ms Nelson will then finalise your application for a derived grade, based on the Derived Grade Examinations in Term 3. The Term 3 Examinations, therefore, are very important. Your result will be reported as a derived grade by NZQA.It is important that you take all assessments and school-based examinations seriously as you may need the results.I need to have some time off school for a school activity. What should I do? This includes field trips, school sports and cultural activities that will take me out of school for one half day or more. Speak with your subject teachers in advance of the trip to work out an alternative – either you’ll do the assessment at an earlier time or an alternative time, or not at all if it is not possible.

10 I have been given my assignment back and I think it has been marked incorrectly. What can I do? If you think you have been given the wrong grade or disagree with a decision on a breach of assessment rules, you are entitled to appeal. To appeal you need to: •Discuss the matter with your subject teacher.•Not take your work out of the classroom after it has been handed back to you.•Appeals cannot be considered if the work has been out of teacher supervision.•If you are still unhappy after talking with your teacher, complete an official Appeals for Assessment form(your teacher can provide you with one) within one week (seven calendar days) of receipt of your markedwork.•State which part of the grade or other decision you are unhappy about. You cannot state only that the gradeis too low.•Consider that the result may go up, stay the same or go down.Your results will be discussed with the Head of Department and/or Head of Learning Area and/or any other subject specialist as necessary and decision made, relayed by your subject teacher. If you are still unhappy: •Ask your teacher or Head of Department to explain the results of the appeal.•In the unlikely event of the issue not being resolved an outside expert may be called in to verify a gradeunder appeal.•If after this you are still unhappy you can appeal to Ms Nelson, Deputy Principal/ Principal’s Nominee(NCEA). The Head of Learning Area responsible will need to pass on the case to him after all other avenuesare exhausted. He will review the process taken to arrive at the decision – not the work itself. If the processis deemed fair the result will stand. If there are issues with the process the work will be sent back to thenappropriate person for remarking. All decisions of Ms Nelson are final.Am I allowed to do the work with someone else? Yes, but we need to be able to know which part of the work is yours. Occasionally group work is allowed for some assessments. If it is, the information given with the assessment will outline this and will also advise how your contribution to the group will be graded. Your teacher will also explain clearly where collaborative learning stops and individual assessment starts. What will happen if someone cheats in an assessment? All students must be aware that, unless clear instructions have been given that work may be done in groups, the work handed in must be 100% their own. A breach of assessment rules includes: •Talking to someone else during a test or exam – even just asking for a pencil or a calculator.•Signaling to someone during a test or exam.•Use of a mobile phone or smart watch during a test or exam.•Bringing notes into the test room.•Looking at someone else’s work.•Writing on hands or any other body part during a test or exam.•Being helped by someone else.•Helping someone else.•Not following instructions.If you breach the rules: •A Not Achieved will be reported and a letter will be sent home to your parents.•You may face other consequences or measures.•You have the right to appeal against a breach of rules.If you see someone cheating, inform your teacher, the HoD, or Ms Nelson, Deputy Principal/Principal’s Nominee (NCEA).

11 I have just received my assignment back and I didn’t achieve the standard. What can I do? You may be allowed to make another attempt. It’s called a further assessment opportunity. Only some achievement standards offer further assessment opportunities. Your course information sheet for the subject will contain this information. You will not be allowed to have a second opportunity if your reasons for not doing the first assessment are seen to be unacceptable by your teacher or the Head of the Department. You must show you have done some additional learning before undertaking a further assessment opportunity. Your teacher will tell you what you need to do to show this. Make sure you know where and when this opportunity will take place. It is your responsibility to turn up to assessments. Note – Further Assessment opportunities are not available in some standards. I have just received my work back and have been offered a re-submission opportunity. How is this different from a Further Assessment Opportunity? Re-submission allows you an opportunity to immediately improve your grade from Not Achieved to Achieved without further advice because of a small mistake in your original assessment. The re-submission will be completed under the same conditions that the assessment was completed. There are strict criteria and rules for re-submission. I do not think it was fair because...If you have concerns about any aspect of your assessments, please follow this process:1. Speak with your subject teacher.2. If the issue is not resolved, speak with the Head of Department.3. If needed, see the Head of Learning Area.4. If you are still not satisfied, speak with Ms Nelson.My family have moved to a new house, so I must change schools. Will I lose my results gained so far? We will be able to transfer any achievement standards on your record of learning either with NZQA or directly to the new school. Ask for help if you have any concerns. Important Dates Howick College Derived Grade Examinations Term 3, Week 9, Monday 08 - Friday 12 September NCEA External Examinations 2025 Tuesday 04 November – NCEA Exams Begin Friday 28 November – NCEA Exams End Howick College Term Dates for 2025 Term One: Monday 03 February – Friday 11 April Term Two: Monday 28 April – Friday 27 June Term Three: Monday 14 July – Friday 19 September Term Four: Monday 06 October – Wednesday 12 December

12 NCEA End of Year Examination Timetable 2025