VCE Student Manual 2019 - stleonards.vic.edu.au - St Leonard's College
←
→
Page content transcription
If your browser does not render page correctly, please read the page content below
VCE
Student Manual 2019
stleonards.vic.edu.au 163 South Rd, Brighton East, VIC 3187Contents
1 Introduction 2
1.1 Glossary of VCE Terminology 2
1.2 Enrolment 3
2 Satisfactory Completion Policy 3
2.1 Achievement of Outcomes 3
2.2 Computer use – Care in use of computers 4
2.3 Deadlines and Submission of Work 5
2.4 Presentation of work 5
2.5 Authenticity of all VCE work 6
2.6 Approved materials and equipmen 6
3 Failure to Meet Satisfactory Completion Requirements 7
3.1 Not Satisfactory Completion 7
3.2 St Leonard’s College Redemption policy 7
3.3 Subject change or withdrawal 8
3.4 Special Provision 8
3.5 Students’ Right of Appeal 11
4 VCE VET Subjects 11
5 Private Study 11
6 Timelines 12
6.1 GAT and VCE Exams 12
6.2 School-assessed Coursework (SAC) 12
6.3 Exam Timetable 13
7 Assessment and Reporting 13
7.1 Reporting 13
7.2 Units 3 and 4 Results 13
7.3 The VCE Certificate 14
7.4 Australian Tertiary Admissions Rank (ATAR) 14
8 Resource Hints 14
8.1 Finding relevant material using the Cornish Resource Centre 14
8.2 Compiling a reference list or bibliography 16
1 | VCE
St Leonard’s
Procedures
College
Manual for Student 2019Introduction
1.1 Glossary of VCE Terminology
Acronym What the acronym means/represents
VCE Victorian Certificate of Education
VCAA Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority
ATAR Australian Tertiary Admissions Rank. The overall ranking on a scale of zero to 99.95
that a student receives based on his/her study scores. The ATAR is calculated by
VTAC and used by universities and TAFE institutes to select students for courses.
SAC School-assessed Coursework: A School-based Assessment that is reported as
a grade for either a VCE Units 3 and 4 sequence or Unit 3 and Unit 4 individually.
School-assessed Coursework consists of a set of assessment tasks that assess the
student’s level of achievement of VCE Units 3 and 4 outcomes.
SATs School-assessed Tasks: Computing: Software Development, Media, Visual Com-
munication and Design and Studio Arts will have SATs in 2018. A school-based
assessment for a VCE Units 3 and 4 sequence set by the VCAA and assessed by
teachers in accordance with published criteria. Schools’ assessments of tasks are
subject to moderation by a panel appointed by the VCAA.
ATs Assessment Tasks: Tasks which students undertake mainly in class to meet the
School-assessed Coursework component of the study score.
ATs will be described using numbers in a particular sequence:
eg. AT 3.3.2 Task number
(eg. the second task in an outcome)
Unit of study Outcome No.
(eg. Unit 3) (eg. Outcome 3)
Special This may be applied for if a student is ill or suffers other hardship or disadvantage
Provision throughout the year. See Ms Webb for details. Documentary evidence is required.
TAFE Technical and Further Education
VET Vocational Education and Training. Nationally recognised vocational certificates.
These certificates can be included within a VCE program.
VASS Victorian Administrative Software System. A computer package designed to handle
VCE student enrolment and results.
VTAC Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre. An administrative body which calculates the
student’s scaled score (ATAR) and accepts and processes student preferences for
tertiary courses.
DES Derived Examination Score. Provision available for students who are ill or affected
by other personal circumstances at the time of an examination and whose results are
unlikely to be a fair or accurate indication of their learning or achievement.
GAT General Achievement Test. A test of knowledge and skills in writing, mathematics,
science and technology, humanities and social sciences and the arts.
VSN Victorian Student Number. A unique number assigned to an individual aged between
4 and 24 years of age who is enrolled in an educational program.
VCE Procedures Manual for Student 2019 | 2
St Leonard’s College | 21.1 Enrolment
Your initial enrolment for VCE occurs when you first undertake any VCE or VCE VET subject. This
occurs on the VASS computer, managed in the VCE Office. The enrolment procedure continues
periodically throughout years 10, 11 and 12 when you will be asked to check your personal details
form, subjects and units and class code, and then sign, date and return this form to your Group Tutor
at group tutorial time.
This checking is particularly important when you change subjects either in a new semester or at
another time. Errors noticed early in the year save lots of trouble and expense for everyone.
Year 10 students may be eligible in one or two units. In year 11 students are normally enrolled for
12 units, and in year 12 for 10 units. In 2019, many year 11 students will undertake a Unit 3 and 4
study and many yr 10 students will study one (or two) Unit 1 and 2 study.
Your VCE enrolment certificate will follow you for life, so during year 10 or 11 you should ensure
that your official legal name is the one we have recorded on the VASS enrolment, regardless of how
you have previously been known at school.
VCE enrolled students are given a student number upon enrolment, which should be recorded as
soon as it is allocated. It is needed by all students, especially when Unit 3 and 4 results are being
accessed at the end of the year, so every student should ensure they have recorded and kept the
number in a readily-accessible place.
2 Satisfactory Completion Policy
2.1 Achievement of Outcomes
Students must demonstrate achievement of each of the outcomes for the unit, which will be based on
the student’s overall performance on assessment tasks designated for the unit.
The achievement of an outcome means:
(a) The work meets the required standard as described in the outcomes:
The student needs to demonstrate knowledge and skills as defined by the subject teacher
through the assessment task (Units 1 – 4).
(b) The work is submitted on time:
The work will mainly take the form of work done in class where attendance for the assessment
task and completion of the task in the time allocated will be necessary to fulfill the requirement.
(c) Work is clearly the student’s own:
Students must observe and schools must apply the following rules for authentication of
School-based Assessment:
1. A student must ensure that all unacknowledged work submitted for assessment is genuinely
their own.
2. A student must acknowledge all resources used, including:
- text, websites and source material
- name and status of any person who provided assistance and the type of assistance provided.
3. A student must not receive undue assistance from another person in the preparation and
submission of work.
3 | VCE
St Leonard’s
Procedures
College
Manual for Student 20194. Acceptable levels of assistance include:
- the incorporation of ideas or material derived from other sources (for example by reading,
viewing or note taking), but which have been transformed by the student and used in a new
context
- prompting and general advice from another person or source, which leads to refinements and/or
self-correction.
5. Unacceptable forms of assistance include:
- use of, or copying, another person’s work or other resources without acknowledgement
- corrections or improvements made or dictated by another person.
6. A student must not submit the same piece of work for assessment in more than one study, or
more than once within a study.
7. A student must not circulate or publish written work that is being submitted for assessment in a
study, in the year of enrolment.
8. A student must not knowingly assist another student in a breach of rules.
(d) Attendance rules have been adhered to:
The Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority advises that students need to attend sufficient
class time to undertake the course work. 100% attendance is the ideal, but may not be possible for a
number of acceptable reasons.
The St Leonard’s policy provides that a student must attend at least 80% of scheduled classes to
meet the attendance rules and so be eligible for an S (satisfactory completion).
The penalty for breach of the attendance rules will be an N for the Unit. Students should note that N
for a Unit 3/4 will mean that the study scores are not counted by VTAC towards the ATAR, and that
an N for English in either Unit 3 or 4 will mean that no ATAR score will calculated by VTAC.
If illness or other circumstances have caused a breach of the rules, the VCE Coordinator, the
Head of Year and the subject teacher concerned will consider each case on its merits. Students
in this category must see Ms Webb and make application for exemption (due to illness or other
circumstance) from our attendance requirements.
IT IS THEREFORE IMPORTANT THAT ALL ABSENCES ARE REPORTED AND EXPLAINED TO THE
SCHOOL AS THEY OCCUR. NOTE THAT SOME REASONS DO NOT QUALIFY FOR EXEMPTION
TO THE RULES (eg. absence period 1 because the student slept in!)
2.2 Computer use – Care in use of computers
A student who uses a computer to produce work for assessment is responsible for ensuring
that:
• there is an alternative system available for producing assessable work in case of
computer or printer malfunction or unavailability
• hard copies of the work in progress are produced regularly
• each time changes are made, the work is saved as a backup file, which should not be
stored with the computer.
Computer failure close to the submission date will not be a reason for granting extensions.
In this case a handwritten copy of the AT or SAT or the last final draft will be submitted as the
finished product.
St Leonard’s College | 42.3 Deadlines and Submission of Work
Subject teachers will give students a list of due dates for all ATs and SATs at the beginning of the
year.
It is imperative that students implement study plans to meet all deadlines. If a student appears to
be falling behind, the College will notify parents.
All deadlines imposed by subject teachers are to be seen as definite. Many VCE deadlines are
imposed by the VCAA and are not negotiable. This especially applies to the end of semester dates.
ALL UNITS 3 and 4 DEADLINES ARE FIXED AND CANNOT BE NEGOTIATED.
If an extension is needed beyond the VCAA deadline for illness or other special provision written
applications must be made - see Item No. 3.4.1
ATs and SATs:
Your teacher will provide you with a Planning Document that includes a list of the dates of the
Coursework assessments in each subject. ATs will normally be completed within class time and
submitted to your individual subject teacher. If you are unable to attend because of illness you must
follow the procedures outlined in this manual on page 12. Some ATs (for example: English AT 3.1.1
– Response to a text) will be completed under test conditions with all students completing the task
at exactly the same time. The supervising teachers will then collect the Assessment Tasks. This may
occur in the designated period 5 times (usually on Tuesday) or during the common private study
each week Thursday 1, or at appropriate and suitable times in the school day. This usually applies to
Units 3 and 4 assessments; most Units 1 and 2 assessments will take place in class time. You will be
advised early in term 1 of these arrangements.
ANY ADDITIONAL GENERAL CLASSWORK
Class work can only be submitted in the following ways:
1. In class to the subject teacher (the preferred way)
2. Using schoolbox by the due date. Work is also checked for plagiarism when submitted this way.
3. In extreme cases, to the Head of Year or VCE Office.
Work must NEVER be submitted in the following ways:
1. At the Staff Room door.
1. At the Senior School Office.
1. To your teacher ‘on the run’.
1. To a teacher other than your subject teacher.
2. By a person other than yourself.
2.4 Presentation of work
The manner in which students present their work is very important. Many studies have special
presentation requirements for particular tasks. Your teacher will make clear exactly what these
requirements are and students need to check these with individual subject teachers.
All Assessment Tasks will include a standard VCE Coursework Assessment front sheet for each
study. On it will be the following information:
• Name
• VCE Study
• Unit
5 | VCE
St Leonard’s
Procedures
College
Manual for Student 2019• Name of Task
• Time allowed for the Task
• Assessment criteria for the Task
All assessed coursework should be carefully filed and kept intact until December 2019. It is your
responsibility to ensure it is not lost. Please note any grades or scores given for coursework during
the year are subject to statistical moderation by the VCAA in November.
2.5 Authenticity of all VCE work
Students must understand that it is their responsibility to ensure that all submitted work is their
own. As there is an increasing use of the Internet for reference, so too has the incidence of
plagiarism increased. If unsure, students are advised to consult their teacher for clarification before
submission and therefore avoid what could be a difficult situation of having to justify their work at a
formal interview with the subject teacher and the VCE Coordinator.
Before any assessment task, the conditions under which the task will be conducted will be
communicated to the students by the subject teacher. It is the student’s responsibility to understand
and satisfy these conditions. Ignorance is not an excuse, so if in doubt about the conditions, clarify
them with the teacher before the task is completed. A formal interview with the subject teacher and
the VCE coordinator will be held if there is any concern about a possible breach of rules.
Any Assessment Task work completed outside the direct supervision of the class teacher will require
a student to sign an authentication record verifying their work is their own.
In the case of SATs, students should make sure that they have a copy of all drafts and work in
progress and that their teachers have a record of their consultations.
Previously unseen final drafts presented on the deadline date cannot be checked for authenticity
and will, therefore, not be accepted.
Students may receive written assistance on improving only one of their drafts. You can, of course,
consult in person with your teacher on a number of occasions throughout the progress of the work.
2.6 Approved materials and equipment
There are particular material requirements in some subjects that students must adhere to in all
assessments for Units 1 – 4. They are:
English Dictionaries:
• “Dictionaries must not contain any highlighting, annotation or tabs not part of the original
publication.
• Electronic dictionaries are not permitted in any examination.
• A dictionary that contains a thesaurus in the same volume is not permitted in any examination.
• An English and/or bilingual printed dictionary may be used by students in English/English
(EAL- English as an Additional Language) and the GAT.
• Dictionaries may be consulted during reading time and throughout the examinations.
Chemistry, Computing: Software Development and Physics. A scientific calculator only may be
used.
Further Mathematics Examination 1 and Examination 2, Math Methods (CAS) Examination 2 and
Specialist Mathematics Examination 2. One approved graphics or CAS calculator or CAS Software
and, if desired, one Scientific calculator approved by the VCAA.
St Leonard’s College | 6LOTE Examinations: Written component
“A printed monolingual and/or bilingual dictionary in one or two separate volumes”.
Note: The dictionary must not contain any highlighting or annotation or tabs not part of the original
publication. A thesaurus is not permitted. Electronic dictionaries are not permitted.”
In subjects where reference notes are allowed the relevant subject teachers will provide the details
(Physics and Mathematics).
3. Failure to Meet Satisfactory
Completion Requirements
3.1 Not Satisfactory Completion
Satisfactory VCE unit result
The student receives an S for a unit if the teacher determines that the following requirements are
achieved. A student must:
• produce work that demonstrates achievement of the outcomes
• submit work that is clearly their own
• observe the rules of the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA) and the school.
(School rules may include, for example, attendance or submission of work policies).
Not satisfactory VCE unit result
The student receives an N for the unit when one or more of the requirements listed in the list above is not
achieved:
• The work does not demonstrate achievement of the outcomes.
• The student has failed to meet a school deadline for the assessment task, including if an
extension of time has been granted for any reason, including Special Provision.
• The work cannot be authenticated.
• There has been a substantial breach of rules.
3.2 St Leonard’s College Redemption policy
1. Students who do not submit assessment tasks at the published time and who have not
successfully applied for extension of time (documentation required) will be given a provisional
‘N’ for the outcome. Likewise for work that cannot be authenticated. The task will not be graded
(ie 0-zero) and that grade will remain permanently.
2. Units 3 and 4 students will be given one opportunity to redeem the N to S, in that they can
attend a redemption session no later than one week after the assessment task. This must be
organised through the VCE Coordinator. Units 1 and 2 students will be required to redeem
the ‘N’ at a time organised by the teacher or through the VCE office (it may be after school on
Tuesday or Friday or in study spares). Any Unit 1 and 2 task should be redeemed before the next
assessment task in the unit. The original grade achieved will be used for reporting purposes and
if the N is redeemed, an S result will also be reported.
3. A modified task may need to be set by the subject teacher to facilitate the redemption. Students
need only to demonstrate that they have sufficient knowledge and skills associated with the
outcome.
4. If the required standard is not achieved on this second attempt, the VCE Coordinator, in
consultation with the subject teacher, will consider what action needs to be taken. It is likely the
N will become permanent if the outcome is not passes twice.
7 | VCE
St Leonard’s
Procedures
College
Manual for Student 20195. If this redemption session is not attended at the correct time and there has been no explanation
offered before the session, the student may receive a permanent ‘N’ for the Unit.
3.3 Subject change or withdrawal
The subjects chosen at the end of the previous year have been selected in conjunction with subject
teachers, parents and the Careers Counsellor, often with Post Secondary considerations clearly in
mind. Hence a change of that carefully chosen program needs consultation with all these people.
Students experiencing difficulty with any study should discuss this with the subject teacher in the
first instance. Students wishing to consider such a change should seek advice from
Ms Tattersall. Any student who wishes to change a subject should complete the appropriate form
after speaking with Ms Tattersall and their subject teacher.
Where assessment tasks have already been completed in the new subject the student will:
1. Be counselled about the implications of that change.
2. Asked to complete the missed assessment tasks, particularly if they are important in final
assessments or exams and satisfactorily completing the unit.
3. If the change of subject is deemed too late to catch up, students will not be enrolled in the
subject in VASS but will gain important knowledge and understanding for the subsequent unit by
their attendance and participation in class.
If a subject change is deemed the most appropriate action, it is recommended that students do not
change subjects after early February.
The final date for a student to withdraw from subjects and not receive an N is set by the VCAA, and
cannot be altered. Compassionate withdrawal is possible after this date, see
Ms Webb for details.
No change of subject or withdrawal from a subject will be effective until the student has obtained the
properly signed form to that effect and a new timetable is issued. This applies both to changes from
semester 1 to semester 2, which were not part of the student’s original program, as well as to those
changes (very unlikely) during a semester.
3.4 Special Provision
There are three types of Special Provision available to students completing the VCE:
1. School-based Assessment
2. Special Examination Arrangements
3. Derived Examination Score (DES).
Specific eligibility requirements apply for each type of Special Provision.
For School-based Assessment, St Leonard’s College is responsible for determining eligibility and the
nature of the provisions granted. St Leonard’s College may consult with VCAA if they are unsure
about appropriate arrangements. The school’s policies and procedures are clearly documented and
communicated to students. For Special Examination Arrangements and DES applications, the VCAA
is responsible for determining eligibility and for granting approval.
The Purpose of Special Provision
Special Provision provides students in defined circumstances with the opportunity to participate
St Leonard’s College | 8in and complete their senior secondary studies. Although there is no limit on the period of time
allowed for a student to achieve the VCE, the provisions available seek to help a student complete
the requirements in a timeframe comparable to that of their peers.
Eligibility for Special Provision
Students may be eligible for Special Provision if, at any time, they are adversely affected in a significant
way by:
• an acute or chronic illness (physical or psychological)
• factors relating to personal circumstance
• an impairment or disability, including learning disorders.
These circumstances do not include matters or situations of the student’s own choosing, such as
involvement in social or sporting activities or school events.
Prolonged absence from school or study is not in itself grounds for Special Provision; however,
provisions are available to students experiencing severe hardship that may result in prolonged absence.
Students granted Special Provision must still complete all schoolwork related to satisfactory completion
of the outcomes of a VCE or VCAL unit. Students absent from school for prolonged periods must still
comply with the school’s authentication procedures to demonstrate that they have completed the
work and that the work is their own.
Students who are eligible for integration funding may not necessarily meet the eligibility criteria for
Special Provision in the VCE.
3.4.1 School-based assessment
Students with documented disabilities (permanent or temporary) may apply for a variation to the
conditions for an AT in one or more subjects. Temporary variations may be granted by your Head of
Year or subject teacher (in consultation with the VCE Coordinator), but for long-term or permanent
variations, apply to the VCE Coordinator. If a variation is granted, the Head of Year, the class teacher
and the student will decide the appropriate variation to the conditions and/or the time of the task.
The VCAA’s guidelines for these variations are adhered to.
It is expected that the variations to the conditions will allow the student to fully demonstrate their
knowledge and understanding of the coursework.
This process will be monitored and guided by the VCE Coordinator.
3.4.2 Units 1 and 2 Examinations
As these are internal assessments, the school can use its discretion to defer or cancel or alter exams
depending on the circumstances (illness, bereavement, etc). Students are advised to contact their
Head of Year beforehand if they cannot attend the exams for any reason. Any special arrangements
(eg extra time, computer use, etc) must be formally arranged through the VCE Coordinator.
3.4.3 Units 3 and 4 Examinations and GAT
Special arrangements may be made to meet the needs of students who have documented
disabilities or illnesses that would affect their performance in an examination. Special arrangements
require the approval of the VCAA and applications must be made at the beginning of each year that
a Unit 3 and 4 subject is being undertaken and be accompanied by recent supporting medical or
other specialist documentation. The school will administer recognised spelling, comprehension and
general ability tests prescribed by the VCAA; the results of which are assessed by a panel of VCAA
personnel.
9 | VCE
St Leonard’s
Procedures
College
Manual for Student 2019Emergency special arrangements (rest breaks, medication, extra time, etc) are sometimes required at
the time of the exams and these also need approval of the VCAA and appropriate documentation.
Apply to the VCE Coordinator if you believe you would be eligible for any of these special
arrangements.
3.4.4 Coursework Assessment Tasks in Units 1 - 4
If you become ill and are unable to attend class for an assessment task you must contact your
teacher (in the case of Units 1 and 2) or Ms Webb (Units 3 and 4) to make arrangements prior to
the time of the task if possible. If ill on the day of the task, a phone call must be made or an email
sent to the Senior School Office and mention made that an Assessment Task is being missed and a
Doctor’s appointment made. If ill during the day of a task, then the Health Centre sister can assess
your illness and liaise with the relevant staff member.
Documentary evidence will be required for Units 3 and 4 (Doctor’s certificate, etc) to substantiate
your claim, and may be required for Units 1 and 2. You will then be able to complete an alternate
task at a later date, usually on Friday afterschool. If there are a number of assessments to be
completed, arrangements to do so may be made at some other suitable time in the school day.
Please note:
• Students going on an overseas trips, going on early holidays, or making private appointments
during school time are ineligible for Special Provisions for Assessment Tasks in all Units.
• Assessment Tasks take priority over all school commitments. However, if you feel a school
commitment is too important to miss, eg excursion, performance, etc., you must discuss the
possibility of rescheduling the task with Ms Webb (for Units 3 and 4) or your subject teacher
(for Units 1 and 2) BEFORE the task is undertaken.
• Rescheduling of tasks will not be allowed if the student is not prepared for the task as a result of
their time spent in their responsibility as a school leader, or their participation in a school event.
• To be valid, Doctor’s Certificates must be issued on the day of the illness, and should
describe the nature of the illness. This detail could become an important part of supporting
documentation if further special consideration is sought during or at the end of the year for an
ongoing medical problem.
• The Doctor providing the certificate cannot be a member of the student’s family.
• NO RETROSPECTIVE CERTIFICATES WILL BE ACCEPTED FOR SHORT TERM ILLNESSES,
AND NO RETROSPECTIVE ARRANGEMENTS CAN BE MADE.
Students receive a calendar appointment confirming where and when the task will be completed,
from the VCE Office, as soon as possible after the Doctor’s Certificate is submitted.
3.4.5 Derived examination scores - Units 3 and 4
The derived examination score (DES) is calculated by the VCAA if a student is deemed eligible by
demonstrating that immediately prior to or during a final exam, he/she has suffered illness, personal
trauma or other circumstances which have affected his/her performance. All applications must
be made through Ms Webb, and ensure she is aware of any problems at the time of the exams.
Supporting evidence is required.
St Leonard’s College | 103.5 Students’ Right of Appeal
Students have the right of appeal to the school on the school’s decisions about:
• Non-satisfactory completion of a unit
• Special provision
• A breach of rules (eg authentication).
Students have the right of appeal to the VCAA on school decisions about:
A breach of rules.
There is no appeal to the VCAA on:
• The assessment of School-assessed Coursework and School-assessed Tasks based on student or
parent disagreement with the assessment provided by the teacher(s).
• The school’s decision to award an N for a breach of attendance rules.
Students have the right of appeal to the VCAA on the VCAA’s decision about:
• Special exam arrangements (Units 3 andand 4)
• Derived Examination Scores (DES) applications.
All appeals to the school are to made in writing to the Principal, and follow the process as outlined
in the VCAA 2019 Administration Handbook. In the first instance, the student should consult the
VCE Coordinator if they wish to lodge an appeal. The VCE Coordinator can also give advice on any
appeals that the student wishes to make to the VCAA.
4. VCE VET Subjects
If a student is undertaking a VCE VET subject offered by Holmesglen or another provider, then
enrolment and results are managed by the VCE Office at St Leonard’s College.
Registered training organisations (RTO’s) have their own (but very similar) requirements for the
successful completion of these subjects, and are in constant communication with St Leonard’s
College. Any concerns will be communicated to students and where relevant, to parents.
Year 11 students who study a VET subject outside of St Leonard’s College may be granted study
spares in lieu of their VET study. In this instance, students are required to go to the library for private
study. Attendance will be monitored.
5. Private Study
Successful VCE students make good use of private study time at school. Quiet working areas for
library research are available to students.
Year 12:
The Learning Futures area is available for private study and group work. The Library also has areas
11 | VCE
St Leonard’s
Procedures
College
Manual for Student 2019set aside for yr 12’s to study. Please be aware of the impact you have on others as they study.
If you need to discuss work with your subject teacher make sure you make an appointment and
record it in your diary.
Students wishing to use specialist facilities (Theatre, KWC, computer, art/media/music/
VCD rooms) must seek permission before using these areas.
Year 11:
Private study will occur in supervised areas on Thursday period 1. Access to other working areas will
be very limited and requires signed notes.
6. Timelines
6.1 GAT and Practice Yr 12 Exams
The GAT (General Achievement Test) will establish the statistical basis on which the VCAA will
confirm (or sample) school assessed results. It is also used in the calculation of some subject
results. VCAA requires all students enrolled in Units 3 and 4 to sit the General Achievement Test on
Wednesday 12 June 2019.
A statement of GAT results is mailed to each student with all the other VCE results, but it does not
count for tertiary selection.
The use of calculators is not permitted in the GAT.
Yr 12 VCE Internal Exams
Term 2 Week 9
Commences, Tuesday 11 June to Friday 14 June – for all Unit 3 and 4 studies.
Term 3 vacation
Commences, Monday 30 September to Thursday 3 October
– all Unit 3 and 4 students are expected to attend.
Yr 11 VCE exams
Exam periods for all unit 1/2 studies are;
Semester 1 May 30 – June 6
Semester 2 November 11 – November 15
6.2 School-assessed Coursework (SAC)
6.2.1 Timelines
Your teacher will provide you with the individual dates for the School-assessed Coursework tasks in
the year’s planning document. You should use your record book to record your individual timeline
for 2019.
St Leonard’s College | 126.2.2 Assessment Sheets for ATs
Your teacher will provide you with some feedback on the assessment tasks you complete as part
of your School-assessed Coursework. You will receive an assessment sheet for each task and you
should keep this sheet with the relevant task.
Pleae note: these results may change as a result of the statistical moderation process at the end of
the year. They should only therefore be regarded as a guide.
6.3 Exam Timetable
2019 Exam Timetables for Unit 3 and 4 studies
At the end of the year, subjects with a performance or oral component are examined in the period
Monday 7 October to Sunday 3 November. Written exams occur during the period Wednesday
30 October to Wednesday 20 November, including the Monday before Melbourne Cup day. The
timetables are available on the VCAA website in May 2019, and all students will receive personal
copies in the VCAA’s publication “VCE Exams Navigator 2019” when it becomes available.
7. Assessment and Reporting
7.1 Reporting
Year 11 and 12: Continual reporting takes place on a regular basis where results and feedback about
assessment tasks takes place. Parent/Teacher/Student interviews are also scheduled twice during the
year.
Year 12: A full written report will be issued at the end of Semester 1 and 2. A final Valedictory school
certificate will be presented at Speech Night in term 4.
Year 11: Reports will be issued at the end of Units 1 and 2. Reports for Units 3 and 4 subjects will
coincide with year 12 reports.
In addition to formal interviews students and their parents may contact staff concerning student
progress at any time.
7.2 Units 3 and 4 Results
Each VCE subject at the Units 3 and 4 level has a mixture of school-assessed and external
assessment.
The School-assessed Coursework grades for the whole school’s cohort in that subject are
statistically moderated by the VCAA against the exam results obtained by the cohort of students.
For each subject you will receive a study score that is based on scores from examinations,
Coursework scores, and scores for School-assessed Tasks. It has a maximum of 50, and indicates
how a student performed in relation to all others who took the study. The following table shows the
approximate proportion of students who will achieve a Study Score higher than the stated values.
13 | VCE
St Leonard’s
Procedures
College
Manual for Student 2019Study Score Percentage of students above this position
45 2
40 9
35 26
30 53
25 78
20 93
Final study scores will be sent through the post to your home. On the same day, your ATAR rank will
be posted to your home by VTAC.
You can also access your results via your personal email from 7.00am on results day,
Friday 13 December 2019.
7.3 The VCE Certificate
The minimum requirements for the award of the VCE Certificate is the satisfactory completion of at
least 16 units, where:
• 3 units are English ie Unit 1 or 2 and Unit 3 and 4
• 8 units are at the 3 and 4 level.
7.4 Australian Tertiary Admissions Rank (ATAR)
This rank (from 0.00 to 99.95) is calculated by VTAC on the basis of your scaled study scores. Note:
Study Scores are scaled by VTAC solely for the purpose of calculating the ATAR. The VCAA does
not scale them. It indicates your percentile ranking. VTAC uses the scaled scores gained in English,
the scores in the next best three subjects and 10% of any fifth or sixth subject’s score to calculate
the ATAR. There are some restrictions on the combinations of subjects that can contribute to the
ATAR. All VCE subjects and the VCE VET subjects offered by St Leonard’s College can contribute to
the ATAR. You may need to see the Careers Counsellor, Ms Tattersall, for advice on changing your
tertiary preferences before Christmas. Please make an appointment if in doubt.
Some courses may request interviews during October - January, so you should ensure that there is
someone at home to receive phone calls and receive your mail. Details of courses are provided in
the VTAC guide.
First round offers will be sent to your home in early 2020 and are published in The Age and
The Herald Sun.
8. Resource Hints
8.1 Finding relevant material using the Cornish Library
The Cornish Library has extensive electronic and print resources to support your VCE studies.
8.1.1 Getting started
To access the Cornish Library: stleonardscollege.libguides.com/crcpage/vce
• Login to the STL link
• Click on Learning
• Click on VCE
• Select Cornish Library
St Leonard’s College | 14This is a one-stop shop to the library catalogue, eResources, subject/topic pages, information about
citation and plagiarism, internet searching and useful websites.
When you do not know much about a topic, it is acceptable to use a site such as Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page to gather basic knowledge about a topic. There are often useful
sites at the bottom of an entry for you to “cherry pick”.
8.1.2 eResources
The Databases and authoritative websites page is located under the eResources tab of the Cornish
Library page stleonardscollege.libguides.com/c.php?g=309386andp=3415557. It contains full text
authoritative information useful for your research task sourced from newspapers, journals, academic
publications, reference sources, videos and podcasts.
Current affairs
• Spinney Press
• Echo Online
• Global Issues in Context
• Newsbank
• New Internationalist
• Foreign Affairs
General
• Academic OneFile
• Academic Journals
• Proquest
• The Monthly
• Google Scholar
• JStor
• World Book Online
• Weblinks
• State Library of Victoria
• Trove: National Library of Australia
History
• Great Empires of the Past
• Churchill Archive for Schools
• History Today
• World History in Context
Science
• Australasian Science eJournal
• New Scientist
• Science Online
• Habitat
Literature
• Readplus
• Bloom’s Literary Reference Online
Philosophy
• LibriVox
15 | VCE
St Leonard’s
Procedures
College
Manual for Student 20198.1.3 Internet searching
When searching the Internet using a search engine such as Google, limit your search by using the
following techniques.
Looking for: What to type in Google
A specific type of domain : country Site: au
A specific type of domain:
Site: org; Site: net; Site: edu
organisation, network, education
To remove a particular word: use the -
Nuclear accidents - Chernobyl
symbol
An exact phrase: use quotation marks “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times”
Use Google search tools and Google Limit by country, time, videos, news, blogs,
More
8.2 Compiling a reference list or bibliography
The College preferred citation style is APA v6. This is an author date style. For guidance on how to
use this style go to the Citation page: stleonardscollege.libguides.com/crcpage/citation
The purpose of a bibliography or reference list is to stop plagiarism i.e. using someone else’s ideas
without any acknowledgement.
The best way to avoid committing plagiarism is to:
• Correctly cite sources of information you have used to create your work.
• Demonstrate your understanding of other works by paraphrasing that information.
The terms bibliography and reference list are used in a number of different ways. For the purpose
of this guide a reference list is an alphabetical list of sources which have been referred to or cited
in a piece of work, such as an assignment, project or essay. Sources can include books, magazines,
newspapers, CD-ROMs, Internet and interviews. A bibliography includes, in addition to the items
cited, any other resources that were consulted during the development of the piece. The reference
list or bibliography acknowledges all the resources used in the work and allows readers to consult
these resources if needed.
Abbreviations
Listed below are some abbreviations commonly used in citations:
c. circa (about, n.d. no date
approximately) n.p. no place
ch. chapter p., pp. page(s)
comp., comps compiler(s) pt, pts part(s)
ed. or eds editor(s) rev. revised
edn edition ser. series
et al. and others suppl. supplement
(from Latin et alii)
trans. translator
ill., ills illustrator(s)
vol., vols volume(s)
no. number
St Leonard’s College | 16You can also read
