Middle School Assessment Procedure

Middle School Assessment Procedure

Definitions

School assessment involves teachers gathering, describing or quantifying information about student performance and achievement

Assessment tasks include tests, essays, examinations, reports, case studies, investigations, exhibitions, productions, performances, oral or audio-visual presentations and demonstrations

Reporting refers to the process of passing on information relating to student achievement through both interim and semester reports that are provided to parents

An assessment is one where normally at least one week’s warning has been given and/or the score contributes a significant part of the final grade Teachers will have indicated to students prior to the beginning of a unit of study the tasks that are to be included for assessment In Years 11 and 12 this information is usually also provided in the Assessment Outline for the subject that is provided to all students at the beginning of the year.

Homework is study completed at home by students and as such is an integral part of the student’s learning program Teachers set meaningful activities to extend, enhance and/or provide practice to reinforce the learning at school, to aid revision and assist in studying for tests and examinations

Assessment: Definitions and Consequences

The following definitions of breaches of assessment task reliability are followed by appropriate penalties for these breaches:

Assessment Breach Consequence

Cheating

Gaining an unfair advantage over any other student, exchanging of information before, during and after an assessment

This also includes copying the work of others

Plagiarism

Presenting student work, which has been copied without acknowledging the source or work which paraphrases/summarises the work of others is plagiarism

Collusion

Submitting work that is not purely a student’s own, either with or without the assistance of another student, family member or external tutor, and claiming it to be their own work

If cheating on an assessment task is established beyond reasonable doubt, the student is penalised The penalty is a mark of zero for both the person cheating and the person allowing the use of his material Students will also be issued a detention and a record placed on their file This will also impact on a student’s Good standing status

The student who copies, paraphrases or summarises the work of others without acknowledging the source and presents this work as their own is penalised The penalty is a mark of zero for the plagiarised piece of work Students will also be issued a detention and a record placed on their file. This will also impact on a student’s Good standing status

If colluding on an assessment task is established beyond reasonable doubt, the student is penalised The penalty is a mark of zero for both the person submitting the work and the person assisting in the collusion, if a student at the College Students will also be issued a detention and a record placed on their file This will also impact on a student’s Good standing status

INABILITY TO COMPLETE ASSESSMENT TASKS

a) Students unable to complete assessment tasks due to injury or illness

Some students may be unable to complete assessment tasks due to injury or illness

In cases of temporary injuries, the teacher should encourage participation through observation and assess at a later date

In cases of a prolonged injury or illness that prevents completion of assessment tasks, the teacher should implement strategies that enable students in these circumstances to demonstrate their knowledge, skills and understandings

In cases of students who are frequently absent due to chronic or frequent illness, it may be necessary to involve parents/ guardians and appropriate school support services as soon as possible to ensure that the student has the opportunity to complete the educational and assessment program Through this process, it may be agreed that the number of courses or subjects the student is attempting be reduced

b) Missing a CAT

Students missing a CAT due to illness will be expected to provide a medical certificate to the attendance officer, if the absence is two or more days, upon return to school along with a letter from a parent/guardian to be given to the classroom teacher of the subject/s where the assessment has been missed The letter must make specific reference to the fact that the parent/guardian is aware that an assessment has been missed.

In order to achieve fairness and equity with respect to a missed CAT, failure to produce the certificate and letters will result in a zero score for that assessment

It is the responsibility of the student who misses the CAT to ensure that arrangements are made with the classroom teacher concerned for that particular assessment to be completed

In the case of take-home preparation tasks, if a student is absent on the assessment due date, the assessment must still be delivered electronically to the teacher by the due date

Students cannot sit a CAT before the advertised time

c) Missing an Assessed Homework Task:

If a student misses an assessed HWT (Homework Task) due to illness a letter needs to be sent to the subject teacher from the parent/guardian making specific reference to the fact that the parent/guardian is aware of the missed HWT.

The teacher will organise and appropriate time frame for the work to be completed

d) Unapproved absences:

If a student misses a period during which a CAT or some other assessment is held or due for submission, the student receives zero marks for that assessment, an after-school Detention is issued and a record placed on their file

The student will not be given the opportunity to take the CAT at a later date The Head of Department in consultation with the Head of House will determine if a zero mark will be awarded and whether the student will be given another opportunity to take the test.

e) Students under suspension

School examinations are included in the assessment outline for each course The weighting (ie proportion of the final mark) for these school-based examinations varies between courses and can be determined from the assessment outline

A written examination will be held in all ATAR courses at the end of Semester 1 and the end of Semester 2 and in most Year 10 courses

A practical/performance/oral exam will also be held in those ATAR courses with a practical, performance or oral ATAR examination

Penalties:

This is an individual decision to be made by the Head of Middle School but the students may receive zero for any assessments due during the period of suspension

e) Procedures for students submitting assessment tasks late [Years 7 – 9]

While it is appreciated that extenuating circumstances may occasionally result in a student’s failure to complete an assessment on time, it is the student’s responsibility to complete work by the date requested, and he should be prepared to accept the consequences of failure to do so The following procedures with regard to setting and collection of work are in place at Aquinas:

Students are given one week’s warning of an impending CAT/examination.

Major homework tasks are to be completed by the next day

Extensions with regard to the submission of work may be granted only if a letter from a parent/Director of Boarding House is received well in advance of the due date, and the classroom teacher in consultation with the relevant Head of Learning Area (HoLA) approves the request

If an extension is granted, the classroom teacher in consultation with the HoLA can set the new date. Given that no extensions are granted, failure to submit work by the due date results in the following consequences:

For one day late, the mark is reduced by 10% of the scored mark and a note will be placed in the student’s diary

For two days late, the mark is reduced by 20% of the scored mark and parental contact will be made, either by phone or email

For between two and five days late, the mark is reduced by 50% of the scored mark Parental contact will be made; either by phone or email and an appropriate detention will be issued and record placed on SEQTA

For more than five days late, a student receives a mark of zero, yet is still responsible to submit the task A record will be placed on SEQTA, and a detention may be issued All consequences, relating to the above, start to come into effect at the time and date due specified by the teacher(s) setting the work

It should be noted that in the case of assessments that involve the completion of several component parts, the assessment will not be deemed to be received until all component parts have been submitted

EXAMINATIONS (Year 9 Only)

Students in Year 9 sit examinations in the middle and the end of the academic year The recommended length of an examination in Years 9 is to be 90 minutes with up to 5 additional minutes for reading time Students in Year 7 and 8 do not sit examinations

Students Requiring Special Examination Provisions

Parents or guardians of students who, due to learning difficulties, or injury, require extra time or rest time either for college based examinations or external examinations must apply in writing to the Head of Learning Support for consideration The Head of Learning Support and the School Psychologist will be involved in the process of ascertaining whether the application should be agreed to

Students requiring extra time will be awarded a time allowance of an additional 5 minutes per half hour (less 5 minutes off the total for ‘time to rest’)

Missing an Examination

A student who has suffered from illness or disability prior to or during an examination period and believes that this has affected his performance should contact the Director of Academic Studies for this to be taken into consideration. This contact should be made as soon as possible A medical certificate must also be submitted to the Director of Academic Studies

Major examination periods are published at the commencement of the school year. Due to examination security and preparation timelines, it is not possible for students to sit an examination prior to its scheduled date

Students with special examination provisions are to enter with their peers and locate their paper on the East side of the Hall (or window side of M24/25) If they cannot locate their paper, they must immediately notify the Director of Academic Studies and/or the HoLA Their names and examination provisions will be included on the examination timetable located in each examination room

Non-attendance at a scheduled examination severely jeopardises a student’s result in subjects where major examinations contribute significantly to assessments

In Year 9, examinations are significant in establishing the academic achievement of students It is an expectation that students will attend all their scheduled examinations In all cases where absence from an examination can be reasonably anticipated, the Director of Academic Studies must be informed immediately The arrangements for students who miss an examination are as follows;

a

a) Approved absence – this pertains to all absences approved by the Director of Academic Studies prior to the examination date In this case, the student will not sit the examination As the Director of Academic Studies granted approval they will advise the classroom teacher to assign a standardised score for the assessment at year’s end The student will receive no examination score or rank in the Semester Two report.

Absence due to medical reason or family loss – this pertains to students whose absence is due to illness which is supported by a medical certificate, or family loss confirmed via parental correspondence The student will be given the opportunity to sit the examination at the next available opportunity as organised by Director of Academic Studies

c

b Other absence – this pertains to all students who miss an examination for any other reason not stipulated in 1 or 2. The student will not be given an opportunity to sit the examination. He will receive a zero mark unless approved for a standardised score for the examination at years’ end This decision will be made by the Director of Academic Studies with consultation with the Head of Learning Area\