NCEA pushing political correctness, says English

By ALAN PERROTT

Accounting exams have been accused of many things, but fostering a political agenda is seldom near the top of the list.

But that is exactly what National Party education spokesman Bill English saw when he considered yesterday's level one and three NCEA accounting exams.

At issue were the small case studies featured in each paper that present the imaginary companies, owners and issues on which questions are based.

The five sections of the level one paper presented nine characters of whom four were women (one, a Warriors supporter), four were Maori, and four in the South Island.

The five sections of the level three papers presented eight characters, featuring five women and four Maori. The exam asked questions about eight fictional companies: Wilderness Experience and Optimum Research were run by Maori couples, while others included Manuka Products, Kowhai Cafe and Whirinaki Tours.

"It's clear NCEA has become just another vehicle for this Government's push for political correctness," said Mr English. "I'd be more concerned about the technical correctness of the standards and whether the exam was properly structured to get a fair result, but this sideline shows how far the PC agenda penetrates."

New Zealand Qualifications Authority spokesman Andrew Kear said it would be too strong to say it had a policy of reflecting diversity within examinations, but admitted the emphasis was deliberate.

He said examiners and checkers were trained to ensure papers were adequately "contextualised".

"The settings and questions are things the kids sitting the exams should recognise, something that should be an element of good teaching anyway," said Mr Kear.

He said all papers underwent a two-tier checking system, with each level required to consider whether papers were properly contextualised. Contractors then sat each paper to ensure students would be able to understand what would be put before them and have adequate time to complete the paper.

Today's timetable

Morning: Physics level 1 and 3, History level 2, Accounting Scholarship.

Afternoon: History level 1 and 3, Physics level 2, Science Scholarship.

The exam season will continue until December 1.