qualifications update: higher modern studies jane henderson qdm qualifications update: higher modern...
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Qualifications Update:Higher Modern StudiesJane Henderson QDM
Qualifications Update:Higher Modern StudiesJane Henderson QDM
• Coherent progression from National 5 and to Advanced Higher
• Relevant, challenging and enjoyable contexts • Opportunities for candidates to show the breadth
and depth of what they know• Opportunities for candidates to show the
application of their Modern Studies skills• Personalisation and choice for learners in the
Assignment
Key messagesKey messages
• Units combine skills and knowledge and offer flexibility in how evidence is gathered, to challenge and motivate learners
• Knowledge and understanding and the application of skills build progressively up levels in Unit and in Course assessment
• Maintains many of the best aspects of current Higher while offering new learning contexts to ensure the continuing relevance and contemporary focus of Modern Studies
Key messagesKey messages
Points of stabilityPoints of stability• Applying information handling skills of
decision making, drawing conclusions and explaining the degree of objectivity
• Use of a range of written, numerical, graphical and pictorial sources of information
• Familiar topics and issues: political, social and international areas of study
• Use of “Discuss” and “To what extent” as command words
Points of changePoints of change• Decision making skills assessed in the Assignment.
Other skills assessed in the question paper• In the Assignment, candidates will research an
issue and collect sources• New contexts including a wider knowledge and
understanding of the democratic political system in Scotland and the United Kingdom; introduction of the Crime and the Law in the United Kingdom option within Social Issues in the United Kingdom; wide choice of World Power or World Issue.
Assessment Support Schedule 2013/14 Assessment Support Schedule 2013/14
Sept 13 CfE Update Letter
Oct 13 Unit Assessment Support (Package 1)
Feb 14 Unit Assessment Support (Package 2)
Feb 14 Higher Specimen Question Paper
Mar 14 Coursework General Assessment Information
Apr 14 Unit Assessment Support (Package 3)
May 14 Update Mandatory Documents
Jun 14 Update Unit Assessment Support
Modern StudiesUnit Assessment
HigherElaine Walls QDC
Modern StudiesUnit Assessment
HigherElaine Walls QDC
Unit assessmentUnit assessment• Supports assessment as part of learning and
teaching • Is flexible in the ways in which evidence can
be generated• Open in the context which is used and in the
form of the evidence
Unit Assessment Support Unit Assessment Support packages – purpose packages – purpose
• Assess your candidates
• Adapt in line with your own assessment strategy
• Help you develop your own assessments
Unit Assessment Support Unit Assessment Support Packages – key featuresPackages – key features
• Tell you – with examples – how to judge evidence against Assessment Standards
• Provide further clarification of the Assessment Standards
• Encourage and support professional judgment• Include advice on adapting to different contexts • Valid from August 2014
Unit assessment support Unit assessment support packages - approachespackages - approaches
• Unit by Unit approach – discrete assessment tasks for each Unit
• Combined approach – groups Outcomes and Assessment Standards from different Units
• Portfolio approach – evidence generated Assessment Standard by Assessment Standard
Assessment Package 1Assessment Package 1Democracy in Scotland and the United Kingdom
Social Issues in the United Kingdom
International Issues
N3Skill: Accuracy & bias
Context: Local Councils
Skill: Make a decision
Context: Child poverty
Skill: Draw a conclusion
Context: Brazil
N4
Skill: Bias & exaggeration
Context: The work of MPs
Skill: Make a decision
Context: Crime and the Law
Skill: Draw a conclusion
Context: Child soldiers
N5
Skill: Selective use of facts
Context: UK political system
Skill: Make a decision
Context: Inequality
Skill: Draw a conclusion
Context: International Terrorism
H
Skill: Judge Objectivity
Context: UK voting systems
Skill: Make a Decision
Context: Crime and the law
Skill: Draw a Conclusion
Context: Development
Document read-throughDocument read-through
• Overview of Assessment – Contains an outline of the example task
– Also includes advice on how to adapt the task
– Evidence in one form may be supplemented with evidence in other forms
Document read-throughDocument read-through
• Assessment Conditions– Level of teacher/lecturer support should be
appropriate but evidence must be the candidate's own work
– When group work is used, evidence of individual achievement is required
– Centres responsibility to ensure that all evidence is the individual candidate’s work
Document read-throughDocument read-through
• Assessment Conditions (continued)– Only apply restrictions which are required by the
Assessment Standards – No time restrictions - candidates should have
sufficient time to complete the task– No restrictions on resources which candidates
may use in the assessment– Same conditions apply National 3 – Higher
Document read-throughDocument read-through
• Evidence to be gathered– A range of possible forms of evidence may be
appropriate– Keep accurate records of the evidence gathered
and the assessment decisions made– Only need sufficient evidence to show
achievement of the Assessment Standards once
Document read-throughDocument read-through• Judging Evidence– Table tells you how to judge evidence against the
Assessment Standards– Illustrations of possible candidate responses– Approach used can change, Assessment Standards
do not change– Columns 1 – 3 are fixed, column 4 will vary with
the task
Document read-throughDocument read-through
• Re-assessment arrangements – Assessment should be carried out when the
individual candidate is ready – If a candidate fails to provide evidence for all the
Assessment Standards, it is only necessary to re-assess the individual Assessment Standard that they have yet to achieve
Document read-throughDocument read-through
• Examples of recording documentation– Exemplar tables for recording candidate’s/group’s
achievement of Assessment Standards– These can be adapted as required
Document read-throughDocument read-through
• Assessment Task– Aligns with the prompts in the Overview of
Assessment section– Exemplifies one context in which Unit assessment
may take place
Workshop 1Workshop 1• Use the materials provided:• In groups of 2-3 discuss:– The assessment task in the Unit Assessment
Support provided– How to generate evidence for the UAS provided– How to make assessment judgements for the
UAS provided
Workshop 1Workshop 1Use the materials provided:•read the UASP (10 mins) focus on the candidate task and the judging the evidence tableIn groups of 2-3 discuss:•how you would use or adapt the task provided (20 minutes)•how column 4 illustrates the standard defined in column 3 (15 minutes)•the ways in which Unit assessment fits in with your overall assessment strategy (15 minutes)•what will you take back to your centre to support others?
Modern Studies Higher Course Assessment
Alan Barclay QDC
Modern Studies Higher Course Assessment
Alan Barclay QDC
Context and Rationale for development Context and Rationale for development of Higher Modern Studiesof Higher Modern Studies
• Level of demand benchmarked against SCQF level 6 as in current Higher
• Progression and articulation from National 5 and on to Advanced Higher
• CfE principles e.g. personalisation and choice, importance of skills
• Opportunity to refresh and update content and contexts
• Consistency with other Highers as appropriate• FIOCA provides further detail
Process of DevelopmentProcess of Development• Course Specification – Aims and rationale of the
Higher Modern Studies Course• Unit Specifications – Skills developed across all
Units and assessed within specified contexts• Course Assessment Specification – Requirements
for Question Paper and Assignment – application of skills to mandatory content
Added ValueAdded Value• Makes the Course more than the sum of its parts• Builds on current Course assessment and Group
Award approaches • Defined as breadth, challenge and application as
outlined in Building the Curriculum 5• May involve accumulation, assimilation, integration
and/or application of skills, knowledge and understanding
• Uses one or two of 7 defined assessment methods
Adding Value – National 4, Adding Value – National 4, National 5, HigherNational 5, Higher
• For National 4, the added value is assessed in the Added Value Unit - not graded
• For National 5 and Higher (and Advanced Higher) the added value is assessed in the Course Assessment - graded A - D (as at present)
Higher – Course AssessmentHigher – Course Assessment• Two components
– Question Paper: 60 marks - 66% (75% at National 5)
– Assignment 30: marks - 33% (25% at National 5)
• Skills and knowledge and understanding will have equal importance across course assessment as a whole
• Both components will be externally marked
Higher – Question PaperHigher – Question Paper• Three sections each worth 20 marks: Democracy in Scotland and the
United Kingdom; Social Issues in the United Kingdom: International Issues
• There will be a choice of contexts and questions in each section
• Mandatory content will be sampled
• Will assess the skills of analysing and evaluating, and draw on detailed knowledge and understanding of complex issues as well as applying information handling skills (source based questions) of detecting and explaining the degree of objectivity and drawing and supporting conclusions
• Greater emphasis on knowledge and understanding than skills
• Range of marks – 8, 12 or 20
Higher – Question PaperHigher – Question Paper• In the Democracy in Scotland and the United Kingdom
Section; candidates may refer to Scotland only, the UK only or both Scotland and the UK in their answers
• In the Social Issues in the United Kingdom Section; there will be a choice of questions in both the Social Inequality or Crime and the Law context
• In the International Issues Section; there will be a choice of questions on World Powers or World Issues contexts
• In whichever context they appear: there will be no choice of source based questions
Higher – Question PaperHigher – Question PaperA limited range of command words/question stems will be used in the paper for extended response questions:
•Analyse …
•Evaluate …
•Discuss …
•To what extent …
Greater clarity and support for centres in general marking principles and detailed marking instructions as to how these questions will be marked
Higher – Question PaperHigher – Question Paper“Analyse” questions require candidates to…
Identify parts, the relationship between them, and their relationships with the whole. Draw out and relate implications.
SQA Guidance
Analysis will derive from a body of knowledge and understanding.
Higher – Question PaperHigher – Question Paper“Evaluate” questions require candidates to…
Make a judgement based on criteria.
SQA Guidance
Evaluation will derive from a body of knowledge and understanding. Candidates will make a judgment(s), reach a conclusion(s), make evaluative comments
Higher – Question PaperHigher – Question Paper“Discuss” and “To what extent” questions require candidates to…
Analyse and Evaluate and present a logical and coherent line of argument
Analysis and evaluation will derive from a body of knowledge and understanding.
Higher – Question PaperHigher – Question PaperSource based questions require candidates to…
Apply skills to a range of detailed/complex sources
“Conclusions” questions will require candidates to analyse between 2 and 3 sources of information and reach conclusions based on evidence
“Objectivity” questions will require candidates to analyse/evaluate between 2 and 3 sources of information and make an overall judgement based on evidence
Controlled AssessmentControlled Assessment• Where the assessment method is not a question paper,
SQA has introduced the concept of controlled assessment to ensure fairness and reliability
• Three stages of assessment: Setting, Conducting, Marking the assessment
• Each will have a defined level of control: SQA-led activity, Shared responsibility between SQA and centres, Centre-led
• Subject-specific decisions, but mostly SQA-led activity in initial years
Higher – AssignmentHigher – Assignment• Opportunity for learner personalisation and choice
• Candidates will have an open choice of Modern Studies Issue
• Marked out of 30
• Externally marked
• Evidence produced in controlled conditions in up to one hour 30 minutes
• Assesses the results of their research and the application of decision making skills
Higher – AssignmentHigher – Assignment• Greater emphasis on skills than knowledge and
understanding
• SQA will provide General Assessment Information and the Assessment Task
• Task does not change from year to year
• Detailed marking instructions available and can be shared with candidates
• Guide to candidates will be provided as at National 5
Workshop 2Workshop 2• Use the materials provided:• In groups of 2-3 discuss:– the requirements of the Higher Course assessment– How these requirements build on the Higher Units– How these requirements build on National 5
• Materials provided:– Further Information on Course Assessment– Assignment read across document
Workshop 2Workshop 2Use the materials provided:•read the FIOCA (10 mins)In groups of 2-3 discuss:•the relationship between assessment at Unit level and Course level (10 minutes)• aspects of your current practice which you plan to
continue (15 minutes)• aspects of your current practice which you plan to
change (15 minutes)•what will you take back to your centre to support others?