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In 2008, the Forum Comment,
was relaunched as the Focus
reflecting the closer comment from
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Main Index for Focus / Forum


Introduction to Focus / Forum


He Whakaputanga Whakaaro –
Introduction for Mäori Medium forums

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Forums by year of assessment
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Science
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Information Skills
Social Studies
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Health & Phys. Ed.
Writing
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Forums for Mäori Medium
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Science
Art
Graphs, Tables & Maps
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Music
Aspects of Technology
Reading & Speaking
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Information Skills
Social Studies
Mathematics
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. Listening & Viewing
Health & Phys. Ed.
Writing
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National Education Monitoring
ISSN 1174 - 247X
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Contact details:
Email : earu@otago.ac.nz  
Freephone 0800 808 561
Fax 64 3 479 8561

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Last updated October 2008
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CLICK on reports above to go directly to comments

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The three reports on 1995 assessment results were considered by a national forum of curriculum and assessment specialists, principals, teachers, advisers and representatives of national educational organizations. This supplement to the reports summarises the forum’s comments. The three reports were examined and commented on generally by the whole forum before being considered by separate focus groups. Each focus group made comments specific to their area of special interest and experience.

COMMENTS FROM THE FULL FORUM:
Noteworthy features –

New Zealanders have always wanted to know about achievement standards and the quality of education. The national monitoring project is giving a rich picture of what students know, what they can do and how they go about it.

The reports show that this project is a successful demonstration of a major government policy to monitor student progress across time in all curriculum areas. National monitoring, as it is being done, has the potential to successfully contribute to improvement of learning.

These first reports provide baseline information for looking at trends in student achievement now and in years to come. The forum strongly supports the importance of having national data of this kind.

The sample of students involved in the programme is fully representative of New Zealand students nationally. There is reassurance for the community that New Zealand students, overall, are performing well in many of the areas assessed.

 

The reports give valuable demographic information about groups of students within the overall national picture. For example, the achievement of girls compared with boys; larger schools are compared with smaller schools.

The tasks proved excellent models of assessment. Students report that they enjoy doing them. The tasks are valid. They focus on important real life situations, knowledge and skills.

Use of video and analysis of observed performance is a major step forward for assessment on this scale. It has contributed very largely to the validity of the information.

The importance of motivation in learning and performance is treated with particular care and skill in this assessment programme.

The cost-effectiveness of the project compared to overseas approaches is especially noteworthy. As well as giving detailed information on student performance, a large and vital contribution is being made to teacher development and curriculum investigation.

The task administration and reports offer flow-on benefits for teachers. They are well suited to supporting professional practice in assessment. The research method is an excellent example of “assessment for better learning”.

.The extensive collection of information offers scope for unfolding in further detail the strengths and weaknesses of students’ performance. In-depth analyses of areas of strength and weakness can be taken form the research.

In New Zealand there is a particular need to fully explore the performance of Mäori students. The Project’s plans to set up a lead group to assist with this development deserve support.

The reports provide a valuable guide for curriculum policy and resourcing decisions, teacher training and development.

The innovative approach to assessment has been positively endorsed by overseas experts. National monitoring has the potential to give a lead to the international community.

Some thoughts so far…
The new curriculum is likely to address some areas of learning that have not been done so well in the past. For example, the planning of science experiments, the understanding of art works, the increasing complexity of graphing and comparing pieces of information.

The demographic information clearly shows that social and economic circumstances impact on students’ opportunities to learn and succeed.

Girls are doing well but many tend to switch off in science.

The gap between Mäori and Pacific Island students compared to others persists, but there is a suggestion that differences are decreasing by the time they leave primary school.


 COMMENTS FROM FOCUS GROUPS
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SCIENCE FOCUS GROUP
The assessment tasks have high validity in terms of science education. They are largely practical. They involved students in thinking and showing their understanding of real rather than contrived situations.

Learning outcomes that are important for science learning in New Zealand have been targeted. The tasks cover a good cross section of the curriculum strands.

The original data are so rich that they cannot be fully captured in the reports. However, the reports give a snapshot of important things that students know and can do well, and those areas needing improvement.

Topics that are well understood by Year 4 and Year 8 students include electric circuits and floating and sinking. Knowledge of earth science was lower than other areas. Year 4 and Year 8 students need to be encouraged to develop broader ideas and understandings about environments such as river estuaries.

Use of equipment, measurement and interpretation of results are done well at both Year 4 and Year 8. The more sophisticated ideas about ‘fair tests’ and checking results by repeated measurements need emphasis in teaching and learning. Some of the tasks showed that students need to learn planning skills, particularly for open-ended investigations and those done in group settings.

There is a clear advance in knowledge and skills from year 4 to year 8.

Girls view science less positively than boys and this is reflected in lower achievement by girls at both Year 4 and especially Year 8. Continuing work is needed to reduce this difference.


.CLICK for full report
ART FOCUS GROUP
This report provides a very helpful national assessment model for measuring student abilities across a wide range of important art skills and knowledge.

From the data gathered and reported, we now have valuable information to support qualitative judgements about student achievement in art.

The results show that a majority of students enjoy participating in art activities, and that there is some development between Year 4 and Year 8. Overall, there is less growth between years 4 and 8 than might be expected within this essential learning area.

New Zealand students are not doing so well in responding to art, which is one of the two main strands of the art curriculum. The whole area of artistic literacy requires special attention.

The report shows that students need help to be able to talk with some knowledge and understand about examples of art works and the relationships between art and culture. This points to a focus for teacher development and the provision of supporting resources.

We can celebrate the finding that factors such as race, gender, school region, size or type appear to be unrelated to students’ achievements in art.

The report reveals the challenge to build excellence in the two key dimensions of an art education: making and knowing about art.

.CLICK for full report
GRAPHS, TABLES and MAPS FOCUS GROUP 
The essential skills of reading, constructing and interpreting graphs, tables and maps cut across several curriculum areas. The assessment tasks represent a wide range of everyday information.

Special features of these tasks are that many have been presented orally, in small groups and individually. Novel approaches have made the tasks interesting and accessible for students. The tasks have been administered in ways that don’t disadvantage poor readers.

About 90 percent of Year 8 students are able to complete a bar graph and interpret a simple graph, an air timetable, a floor plan, a flow chart and a table of figures.

The results tend to confirm the good achievements that New Zealand students of a similar age scored in the 1990-91 international reading literacy survey. By the end of primary school, most New Zealand students have mastered the essential skills of extracting and interpreting information from graphs, tables and maps.

Year 8 students fount it somewhat more difficult when (i) there were more than two operations involved; (ii) they were asked to extrapolate or make a generalisation or identify trends implicit in the information; (iii) the material contained a large amount of information additional to the task, yet typical of everyday material.

While students of Year 4 do well at these tasks there is substantial growth in skills from Year 4 to Year 8. On average, about 10 percent growth per year.

Although most students were able to construct graphs to illustrate given data, their labelling of axes was often overlooked.

Student’s ability to read and air NZ timetable stood out in particular.

New Zealand newspaper and magazine editors can have confidence that most New Zealand adults of the future will be able to interpret material presented in graphs, tables and maps.
 TEACHERS SAY: Comments from the classroom teachers attending the forum
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.WHAT'S SO GOOD ABOUT NEMP?
• The project gives credence to cultural and gender values.

• Teachers are involved in task development
• The tasks have undergone detailed trailing during their development.
• Tasks are interesting. Students are motivated to do well.
• Tasks are practical and focus on important curriculum outcomes.
• The range of tasks gives a picture of a good cross section of the curriculum.

What good things do the reports show that are happening in our classrooms?
• There is clear evidence of growth in knowledge and skills over the year 4 period.
• Parents can make choices of schools knowing that the type of size of school is not likely to affect their children’s education.
• Students responded well to the many practical tasks of the kind that are advocated in the new curriculum.

What we need to do?
• Recognise the value and importance of National Monitoring as it has been administered.
• Identify and acknowledge areas of concern for further and future professional discussion and attention within our schools. For example, the performance of girls in science, and students’ ability to talk about art.
• Take particular note of the resource implications for achieving educational standards.
• Accept that schools in socially or economically disadvantage areas require special understanding, support and resources to help them lift the performance of their students.

Credibility?
As classroom teachers, we trust these reports and national monitoring because:

• There is high quality advisory input and expert leadership of the project.
• All national curriculum subjects will be covered in a 4-year period – NEMP recognises a balanced curriculum for all students.
• The tasks reflect the important learning outcomes of national curriculum.
• The assessments cover of a broad range of what we as teachers and parents are wanting students to achieve.
• The tasks represent practical, hands-on learning.
• Tasks are interesting and motivating for boys and girls.
.• Enjoyment is understood as in important factor that contributes to learning and success.
• The tasks are carefully developed and tested before large scale use.
• Video recorded interviewing helps standardise task administration and marking.
• Low achieving students enjoyed the tasks.
• Students felt positive about being assessed.
• Co-operative group skills are assessed nationally for the first time.
• NEMP values the work of teachers: assessment is carried out by teachers and marked by teachers who are given special training and guidance.
• This project gives teachers excellent opportunities for professional development in curriculum related assessment.
• The reports give useful models for teachers to follow.
• The reports will help teachers to carefully review and discuss some important aspects of learning.
• NEMP assessment gives schools procedures and data useful for school-based self-review.
• The project offers a great chance for New Zealand to be at the forefront in the world of assessment.

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Contact Details:   Email : earu@otago.ac.nz   |   Freephone 0800 808 561   |   Fax 64 3 479 7550   |   August 2009