The NCEA Common Assessment Activity (CAA) assessment period is coming up

CAA Assessments

The NCEA Common Assessment Activity (CAA) assessment period is coming up. Emails have been sent to students and caregivers regarding entries. If you or your child is unsure if they are entered or what they are entered into please first check your emails. Students can also check their entries on the NZQA Learner Login portal https://www2.nzqa.govt.nz/login/ 

If students have not created their Learner Login account they can do this on the website linked above. They will need their NSN number which can be found on the SOHS school portal under student details. They should use their school email to create this. If they struggle to do this they should speak with their mentor teacher. 

The assessment period has been set by NZQA for May 18th-> May 29th.

South Otago High School will be running:

Reading CAA on Tuesday 19th May

Writing CAA on Wednesday 20th May

Numeracy CAA on Thursday 21st May

Juniors will sit the assessments in Periods 1 and 2 on their own computers (preferably) in the old gym. Seniors will sit the assessments in Periods 3 and 4 on their own computers (preferably) in the old gym. Some school computers will be available to students to use if needed but please ensure they bring a charged computer to school on these days.

Please do NOT book appointments during these assessment times if possible. 

If a student misses an assessment catch ups will be organised for the following week. They will be emailed by Ms Beaumont and need to keep an eye on their inboxes.

To prepare for these assessments, they have been given work from their English and Maths teachers, have access to Education Perfect practise materials and the Google Classroom specifically for CAA preparation, which includes past papers to practise with. 

NCEA Assessment Authenticity

As part of the ongoing challenges with assessment in a digital world, we are having frequent conversations with students around authenticity and the use of A.I. 

Students will be informed if or where AI use is appropriate. If it is allowed, students must reference it clearly in their work to show where it has been used. 

NZQA requires teachers to sign off on every student’s piece of work to say they know it is entirely the student’s own. As part of our school authenticity policy, if teachers have concerns or doubts that student work may not be entirely their own the student will be questioned about it. I have spoken in assembly to remind students that the responsibility is on them to be able to prove the work is entirely their own, NOT on the teacher to prove that it is not.

So, how can they do this? Firstly, make sure the work IS their own and they understand the information they are reading as they research and prepare for assessments. Research is important but making sure they understand it and are processing information in their own words, not just copying and pasting, is critical. Students also need to reference where they find ideas and information, and need to keep notes and drafts of their work to show their process. 

It is hard for a teacher to endorse a student’s work as entirely their own if a student is unable to explain words or concepts they have written about. This often leads to a Not Achieved grade. 

Ms Beaumont

HOD English 

Principal’s Nominee