Moderation of ESOL Unit Standard Assessments
The usual moderation process must be followed if tasks in Setting the Standard are used for assessment purposes.
It is not possible to have the tasks used in the series moderated by NZQA prior to publication. The only way to obtain feedback is to get the information from teachers who have submitted assessments for moderation in the usual way. It is helpful if teachers send feedback to The Speech and Learning Centre at speech.learning@xtra.co.nz
If the moderators request changes, teachers should download the tasks from
the disk supplied with each publication and make the changes. However this
must be indicated in the header,
e.g. " Modified by… (name and date)".
The following feedback has been received:
Setting the Standard: Level 2 2986 version 7
Read information texts in familiar contexts (ESOL)
Material approved.
Setting the Standard: Level 1 2985 version 7
Read simple information texts (ESOL)
We have received conflicting feedback about the tasks in this one.
One school reports approval.
However another school received the following comments:
1a) Instructing learners to write one sentence in answer to " What does this text tell
us?" rather than to complete the sentence, may help elicit the main idea rather than
just the topic.
1b) Modify question 1b on both tasks to enable learners to answer it without
assistance….the language level of the instruction for each task should be set low
enough that most learners can complete the task without independently without
targeted pre-teaching. " Feature", "label", "layout," and even "identify", may be
unfamiliar to learners at this level.
This moderator also commented that learners should not need to refer to a dictionary
to match the essential vocabulary, and that coral reefs might not be an appropriate
topic for all learners at this level.
Setting the Standard: Level 1 17139 version 4
Write simple descriptions (ESOL)
Material approved.
However there was a request for the words "including at least one compound
sentence" to be added to the second judgement statement for 1.2. and "Meaning
and grammatical form of vocabulary are correct most of the time." In 1.4
From 2011
Setting the Standard: Level 2 2969 version 7
Read recounts in familiar contexts (ESOL)
Assessment schedule: Page 14; Question 2 e) should read:
(any three – count each fact as a separate answer)
This error has now been corrected, however teachers using booklets purchased prior
to 19th September 2011 are advised to change this in the assessment schedules in
the book. The assessment schedules are not on the disk.
There has been some confusion about the use of bilingual dictionaries as opposed to only English dictionaries in this standard. After querying this, I have had the following clarification from NZQA:
All the level 2 reading standards should have the same special note about
being able to use a bi-lingual dictionary i.e.
Candidates may use a bilingual and/or English dictionary, but must not
use an electronic translator for assessment.
Thank you for bringing this to our attention.
Kind regards
Annie
Annie Chan
Qualifications Development Facilitator
National Qualifications Services
New Zealand Qualifications Authority