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Showing posts from October, 2016

NZQA out of control - trying to change the Maths curriculum [UPDATE 2]

A controversial Question Two (e) from 2016 Day 2 Level One Algebra Exam - the MCAT Last month’s NCEA Level One Algebra exam hit the news in a big way, with children upset over its difficulty, and teachers and parents outraged that the exam was not reflective of what the students were taught. (See NZQA slammed over ‘far too difficult’ maths exam – students left in tears ) Over the intervening weeks, letters sent to NZQA and to Hekia Parata, and the responses to those letters have been aggregated on this page: 2016 MCAT Feedback . They make for very interesting reading. A number of them contain detailed analyses of the questions that were set at too high a level for NCEA One. A letter has just appeared today that was sent by Rhona Lever to Hekia Parata (PDF link), the lead writer of the controversial Algebra standard, that explains how NZQA and/or the Ministry of Education are out of control and seeking to impose their own curriculum ideas outside of the normal processes when it