Level 1 standards and paerewa paetae now available
Level 1 standards for New Zealand Curriculum subjects and paerewa paetae of Te Marautanga o Aotearoa are now available from subject-specific areas within this website.
Standards released this week include updates from the ‘draft for pilot’ versions made available for planning earlier this year.
Input from schools and kura participating in 2023 NCEA pilots, alongside expert input from NZQA and NCEA Subject Expert Groups have contributed to the finalised versions.
Each standard reflects a significant amount of time and effort from many people collaborating with the NCEA Change Programme. Developing new NCEA achievement standards and ensuring mātauranga Māori and inclusive design is recognised and valued in NCEA is a crucial step for secondary schooling. New teaching, learning and assessment approaches are creating more meaningful learning experiences for young people.
Each NCEA subject and wahanga ako is designed to have fewer, larger standards. The four standards within each subject and wahanga ako, provide learners with a coherent set of standards across all areas of the significant learning.
Each Level 1 NCEA subject includes a Learning Matrix and four achievement standards – two internally assessed and two externally assessed. These support teachers to develop coherent teaching and learning programmes to ensure students are engaging with the most significant learning for that subject.
Level 1 standards for New Zealand Curriculum subjects and paerewa paetae of Te Marautanga o Aotearoa are now available from subject-specific areas within this website.
Standards released this week include updates from the ‘draft for pilot’ versions made available for planning earlier this year.
Input from schools and kura participating in 2023 NCEA pilots, alongside expert input from NZQA and NCEA Subject Expert Groups have contributed to the finalised versions.
Each standard reflects a significant amount of time and effort from many people collaborating with the NCEA Change Programme. Developing new NCEA achievement standards and ensuring mātauranga Māori and inclusive design is recognised and valued in NCEA is a crucial step for secondary schooling. New teaching, learning and assessment approaches are creating more meaningful learning experiences for young people.
Each NCEA subject and wahanga ako is designed to have fewer, larger standards. The four standards within each subject and wahanga ako, provide learners with a coherent set of standards across all areas of the significant learning.
Each Level 1 NCEA subject includes a Learning Matrix and four achievement standards – two internally assessed and two externally assessed. These support teachers to develop coherent teaching and learning programmes to ensure students are engaging with the most significant learning for that subject.
Are these standards ready for use?
The standards published in October 2023 are the completed standards for NCEA Level 1 from 2024. After the 2023 NCEA exams, a formal step is taken to list the standards to the NZQA Directory of Assessment and Skills Standards. This will happen in December 2023. After the regulatory step of listing to the DASS, the new standards now available are the only Level 1 achievement standards available for use from 2024.
The standards published in October 2023 are the completed standards for NCEA Level 1 from 2024. After the 2023 NCEA exams, a formal step is taken to list the standards to the NZQA Directory of Assessment and Skills Standards. This will happen in December 2023. After the regulatory step of listing to the DASS, the new standards now available are the only Level 1 achievement standards available for use from 2024.
Can I keep using the current standards?
In 2023 – yes! From 2024 - no.
From 2024, the new NCEA Level 1 achievements standards will be the only Level 1 achievement standards available for use.
NZQA will expire the current standards at the end of this year. There will be a short exception to this in early Term 1, 2024 where schools will be able to submit late results relating to Level 1 in 2023.
In 2023 – yes! From 2024 - no.
From 2024, the new NCEA Level 1 achievements standards will be the only Level 1 achievement standards available for use.
NZQA will expire the current standards at the end of this year. There will be a short exception to this in early Term 1, 2024 where schools will be able to submit late results relating to Level 1 in 2023.
There is a lot of new information. How do I navigate it all?
Subject-specific workshops are held during Term 4, 2023. More information here: ncea.education.govt.nz/ncea-level-1-subject-workshops
Online sessions focused on Te Marautanga o Aotearoa wāhanga ako, Te Ao Haka and Te Reo Māori (New Zealand Curriculum) begin on 17 October.
ncea.education.govt.nz/whats-new/ncea-level-1-wahanga-ako-workshops
We encourage you to review the resources available for the November 2023 teacher-only day. Resources will support you to plan courses of learning and learn more about the changes within NCEA to improve well-being, equity, coherence, pathways, and credibility.
Subject-specific workshops are held during Term 4, 2023. More information here: ncea.education.govt.nz/ncea-level-1-subject-workshops
Online sessions focused on Te Marautanga o Aotearoa wāhanga ako, Te Ao Haka and Te Reo Māori (New Zealand Curriculum) begin on 17 October.
ncea.education.govt.nz/whats-new/ncea-level-1-wahanga-ako-workshops
We encourage you to review the resources available for the November 2023 teacher-only day. Resources will support you to plan courses of learning and learn more about the changes within NCEA to improve well-being, equity, coherence, pathways, and credibility.
What other subject materials are available?
We will continue to update and add resources and support materials on an ongoing basis.
Te Marautanga o Aotearoa
- 60 Ngohe Aromatawai (Internal Assessment Activities)
- 20 Tikanga Aromatawai (Conditions of Assessment)
- 20 Tautuhinga Aromatawai ā-Waho (Proposed External Assessment Specifications)
New Zealand Curriculum subjects
- The Learning Matrices and Course Outlines available for each subject describe the most important learning.
- Internal Assessment Activities are being updated and re-published during October.
- Course outlines are available for every subject. We will continue to update these resources.
We will continue to update and add resources and support materials on an ongoing basis.
Te Marautanga o Aotearoa
- 60 Ngohe Aromatawai (Internal Assessment Activities)
- 20 Tikanga Aromatawai (Conditions of Assessment)
- 20 Tautuhinga Aromatawai ā-Waho (Proposed External Assessment Specifications)
New Zealand Curriculum subjects
- The Learning Matrices and Course Outlines available for each subject describe the most important learning.
- Internal Assessment Activities are being updated and re-published during October.
- Course outlines are available for every subject. We will continue to update these resources.
Can we choose to use only two or three standards – if some don’t suit our school?
Courses of learning should be developed to the learning matrices. This aims to support more coherent programmes of teaching and learning where students cover the full breadth of significant learning rather than just the learning associated with a few selected standards from a much larger assessment matrix.
Schools continue to have flexibility to tailor courses that reflect their local curriculum – to best meet the needs of your community, learners and whānau, and to suit the learning needs of your learners. You are free to develop local curriculum and teaching programmes to best meet your needs. This includes using standards from multiple subjects to develop a course where appropriate.
You are encouraged to provide learners with the opportunity to be assessed against all four standards in a subject – to provide the opportunity to practice and demonstrate their learning, gain experience of assessment, and support pathways.
Courses of learning should be developed to the learning matrices. This aims to support more coherent programmes of teaching and learning where students cover the full breadth of significant learning rather than just the learning associated with a few selected standards from a much larger assessment matrix.
Schools continue to have flexibility to tailor courses that reflect their local curriculum – to best meet the needs of your community, learners and whānau, and to suit the learning needs of your learners. You are free to develop local curriculum and teaching programmes to best meet your needs. This includes using standards from multiple subjects to develop a course where appropriate.
You are encouraged to provide learners with the opportunity to be assessed against all four standards in a subject – to provide the opportunity to practice and demonstrate their learning, gain experience of assessment, and support pathways.