2022 exam changes

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Applied Generals and Tech Award to receive back-calculated results: grading in summer 2021

Published:Friday 16 Apr 2021

This summer, students completing Applied Generals and Tech Award Performing Arts qualifications will receive back-calculated marks. And just like in summer last year, students’ grades will be at subject level.

For students who are entering one or more units this summer which will count towards certification in 2022, marks for those units will be “back-calculated” in the series in which they certificate. We used the back-calculation process successfully for Applied Generals in the January 2021 exam series to enable students who were certificating to receive subject award grades. We used a clear set of principles and this process was well received by schools and colleges whose grades were awarded in this way. This means there will be no unit level grades collected or issued this summer.

Schools should continue making unit entries

Continue to make unit entries in summer 2021 wherever a student would’ve entered for the unit (internal or external) if there had been a normal exam series. If there’s no unit entry, we won’t be able to back-calculate a grade in January or summer 2022 and the student will need to do the unit then.

For students who are planning to certificate this summer, schools will also need to enter the appropriate certification code. The school will also need to submit a qualification level assessed grade for those students. Students also need to have or have had entries for all of the required units, either in this or a previous series.

Students need new unit entries for all units if re-certificating

A reminder that if students are re-certificating at the same level, they need to have new unit entries for all required units, not just the ones they want to improve. For example, if a student certificated in Applied Business in summer 2020 and wishes to re-certificate in summer 2021, there must be a new entry for units ABS1, ABS2 and ABS3 in either the January 2021 or Summer 2021 series.

We understand that this decision might affect students who’re certificating in summer 2022. These students may feel disadvantaged because they won’t have banked evidence of their achievement so far and might feel unable to make and an informed decision on whether to re-sit any units. However, while we understand the challenge it presents for these students, this approach is the fairest overall. Whatever students decide, the better result will count towards the final subject grade in 2022, when they certificate.

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