Updated 15 September 2020
The following questions relate to ‘other eligible applicants’ — applicants not currently teaching in a Queensland school, e.g. retired teachers, academics, teachers from other jurisdictions.
• When is the marking operation? If appointed, when will I be required to mark?
• When do applications close?
• When will offers be made?
• What are the roles and commitments of markers, reserve markers and lead markers?
• I’m a Queensland teacher, currently on leave from my school. Should I apply as an ‘other eligible applicant’ or a ‘practising Queensland teacher’?
• How do I start the application process?
• How do I submit an EOI?
• What information do I need to include in my EOI?
• Why do I need a QCAA Portal account?
• I’ve submitted my EOI. What happens now?
• What is Accreditation?
• Why is the application process different for practising Queensland teachers and other eligible applicants?
• I’ve completed initial training and submitted my application. What happens now?
• Are there any special ICT requirements?
• I have a relative and/or friend completing Year 12 this year, or a business relationship with a school. Do I need to declare this?
• What does marker training involve?
• How much will I be paid for marking?
• What if I need to cease my appointment prior to or during the marking operation?
• More information
When is the marking operation? If appointed, when will I be required to mark?
The external assessment marking operation will run from late October to the end of November 2020. For each subject, timeframes are determined by the 2020 external assessment timetable, the number of student responses and the estimated time it will take to mark a student response.
Marker training for a subject occurs after the external assessment for a subject has taken place.
Marking for each subject will continue until all marking is completed or until the last scheduled day of the marking operation for that subject, whichever comes first.
Markers will mark at home, using an online marking platform, after they have completed up to two days of subject-specific marker training. At-home marking will require markers to be contactable by phone or online in the marking platform from 4 pm to 9 pm. For weekend marking, markers will nominate their availability on Saturdays or Sundays closer to the time of the marking operation.
Markers may choose to mark additional hours to those they have nominated.
The QCAA will confirm the final dates for the marking operation with successfully appointed markers from the end of September.
When do applications close?
Applications for external assessment marking roles will close in October 2020. However, the application process for other eligible applicants requires an expression of interest (EOI) and initial training, before application. The QCAA encourages you to submit an expression of interest (EOI) as soon as possible.
QCAA assessors (external assessment marking)
Frequently asked questions — other eligible applicants
When will offers be made?
The QCAA will begin processing EOIs from other eligible applicants in Term 2 and make offers of appointment in September and October. Where the required number of markers and lead marker roles are filled for a subject, suitable applicants will be appointed to reserve marker roles.
What are the roles and commitments of markers, lead markers and reserve markers?
Marker and lead marker roles and commitments are detailed in the QCAA assessor (external assessment marking) position description for other eligible applicants available on the QCAA website.
Where the required number of marker and lead marker roles are filled for a subject, suitable applicants will be appointed as reserve markers. The QCAA will call on reserve markers to be trained and fill marker vacancies, which open closer to or during the marking operation. Reserve markers often participate in marking operations.
I am a Queensland teacher currently on leave from my school. Should I apply as an ‘other eligible applicant’ or a ‘practising Queensland teacher’?
If you are a teacher employed by a Queensland school, but are currently on leave (e.g. maternity, paternity, long-service, other) and still have access to your QCAA Portal account, you can apply as a practising teacher via the Assessor Jobs app, once you have successfully completed Accreditation courses 1, 3 and 7.
If you do not have portal access while on leave, contact your school’s Access Management Organisation Administrator (usually the principal’s delegate or principal at your school) to gain access. More information about the application process for practising Queensland teachers is available on QCAA website.
If you are no longer employed by a Queensland school, you will need to complete the application process for other eligible applicants.
How do I start the application process?
To start the application process for other eligible applicants, submit an EOI via the Assessor Jobs app in the QCAA Portal.
If you currently have, or have ever had, a QCAA Portal account:
• email [email protected] to gain access to this vacancy
• once you have access, log in to the QCAA Portal using your account
• submit your EOI via the Assessor Jobs app.
If you have never had a QCAA Portal account:
• create a QCAA Portal account for this vacancy
• log in to the QCAA Portal using your account
• submit your EOI via the Assessor Jobs app.
If you are a teacher in another jurisdiction, you must obtain agreement from your school principal that you will be released for training and marking during school hours, if required.
How do I submit an EOI?
To submit an EOI, you need to:
2. click on the Assessor Jobs app on the portal home page 3. click on the EOI vacancy for external assessment marking 4. complete each section of the EOI
5. review and submit the completed EOI.
The EOI will step you through each section. Drop-down options and free-text boxes will assist you to provide relevant information.
You can stop, save and return to your EOI at any time, before you click ‘submit’.
What information do I need to include in my EOI?
You need to include the following information in your EOI:
• contact details
• current QCT registration, if applicable
• relevant employment and teaching experience
• relevant QCAA experience (e.g. QCS Test marking, NAPLAN marking, panel appointments)
• other jurisdictional experience, if applicable
• subject preferences for marking.
Why do I need a QCAA Portal account?
The QCAA Portal is the secure online environment through which the QCAA manages the recruitment, selection and training of external assessment markers as well online marking. You need a QCAA Portal account to submit an EOI, complete initial training and apply to become an external assessment marker.
I’ve submitted my EOI. What happens now?
If you have sufficient relevant experience for an external assessment marking role, you will be processed as suitable for initial training: to complete a role-specific Accreditation course.
Successful trainees will be invited to apply for a marker role and complete a recruitment assessment which tests marking capacity.
What is Accreditation?
Accreditation is a program of professional learning developed by the QCAA for teachers. It supports quality assurance processes for senior assessment. Teachers are eligible to apply for QCAA assessor roles once they have successfully completed requisite courses. To be eligible for an external assessment marker role, teachers must successfully complete Course 1: Attributes of quality assessment, Course 3: Understanding and using marking guides and Course 7: External assessment marking.
As part of the application process for an external assessment marking role, other eligible
applicants must also complete Accreditation, equivalent to role-specific learning and assessment for practising teachers.
For more information, visit the Accreditation page on the QCAA website.
Why is the application process different for practising Queensland teachers and other eligible applicants?
Recruitment processes for external assessment marking contribute to ensuring fair and reliable results for Queensland students.
There are minimum eligibility requirements for practising Queensland teachers. To be eligible to apply, they need current QCT registration and must complete Accreditation Courses 1, 3 and 7.
They also need their principal’s acknowledgment that they have the capacity to undertake a marking role and will be released for training and marking activities held during school hours.
While other eligible applicants may meet some of these requirements (e.g. teaching experience and QCT registration), they are not currently employed by a Queensland school and do not require the endorsement of a principal in the Queensland system. Therefore, the application process for this group is different.
The expression of interest is used by the QCAA to review whether other eligible applicants have sufficient relevant experience for initial training. The Accreditation course tests requisite
knowledge and skills, equivalent to role-specific learning for practising teachers, from
Accreditation courses 1, 3 and 7. The recruitment assessment requires potential applicants to demonstrate base-level marking capacity.
I have successfully completed initial training and submitted my application. What happens now?
The QCAA will provide you with access to the recruitment assessment. It will test your timing and accuracy in an online marking platform, to be reviewed with your final application. If you are successful, you will be shortlisted to a subject pool and receive an offer of appointment. You will be notified by email and invited to accept your offer via the Assessor Jobs app in the QCAA Portal.
In this process, the QCAA will consider the needs of subject marker pools, as well as applicant experience and subject preferences.
Are there any special ICT requirements?
All applicants must meet the QCAA’s minimum ICT requirements on their home computers or laptops.
Minimum requirements
Platform PC Mac
Processor Intel Core i3, i5 or i7
RAM 4GB minimum
Operating system Windows 7 and above OS 10.6 and above Screen resolution • 1024 x 768 pixels or higher
• Screen size — monitor: 17 inches
• Screen size — laptop: 15 inches Internet browsers • Internet Explorer — version 11
• Mozilla Firefox — version 41
• Google Chrome — version 45
• Safari — version 9
• Mozilla Firefox — version 41
• Google Chrome — version 45 Broadband
connection ADSL 2/NBN
I have a relative and/or friend completing Year 12 this year, or a business relationship with a school. Do I need to declare this?
Yes. If you are a successful applicant, you will need to complete a declaration of relationships form when you receive an offer of appointment. A link to this form will be provided with your offer in the Assessor Jobs app. Applicants will not be appointed until they complete this form and it is processed by the QCAA.
You will not be precluded from appointment if you have a relationship to declare. This process simply allows the QCAA to manage the marking operation, to ensure you do not mark those scripts.
What will marker training involve?
All marker training will be subject-specific. It will focus on the marking process, the online marking platform and how to use the external assessment marking guide. Markers will have the
opportunity to practise marking and receive feedback and assistance. Lead markers will also receive role-specific training. Completion of all training is compulsory.
How much will I be paid for marking?
Markers will be paid an hourly rate based on their appointed role for training and a subject-piece rate when marking. See the QCAA assessor (external assessment marking) position description for other eligible applicants on the QCAA website for more information.
What if I need to cease my appointment prior to or during the marking operation?
If you have been appointed to an external assessment marker role, but unforeseen circumstances prevent you from participating in the marking operation:
• before the marking operation commences — please contact the QCAA at [email protected]
• during the marking operation — information and contact details will be provided closer to the marking operation, including who to contact when reporting an unexpected absence for a day or days.
More information
If you would like more information, please:
• view the QCAA assessor (external assessment marking) position description for other eligible applicants on the QCAA website
• contact the QCAA at [email protected].
