2. Hon BILL ENGLISH (National—Clutha-Southland) Link to this
to the Minister of Education
Does he agree with the statement made yesterday by the Secretary for Education, Howard Fancy, that there had been “a move away from standards-based” assessment; if not, why not?
Hon Annette King
Hon STEVE MAHAREY Link to this
Yes, more good news: the Secretary for Education says he made no such statement. I am advised by members who were present at the select committee yesterday that he said: “There hasn’t been a move away from standards-based assessment.” This statement was accurately reported by the New Zealand Press Association, and a correction is being sought to the report in today’s Dominion Post. I am sorry to disappoint the members.
Can the Minister confirm that he issued a statement on 5 December setting out an eight-step process leading to the re-marking of National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) exams, and can he confirm that all re-marking of NCEA exams is done according to the process set out in that statement?
Hon STEVE MAHAREY Link to this
As I have repeatedly said, along with Karen Sewell, who is the chief executive of the New Zealand Qualifications Authority, there is a six-step process of marking, which I have here in front of me. That is the process that is used and, yes, I understand that to be the one supplied.
Moana MackeyHon STEVE MAHAREY Link to this
The process has been applied every year since NCEA was first examined, as follows. The ministry sets the standards. The examiner sets the exam and prepares the marking schedule. The exam is set to encourage students to show that they can reach the standard. The standard remains constant, but the marking schedule can be adjusted if it is not clear enough, not comprehensive enough, or too specific, to ensure fairness and consistency for all students.
Given the Minister’s explanation of that process, how does he then explain the explanation given in this email from a marker, who describes it this way: “The panel leaders and check markers are hammered by the NZQA and have to instruct markers to tweak results to ease more candidates up into the ‘achieved’ category.”; how does he reconcile that with the official process that he has publicly announced?
Hon STEVE MAHAREY Link to this
All markers have been fully advised of the marking process outlined yesterday and again today. As I have always said with regard to this member, if he does have evidence, he should give it to me. I always need to check it first to understand whether it has any veracity at all.
Hon STEVE MAHAREY Link to this
The Post Primary Teachers Association has expressed a motion of confidence in the system, as has the Secondary Principals Association. Research from the New Zealand Council for Educational Research shows that students value NCEA and have a good understanding of the assessment process. The acting chief executive said today that we have an open and transparent process to ensure that results are consistent and fair. Those who set, sit, mark, and administer NCEA are confident that the process is working. There is only one person who is not confident of that, and he is paid to oppose it.
Does the Minister believe that this email from a check marker to a marker, which tells that marker and the others on the panel to go back over the “faileds” to see whether they could push them up to “achieveds”, and which states: “We are doing this because the number of students failing is too high.”, should give the public confidence in the process of re-marking an NCEA exam that is not on his official list of re-marked exams; how is that reconciled with his official list and his eight-step process?
Hon STEVE MAHAREY Link to this
As I have said repeatedly, the 4,000 lead teachers who were taught the teaching of NCEA, and the 2,000 markers, have been trained in what they are doing. Yes, I have faith that what is happening here is according to the steps we have set out. As I have also said, I would want to check the single email that Mr English now has in his hand, because I never believe what he says on first blush.
Is the Minister aware that I am referring to two emails, not one, and that they are both regarding an exam that is not on his official list but whose scripts are clearly, according to those emails, being re-marked—one of those emails being from a marker, who says: “This is making a mockery of the whole examination process. The upshot is that many below-standard candidates will pass simply because the bar has been lowered.”, and the other email being from that marker’s senior colleague, telling the markers to go back and find anything at all among the “failed” scripts that shows some understanding of the question, and pass them. How can the public have confidence in that?
Hon STEVE MAHAREY Link to this
To go back to the beginning of Mr English’s question, no, I cannot be aware of the two emails in his hand, because he has just brought them down now; it is hard for me to be aware of them until I actually get to see them. If he wants to show them to me, we will check them out. But I want to reassure the public that this year an enormous amount of work has gone into getting NCEA working. Everybody who sets it, sits it, marks it, and administers it agrees it is working—except Mr English.
Will the Minister accept that he has put so much pressure on the Qualifications Authority to achieve results that avoid political controversy that the authority is now involved in unofficially and secretly re-marking exams, and that that directly contradicts his and the authority’s public statements that it has been open, honest, and upfront, and that only the exams it has published are the ones being officially re-marked?
Hon STEVE MAHAREY Link to this
No, I do not accept the first part of the question, at all. What I do accept is that the authority has been upfront and transparent, and that it is utterly committed to fairness and consistency across the marking system.
How can the Minister claim that the authority or he himself has been upfront and honest, when these emails tell a story of pressure on a panel of markers to re-mark exams to get more passes; when that exam is not on his official list; and when the method being used for re-marking is not to adjust the marking schedule but to go and find anything that shows that the student understands the question, and pass him or her?
Hon STEVE MAHAREY Link to this
All I can do is reaffirm that the authority has been committed to an open and transparent process. The member has come down with a couple of emails that I have not seen yet; he might like to give them to me afterwards, and we will find out. We have 156,000 young people out there sitting exams right now. The system is open and transparent. If there are any issues that can be dealt with quickly, we have utterly committed ourselves to doing so.
Does the Minister accept that it was he and the authority that were deceiving the young people and the parents of New Zealand, when they went out and said there was one official process for re-marking exams, and, now, 11 exams have been re-marked; and when it is now widely understood among markers that most of the re-marking is happening because of unofficial and secret processes such as this one, of which the marker says: “This is such a professionally soul-destroying experience. I doubt that I will mark again next year. I hate seeing kids end up with what is effectively a useless qualification in this way.”—or is he going to dismiss this panel of markers as the only people who think there is a problem?
Hon STEVE MAHAREY Link to this
In answer to the first part of the question, no; to the middle part of the question, because it is not; and to the last part of the question, if the member has brought down a couple of emails that he would like me to have a look at, then what he should do is give them to me afterwards, because we are committed to openly and transparently fixing any issue very quickly.
Can the Minister see the difficulty for the large number of markers who are very concerned about this process, who know that if they identify themselves, they will be subject to the normal, vindictive behaviour that that Minister is capable of; that it is extremely difficult, and therefore a very high risk for them, to blow the whistle and come forward in the way that this marker has?
Hon STEVE MAHAREY Link to this
The only person I can remember being vindictive over issues like this is Mr English himself. I recall, for example, the cardboard box incident that almost destroyed the school.
Why does the Minister continue to react to criticism of the NCEA by saying the critics are always wrong, or isolated, or, in this case, vindictive, when, in fact, every time the critics have raised an issue it has turned out to be right?
Hon STEVE MAHAREY Link to this
Up until this very moment the only critic has been Mr English, and every time he has turned out to be wrong.