Providers and partners

Assessments where SAC Provision is Not Appropriate or Not Allowed

For all enquiries, please email sac@nzqa.govt.nz

General Principles for Internal and External Assessments

Special assessment conditions (SAC) are not appropriate where:

the integrity of the assessment may be compromised
the assessment objectives of the standard may be compromised
the special assessment condition will provide unfair advantage over other candidates.

Internal Assessments

SAC should be provided for all assessments unless there is a clear and considered reason for this to be excluded. The decision about whether the student’s use of SAC is appropriate for a particular assessment is a professional judgement made by the school.

The principles guiding assessment for all standards as well as the general principles relating to SAC (see above) should be considered. Published achievement criteria and explanatory notes for the standard must be considered. All assessment should be credible – valid, verifiable and authentic.

There is no list of internally assessed standards for which SAC is specifically excluded because of their quantity and scope.

Consideration must also be given as to how manageable SAC is for the student for each standard. In some instances, an alternative assessment approach e.g. video or podcast may better meet the student’s needs without compromising the integrity of the assessment.

A Writer may be inappropriate in the following situations:

Writing equations or symbols (as, for example, in Mathematics, Calculus, Statistics, Physics, Music) because of the difficulty associated with dictating symbols. Offer the Extra Time Writing Option, or assistive technologies if that is the student’s usual way of working.
Drawing graphs or models (as in Mathematics, Geography, Statistics, Physics etc.). Offer Extra Time, or assistive technologies if that is the student’s usual way of working. However, a Writer may label a diagram, map etc. as instructed by the student.
Writing in a Learning or New Language where the assessment is of a student’s ability to spell or write characters or script in that language. Students must demonstrate these skills on their own, either by dictating spelling or accents, or using a computer.
When an independent command of the skill is being assessed (e.g. drawing in Visual Arts or Technology, drawing maps in Geography, drawing graphs in Economics, writing characters in Chinese or Japanese, writing musical notation, etc.).

A Reader may be inappropriate when the assessment requires students to:

read (and comprehend) independently. However, a Reader may read the instructions and all words in English in any languages assessment.

Exceptional circumstances (e.g. severe disability) can be grounds for increased assistance. Contact sac@nzqa.govt.nz for clarification.

External Assessments

Extra Writing Time alternative provision

Specific examination sessions allow for the use of Extra Writing Time to replace use of Computer or Writer. Any student approved for Computer or Writer but not Extra Writing Time may choose to use Extra Writing Time instead of the Computer or Writer. The option is available for whole sessions only, not standard by standard. The student must be entered for three standards in a three hour session or Scholarship for Extra Writing Time to become available. Further information can be found at Extra Writing Time Option.

Exclusions of SAC provision

The following externally assessed standards are excluded from the specific special assessment conditions assistance listed.

Partial exclusion of a Writer allows the Writer to annotate the graphs and maps drawn by the student and to write the rest of the answers.

Partial exclusion of a Reader for Languages allows the Reader to read only the instructions or questions written in English.

Level 1

Achievement Standard		Special Assessment Conditions Assistance
Achievement Standard		Reader	Writer	Computer
Design and Visual Communication
	91063		Excluded	Excluded
	91064		Excluded
	91065		Excluded
Geography
	91007		Part Excluded
	91008		Part Excluded
	91010		Part Excluded
Visual Arts
	90916		Excluded
Te Reo Māori
	91087	Part Excluded
	91088	Part Excluded
Languages
Chinese	90868	Part Excluded
	90871	Part Excluded
Cook Islands Māori	90873	Part Excluded
	90876	Part Excluded
French	90878	Part Excluded
	90881	Part Excluded
German	90883	Part Excluded
	90886	Part Excluded
Indonesian	90888	Part Excluded
	90891	Part Excluded
Japanese	90893	Part Excluded
	90896	Part Excluded
Korean	90898	Part Excluded
	90901	Part Excluded
Samoan	90903	Part Excluded
	90906	Part Excluded
Spanish	90908	Part Excluded
	90911	Part Excluded
Lea Faka-Tonga	91669	Part Excluded
	91672	Part Excluded

Level 2

Achievement Standard		Special Assessment Conditions Assistance
Achievement Standard		Reader	Writer	Computer
Design and Visual Communication
	91337		Excluded
	91338		Excluded
	91339		Excluded
Geography
	91240		Part Excluded
	91242		Part Excluded
	91243		Part Excluded
Visual Arts
	91320		Excluded
	91321		Excluded
	91322		Excluded
	91323		Excluded
	91324		Excluded
Te Reo Māori
	91286	Part Excluded
	91287	Part Excluded
Languages
Chinese	91108	Part Excluded
	91111	Part Excluded
Cook Islands Māori	91113	Part Excluded
	91116	Part Excluded
French	91118	Part Excluded
	91121	Part Excluded
German	91123	Part Excluded
	91126	Part Excluded
Indonesian	91128	Part Excluded
	91131	Part Excluded
Japanese	91133	Part Excluded
	91136	Part Excluded
Korean	91138	Part Excluded
	91141	Part Excluded
Samoan	91143	Part Excluded
	91146	Part Excluded
Spanish	91148	Part Excluded
	91151	Part Excluded
Lea Faka-Tonga	91674	Part Excluded
	91677	Part Excluded

Level 3

Achievement Standard		Special Assessment Conditions Assistance
Achievement Standard		Reader	Writer	Computer
Design and Visual Communication
	91627		Excluded
	91631		Excluded
Geography
	91426		Part Excluded
	91427		Part Excluded
	91429		Part Excluded
Visual Arts
	91455		Excluded
	91456		Excluded
	91457		Excluded
	91458		Excluded
	91459		Excluded
Te Reo Māori
	91652	Part Excluded
	91653	Part Excluded
Languages
Chinese	91533	Part Excluded
	91536	Part Excluded
Cook Islands Māori	91538	Part Excluded
	91541	Part Excluded
French	91543	Part Excluded
	91546	Part Excluded
German	91548	Part Excluded
	91551	Part Excluded
Indonesian	91645	Part Excluded
	91648	Part Excluded
Japanese	91553	Part Excluded
	91556	Part Excluded
Korean	91558	Part Excluded
	91561	Part Excluded
Samoan	91563	Part Excluded
	91566	Part Excluded
Spanish	91568	Part Excluded
	91571	Part Excluded
Lea Faka-Tonga	91679	Part Excluded
	91682	Part Excluded

Scholarship

Standard	Special Assessment Conditions Assistance
Standard	Reader	Writer
Chinese	Part Excluded
French	Part Excluded
German	Part Excluded
Japanese	Part Excluded
Spanish	Part Excluded
Samoan	Part Excluded
Te Reo Māori	Part Excluded
Latin	Part Excluded
Music		Part Excluded
Design and Visual Communication		Excluded
Visual Arts		Excluded