Qualifications Update:Higher English

Qualifications Update:Higher English

• Units Outcomes are skills-based and provide flexibility and choice through contexts of literature, language and media

• Candidates study 2 Units: English: Analysis and Evaluation and English: Creation and Production

• Unit assessment support - illustrates assessment of the 4 language skills

• Builds knowledge and understanding and development of skills progressively from National 5

• Course is assessed by: Question paper: Reading for Understanding, Analysis and Evaluation; Critical Reading Coursework: Portfolio - Writing

Key messages – Higher EnglishKey messages – Higher English

• Units develop skills in reading, listening, talking and writing using detailed and complex language

• Skills of analysis and evaluation • Balance of skills in Course Assessment• Some changes to Course Assessment to reflect level of

demand and challenge• Unit Assessment Support Packs – illustrate approaches to

assessment through literature, language and media

Key messages – Higher EnglishKey messages – Higher English

Partnership workingPartnership working

• Use valid and reliable assessments- SQA-produced Unit Assessment

Support Packs- Centre devised assessments that have

been prior verified- Your own assessments – strongly

advise you have these prior verified

Key messages Key messages from Verification (Round 1)

• Making assessment judgements- SQA packs are designed on a pass/fail basis- Use Judging Evidence Tables to make assessment

judgments against Assessment Standards- Judging Evidence Tables have commentary on how to

meet each Assessment Standard- A task/activity can meet most or all of the Unit Outcome

and Assessment Standards- Indicate on candidate’s work that Unit Assessment

Standards have been met

Key messages Key messages from Verification (Round 1)

• Unit Assessment complementing learning and teaching

- Unit Assessment is open and flexible- Assessment should allow you space to

prepare for Added Value/Course Assessment

Key messages Key messages from Verification (Round 1)

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

English Unit Assessment

at Higher

English Unit Assessment

at Higher

Unit Assessment - Recap• Flexible and open Assessment Standards and Evidence

Requirements in Units

• Greater range of techniques and methodologies for assessment – encouraged

• Assessments can be designed to provide evidence across more than one outcome or Unit – combined assessments

• More opportunities to gather naturally occurring evidence – assessment as part of learning and teaching

Unit Assessment Support Purpose

Unit Assessment Support Key Features• Valid from August 2014• Complements and supports learning and teaching• Assess competence against Unit Outcomes and

Assessment Standards• Designed to encourage professional judgement• Provide broad-based tasks - allow assessors to choose

appropriate context and forms of evidence • Show range of approaches to generating assessment

evidence• Give information on the type of evidence which could

be gathered

Unit assessment support packages at Higher - approaches

Unit Assessment Support Pack 1 (October 2013)

Making Assessment Judgements

•Judging Evidence Tables •The ‘fourth column’•Re-assessment

UASP 2 (February 2014)

UASP 3 (April 2014)

Workshop Task• Using the materials provided, in small groups of 2-3,

discuss:

Additional Workshop Task• Using the materials provided, in small groups, discuss:

EnglishHigher Course Assessment

EnglishHigher Course Assessment

Course Assessment at Higher• Course Assessment at National 5, Higher and

Advanced Higher assesses Added Value

• Courses at Higher are normally assessed by one or two Components

• Courses at Higher are graded A – D, as at present

• Controlled Assessment of setting, conducting and marking

• For English there are 2 Components – a question paper and a portfolio

Higher – Question Paper (1)• Set, conducted and marked by SQA• Question paper in two parts:

1. Reading for Understanding, Analysis and Evaluation • Two non-fiction passages– questions on the first passage, – one question assessing the candidate’s skills in inferencing

and summarising which will look at both passages • 1 hour 30 minutes - 30 marks

Higher - Question Paper (2)2. Critical Reading Consists of two sections:2. Section 1 - A Scottish text paper (extract from each

specified writer) which has questions on the extract/poem and final question worth 10 marks which assesses wider knowledge of the writer (20 marks)

3. Section 2 - A Critical Essay paper on Drama, Prose, Poetry, Film and Television Drama and Language (20 marks)

4. 1 hour 30 minutes – total 40 marks

Higher – Portfolio • Setting; internally generated, externally

assessed • Portfolio - writing • Two pieces:

one broadly creative (15 marks) one broadly discursive (15 marks)

• Approximately 1300 words each (depending on genre)

Additional Workshop Task