Changes approved for this year’s scholarship exams

Associate Education Minister David Benson-Pope yesterday announced changes to the scholarship exams to ensure there is no repeat of last year's problems.

Those problems meant hundreds of New Zealand's best students failed to gain scholarships.

The Government was forced to introduce a "distinction certificate" after a report found the results in last year's exams were unfair, particularly in science subjects.

To assure parents, students and teachers that this year's exams would be fair and robust, the Government ordered a series of inquiries.

One of these inquiries - the scholarship reference group, made up of a group of education experts - recommended options for this year's scholarship exam. Yesterday the group's recommendations adopted by the Cabinet were made public.

The Cabinet accepted 25 of the group's 26 recommendations outright, but deferred a decision on whether all students gaining a scholarship should get a financial award until the Ministry of Education reported on the implications.

Recommendations

* The key recommendation is that scholarship will be awarded to a set percentage of students in every subject - which did not happen last year.

The review group recommended this percentage be set at a figure between 2 per cent and 3 per cent of the total number of students studying a subject at NCEA Level 3. However, the target percentage will be adjusted to take account of factors such as low numbers of students taking a subject, subjects with low scholarship entry levels, or evidence about the overall performance of students in a subject.

* Students will be ranked to find the top students who will gain the scholarship awards.

* A national scholarship monitoring panel will be established to advise the New Zealand Qualifications Authority on the implementation of the recommendations.

Q: What happens if 2 per cent to 3 per cent of the students don't actually meet the Scholarship Standard?

A: Standards and exams will have to be designed on the basis of 2 per cent to 3 per cent of students studying each subject at NCEA Level 3 achieving the scholarship requirements. However, if less than 2 per cent to 3 per cent have met the requirements then scholarships will only be awarded where the standard has been met.

Q: Does this mean that standards are going to have to be rewritten?

A: Possibly. Some standards may have to be rewritten to meet the objective of 2 per cent to 3 per cent of students meeting the requirements of the exam. Clearly some of the science exams were too hard last year and the standards and/or assessment schedules will need to be adjusted.

Q: Can the changes be implemented in time?

A: Yes. The Scholarship Reference Group's recommendations were made on the basis that they were deliverable for this year's examinations.

Q: Are the exams already set for 2005 and does this mean that they will have to be rewritten?

A: The NZQA has undertaken to change or adjust any exam where this is required. The authority is able to do this until as late as August, when printing of exam papers begins.

Q: Will there be any variability in the 2005 scholarship exams?

A: Yes. Within the 2 per cent to 3 per cent target for scholarship awards there is some defined flexibility built in to the Review Group's recommendations. There is a margin of plus or minus 5 scholarships to give more leeway for subjects with small numbers of students enrolled. Also, the scholarship standard must be actually met by the lowest ranked student who meets the standard.

Q: What if scholarship entry levels for a particular subject are low or uneven, or even close to the 2% to 3% of the students enrolled?

A: The Cabinet has agreed to an additional mechanism to safeguard the integrity of the scholarship exams in the event of low or uneven enrolment patterns. There is a further ability to vary scholarship award numbers to account for uneven entry behaviour. This is particularly seen as a mechanism to apply over the 2005 transitional year.

* Information supplied by the Government.

Inquiries under way

* State Services inquiry into variability in NCEA results.
* State Services inquiry into the Qualifications Authority's performance.
* An internal NZQA review to determine why Trevor Mallard was not alerted sooner.