NCEA Numeracy in Your Classroom

Every learning area has activities, contexts, or concepts where numeracy naturally occurs. By making numeracy explicit in your practice, you provide ākonga with a different perspective of mathematics and statistics and develop subject-specific numeracy needs.

The Effective Practice to Support Numeracy contains practical, research-based guidance you can use to highlight numeracy in your planning and in your classroom.

When you are planning a lesson or unit:

  • identify the numeracy processes or skills being used in your context.
  • acknowledge prior knowledge ākonga have, or need to have, to access a numeracy process or skill.
  • amplify and scaffold the numeracy skills and processes in your learning area.

The numeracy processes or skills may be a small portion of your lesson, or the focal point. The Numeracy Pedagogy Guides (NPGs) provide subject specific ideas on how numeracy might look in your learning area.

Assessing Numeracy

From 2024, to gain an NCEA qualification, ākonga must pass the Numeracy standard US32406: Use mathematics and statistics to meet the numeracy demands of a range of situations.

The Numeracy standard will be assessed online through a Common Assessment Activity (CAA) using the NZQA assessment master platform.

The CAA will be available multiple times a year so ākonga can be entered for the assessment when they are ready. Your feedback on ākonga numeracy development can inform assessment readiness.

A facilitator or co-ordinator who is responsible for organising the CAA should be appointed at your school. This may be a logistical role, or one which includes supporting other kaiako to implement the teaching and learning changes for NCEA Numeracy.

More Information

About NCEA Numeracy - An overview of the changes to NCEA Numeracy for school leaders and kaiako

Effective Practices that Support Numeracy - This guide outlines practical, evidence-based steps you can take to integrate numeracy into your practice.

Numeracy Pedagogy Guides (NPGs) - A set of guides that unpack the Unpacking Numeracy document in specific NCEA learning areas and subjects. These may be useful when considering how you can weave numeracy into your classroom.

About Pāngarau - Find out more about the Pāngarau standard ākonga can sit as an alternative to the Numeracy standard.

Literacy in Your Classroom - A guide for subject kaiako on how the changes to NCEA Literacy will impact you.

Every learning area has activities, contexts, or concepts where numeracy naturally occurs. By making numeracy explicit in your practice, you provide ākonga with a different perspective of mathematics and statistics and develop subject-specific numeracy needs.

The Effective Practice to Support Numeracy contains practical, research-based guidance you can use to highlight numeracy in your planning and in your classroom.

When you are planning a lesson or unit:

  • identify the numeracy processes or skills being used in your context.
  • acknowledge prior knowledge ākonga have, or need to have, to access a numeracy process or skill.
  • amplify and scaffold the numeracy skills and processes in your learning area.

The numeracy processes or skills may be a small portion of your lesson, or the focal point. The Numeracy Pedagogy Guides (NPGs) provide subject specific ideas on how numeracy might look in your learning area.

Assessing Numeracy

From 2024, to gain an NCEA qualification, ākonga must pass the Numeracy standard US32406: Use mathematics and statistics to meet the numeracy demands of a range of situations.

The Numeracy standard will be assessed online through a Common Assessment Activity (CAA) using the NZQA assessment master platform.

The CAA will be available multiple times a year so ākonga can be entered for the assessment when they are ready. Your feedback on ākonga numeracy development can inform assessment readiness.

A facilitator or co-ordinator who is responsible for organising the CAA should be appointed at your school. This may be a logistical role, or one which includes supporting other kaiako to implement the teaching and learning changes for NCEA Numeracy.

More Information

About NCEA Numeracy - An overview of the changes to NCEA Numeracy for school leaders and kaiako

Effective Practices that Support Numeracy - This guide outlines practical, evidence-based steps you can take to integrate numeracy into your practice.

Numeracy Pedagogy Guides (NPGs) - A set of guides that unpack the Unpacking Numeracy document in specific NCEA learning areas and subjects. These may be useful when considering how you can weave numeracy into your classroom.

About Pāngarau - Find out more about the Pāngarau standard ākonga can sit as an alternative to the Numeracy standard.

Literacy in Your Classroom - A guide for subject kaiako on how the changes to NCEA Literacy will impact you.