Critics to help sort exam mess

Auckland Grammar headmaster John Morris, a staunch critic of NCEA, has been appointed to the panel to try to fix the scholarship exams.

Associate Education Minister David Benson-Pope yesterday named the 12-strong group to carry out one of two Government-ordered inquiries into the debacle.

Mr Morris said he had plenty of ideas about the exams and would make the best contribution he could, but had some reservations.

"Whether or not they are putting me in the tent to keep me quiet I don't know. It's happened before."

Last year, for the first time, the scholarship exams became standards-based, with no scaling.

But when few students gained scholarship and a marked variability between subjects was found, the Government stepped in and awarded replacement "distinction" awards.

Since the review was announced on Tuesday, it has been speculated that there will be a return to scaling.

But Mr Morris said most of the panel appointees would be in favour of standards-based assessment.

"This has caused such a furore that even if you are pro standards-based assessment, there are certain things you have to accept. Maybe if they do that there will be some improvement."

In an opinion article in the Herald last week, Mr Morris said the problems with standards-based assessment had been well signposted by several practising educators for many years.

"The frustration in all this is that the Qualifications Authority consistently refused to accept that standards-based assessment alone would not give fair or transparent results consistently."

Panellist Roger Moses, headmaster at Wellington College, is another critic of the exams, labelling them a shambles.

"Outcomes appear to bear more relationship to Lotto than the premier set of examinations for our most able students," he said in the Dominion Post newspaper.

Mr Moses even went as far in his criticism as to lay the blame squarely on the shoulders of NZQA.

"It rests with those administering the exams, who failed to provide adequate checks and balances and should have known better."

 

Panellist Dr John Langley, Auckland University's Dean of Education, has written in favour of standards-based assessment.

Members have two weeks from Monday to make recommendations on the form this year's scholarship exams should take. Mr Benson-Pope will take their report to the Cabinet.

The other Government-ordered inquiry will be run by the State Service Commission and will examine both last year's exams and NZQA.

The authority is also conducting its own internal review to determine why Mr Mallard was not alerted to the problem sooner.

THE PANEL

Graham Young - Secondary Principals Association of New Zealand Kate Gainsford - Post Primary Teachers Association

Don McLeod - Post Primary Teachers Association Principals Council

Tim Oughton - Independent Schools New Zealand

Ray Newport - New Zealand School Trustees Association

Professor Luanna Meyer - New Zealand Vice-Chancellors Committee

Wharekura (Maori secondary schools) representative (to be confirmed)

John Morris - Auckland Grammar School

Margaret McLeod - Wellington Girls High School

Roger Moses - Wellington College

Professor Terry Crook - Co-director Education Assessment Research Unit

Dr John Langley, Auckland University Dean of Education