General

Technical advice during the March Online Literacy and Numeracy Assessment (OLNA)

Contact
OLNA helpdesk (08) 9273 6726
olna@scsa.wa.edu.au

Supervisors must be familiar with the OLNA Website user guide and the OLNA Handbook before the assessments and attempt to resolve any technical issues with the school IT support person before contacting the OLNA help desk.

The OLNA Website user guide contains a list of frequently asked questions and solutions to potential issues.

If there are any issues that cannot be resolved by the school IT support person, supervisors must contact the OLNA helpdesk with the subject title ‘SchoolCode_OLNA_techsupport’. Issues requiring urgent or immediate resolution must be logged via the OLNA helpdesk telephone number.

For more efficient assistance, please ensure the following information is prepared before contacting the OLNA helpdesk:

Register for 2015 briefings — K–6 and 7–12

Contact
Caroline Walker (08) 9273 6375
caroline.walker@scsa.wa.edu.au

Principals and deputy principals are invited to register for briefings on the Authority’s work with schools and teachers in 2015. The briefings will be organised to provide updates on the primary curriculum (Kindergarten to Year 6) in the morning and the secondary curriculum (Years 7 to 12) in the afternoon.

The briefings will be presented by the Authority’s CEO Allan Blagaich and members of the executive across the State in March and April.

Register now at http://www.scsa.wa.edu.au/internet/Events_and_Forms/Events/2015_briefings

Courses

Final date for student enrolments in Stage 2 course units

Contact
Jenny Offer (08) 9273 6313
jenny.offer@scsa.wa.edu.au
Jenny Morup (08) 9273 6309
jenny.morup@scsa.wa.edu.au

To accommodate Year 12 students opting out of sitting Stage 2 WACE examinations, the Authority has set a deadline for changes to enrolments in Stage 2 course units.

Schools are required to upload their Year 12 student enrolments in all WACE course units into the Student Information Records System (SIRS) by Friday, 15 May 2015 (as outlined on the 2015 WACE Activities Schedule). As part of the upload, schools will need to indicate which of their Year 12 students have chosen to opt out of sitting Stage 2 WACE examinations.

Schools are able to make changes to enrolments in Stage 2 course units for Year 12 students until Wednesday, 1 July 2015.

No changes to Year 12 student enrolments in Stage 2 course units can be made in SIRS after Wednesday, 1 July 2015. These changes include the following:

  • opting out of sitting Stage 2 examinations
  • enrolling into Stage 2 course units
  • withdrawing from Stage 2 course units.

Students enrolled in Stage 2 pairs of course units are required to sit for, and make a genuine attempt at, the WACE examination in that course (unless they have opted out of sitting the examination for the Stage 2 course).

Students who are enrolled to sit a Stage 2 examination and choose not to, or choose not to make a genuine attempt in the examination, will not get a course report and will not have a WACE course score recorded on their statement of results. Nor will the school grades for those units count towards their C grade average for the WACE. Their achievement in these units can, however, contribute to the WACE completion requirement.

Endorsed programs update

Contact
Leanne Meldrum (08) 9273 6746
leanne.meldrum@scsa.wa.edu.au

Authority-developed endorsed programs

The Authority-developed endorsed programs, previously known as personal development generic programs, have been updated for 2015 and beyond. They are:
Administration and Management
Community Arts Performance
Community Service (New)
Elite Sports Performance (Previously Community Sports Performance)
Music Performance Ensemble
Off-campus Enrichment Program
Recreational Pursuits
School Production
Workplace Learning (New)

The programs may be offered to students in Years 10, 11 and 12.

Schools are no longer required to submit a request to deliver these programs but should retain the completed portfolios until the end of the year in which the student achievement is reported to the Authority as they may be requested by the Authority for audit purposes.

The program outlines for each may be downloaded from http://www.scsa.wa.edu.au/Apps/EP/display.aspx?type=5

Examinations

Examination reports for the 2014 WACE examinations

Contact
Kerry Cribb (08) 9273 6787
kerry.cribb@scsa.wa.edu.au

The 2014 WACE examination reports are available on the course page of the extranet on the Authority’s website. Each report contains feedback from examiners and markers. Statistical data on items and comments regarding examination performance are included.

An examination report is not available for those examinations where there are insufficient candidates to enable valid statistical analysis.

Update to WACE examinations marked online

Contact
Jenny Morup (08) 9273 6309
jenny.morup@scsa.wa.edu.au
Melanie Jasper (08) 9273 6732
melanie.jasper@scsa.wa.edu.au

Religion and Life Stage 3 will be marked online using the MarkManager marking system in 2015.
For examination scripts to be scanned for online marking, the format of the paper includes the following features:

  • a barcode at the bottom of the front page
  • a solid 5mm square in each corner of the front page
  • a unique identifying number printed on every page within the paper.

The margins of each page will be excluded from the area available for writing and will be marked with the wording ‘DO NOT WRITE IN THIS AREA AS IT WILL BE CUT OFF’.
It is highly recommended that you do not use pencil, except in diagrams.
The front covers of each examination will be sent to schools in August.