New South Wales Vice-Chancellors' Conference
Technical Committee on Scaling
Report on the Scaling of the 1992 New South Wales
Higher School Certificate
Preface
This report has been prepared for the guidance of teachers, parents, senior secondary school students and other Higher School Certificate candidates.
The calculation of the tertiary entrance rank, which is based on an aggregate of scaled HSC marks, is carried out by the University of Sydney for purposes of tertiary selection.
The scaling procedure developed by the University of Sydney may be regarded as a continuation of the scaled aggregate previously calculated by the Board of Studies (hereafter referred to as the Board). The Board co-operates with all tertiary institutions by making available its standardised examination marks and school assessment marks.
Application of the scaling procedure is controlled by a Technical Committee established under the auspices of the NSW Vice-Chancellors* Conference, comprising representatives of institutions which use the tertiary entrance rank.
The report on the 1992 Higher School Certificate differs from previous reports in that, in addition to scaled means and standard deviations, some information on the distribution of scaled marks in each subject is also provided.
The Report should be read in conjunction with the Board's reports on and examination statistics for the various HSC examinations.
Professor G Cooney Chairperson
Technical Committee on Scaling
March 1993
THE N.S.W. HIGHER SCHOOL CERTIFICATE
Since the 1989 HSC examination, the Board has provided each candidate with two results for each course:
• a standardised examination mark (standardised for each 2-unit course to a mean of 60 and a standard deviation of 12.5). Results in related 3- and 4-unit courses are not standardised but determined in relation to performance in common papers.
• a moderated school assessment.
From the 1990 HSC candidates have received a Tertiary Entrance Rank (TER) on a separate advice slip but in the same envelope as their HSC results.
HSC/TER and Tertiary Selection
The TER is calculated by the University of Sydney on behalf of all tertiary institutions in NSW and the ACT on the basis of the best 10 units of courses that are accepted for undergraduate admission. Students who did not present at least 10 units were not eligible for a TER. The TER uses a scale of 1 to 100 with intervals of 0.05, and is calculated from the aggregates of the scaled marks of the best 10 units.
SCALING OF MARKS - AN OVERVIEW What is Scaling?
Scaling determines the standard of performance of a course candidature and establishes an order of merit of course candidatures.
For the candidature of each examination paper the scores obtained in all courses attempted by that group of candidates are used to produce an average unit score.
The relative merit of each candidature (measured by its performance in all courses attempted) is thus established, leading to the determination of weightings for each paper. Candidates' scores are then adjusted in line with these weightings without the order of merit within any course being changed.
The maximum scaled score obtainable is 50 out of 50 for each unit.
The scaling method - in brief
The processing of the Higher School Certificate is shown schematically in Figure 1.
For each candidate, the Board's standardised examination mark and the moderated school assessment for each paper completed are averaged to produce a course score. The scores on each 2-unit paper are then standardised (using a mean of 50). Where no school assessment is available the examination mark only is used.
The scaling process determines weightings for courses according to the quality of their candidatures, and the scores for each course are adjusted accordingly.
The quality of a candidature is defined as the average academic performance of the candidature, where the academic performance of a candidate is the average performance in all courses attempted. Thus while the order of merit within each course is not affected by the scaling process the scaled scores will in most cases be different from the original scores.
With some exceptions, for modern languages other than French and German the final adjusted scores are produced by allocating to them a mean which is equal to the average of the means of the scaled French and German scores in the corresponding paper. The exceptions are those languages whose scaled means exceed the average of the French and German means. For modern languages or other courses with few candidates, marks awarded by the Board are used rather than scaled scores.
The best ten scaled unit scores are then selected and added together to produce a scaled aggregate (out of 500) which is then used to calculate the TER. Because scaled scores differ from unsealed scores the order of merit by the scaled aggregate will in most cases differ from that obtained by adding the Board's marks for the best ten units.
To produce the TER, students are ranked on the basis of the aggregate and grouped according to the percentiles of the aggregate distribution. A student with a TER of 80.00, for example, would be in the top 20% of the HSC candidature.
Percentiles are calculated at intervals of 0.05 to provide the discrimination
required by tertiary institutions. In the 1992 examination the total candidature
was approximately 60,000 so that, on average, there are about 30 students on
each TER.
The procedure for producing, from the Board reported examination mark and moderated school assessment per unit, a final adjusted mark per unit, is intended to continue the spirit and technical essence of the HSC "iterative scaling" procedure used by the Board in years prior to 1986. It thus aims in particular to give, overall, best-10 unit aggregates comparable to those of previous years. Inherent in the decision to continue such a system was the fact that when unit marks are to be aggregated over various subjects, it is insufficient for the same standardisation (say mean 60, standard deviation 12.5 for students taking only a 2-unit course in a particular subject) to apply for all.
Different courses have different quality candidatures with some courses being attempted by students of higher than average ability. When the marks in all subjects are standardised to the same mean, students taking subjects with high quality candidatures are disadvantaged in the calculation of their selection aggregates. Scaling attempts to remove this disadvantage by having the average per-unit mark for a course reflecting the quality of the course candidature.
The scaled aggregates used from 1976 are regarded by all Universities as valid and reliable for selection purposes. A further advantage of their use for selection is that it affords senior school students some freedom of choice in HSC subjects, which is enhanced when universities specify assumed knowledge rather than prerequisites for entry to degree programs.
The procedure differs from the earlier Board procedure in some respects. First, the Board "iterative scaling" procedure operated on examination marks only;
moderated school estimates were taken into account later. The new system operates on the average of the Board-reported examination mark and the school assessment. Secondly, after "iterative scaling" of examination marks, the Board used Examination Committees to compensate for phenomena such as "overflow"
at the top end beyond the maximum of 50 marks per unit. The current system uses an automatic adjustment procedure to produce the final adjusted marks to achieve similar aims.
Finally, the former Board "iterative scaling" technology itself has been modified to take into account several minor improvements in principle, arising out of criticisms of the system hitherto used by the Board. Additionally it has been recognized that the "iterative" nature of the former procedure was a methodological device dictated by circumstances, which could be (and has been) replaced by a more convenient one-step solution procedure of a corresponding large linear equation system. Theoretical comparisons of the two systems in respect of the points made in this paragraph are available from the Registrar, University of Sydney, as the paper:
E. Seneta (1984) "A Technical Note on the Proposed University of Sydney Scaling System."
Practical comparisons on actual data showed very comparable final results between the two systems.
4
NOTES ON THE SCALING PROCESS
1 All HSC candidates in the State presenting for at least 10 Board units are used to determine the scaling parameters.
2. All candidates who present at least 10 units of approved courses (including the required 2 units of English) receive a TER, awarded on the basis of their 'best 10' scaled units, provided at most two of these units are 'Category B' courses (see final note at the end of this report). Candidates with fewer than 8 units of 'Category A' courses receive a TER calculated on the basis of their eligible units - necessarily less than 10 in such cases.
3. There are no predetermined "hard" or "soft" options among courses; the
"weighting" for any course is calculated annually from a consideration of the quality of its candidature. Quality and hence the weightings can, and do, change from year to year, and certainly over longer periods.
4. All candidates (whether 2 unit or 3 unit) doing a given paper are taken together (as hitherto, but not currently, by the Board): the scaling is not carried out using just the 21) candidatures on 2U/3U common papers.
5. The scaling process does not alter the order of merit in any given course.
6. As a result of the scaling process, a per unit mark of 50 given by the Board remains 50; a mark close to 50 remains close to 50; a low mark (less than 10) stays low.
7. The average of the examination mark and the school assessment (where available) is used in the scaling process. It is used also by all NSW tertiary institutions, however their entry scores are calculated.
8. TERs for entry to degree programs are not predetermined. The cut-offs are
the end product of a supply and demand dynamic.
FIGURE 1
Processing of 1992 Higher School Certificate Results by The University of Sydney Scaling System
FINAL EXAMINATION MARKS MODERATED SCHOOL (FROM BOARD) - AS REPORTED TO ASSESSMENT
CANDIDATES (FROM BOARD) - AS REPORTED TO
CANDIDATES
AVERAGE
INTERSUBJECT SCALING
3 UNIT MAPPING
AUTOMATIC END ADJUSTMENTS (EACH
PAPER)
BEST 10 AGGREGATE EACH STUDENT
CALCULATION OF THE TERTIARY ENTRANCE
RANK
6-
DISTRIBUTIONS OF SCALED MARKS
Table 1 contains a summary of the distributions of scaled marks in each paper providing information on the size of the candidature (N); the mean, standard deviation and the 90th, 75th and 50th percentiles (P90, P75, Pso respectively) of both the Board's marks (AWM) and scaled marks (SM). The percentiles are not included for papers with a candidature less than 100. Only students who were eligible for a TER, having completed ten units with no more than two units from Category B subjects, are included in this summary.
The Board's mark (AWM) is the average of the examination mark and the moderated school assessment.
When comparing the Board's marks and the scaled marks it must be remembered that the Board's marks are standardised so that the mean of the 2U candidature in a subject is 30 (on a per-unit basis) whereas the scaled marks are initially scaled to a mean of 25 (on a per-unit basis) for the total candidature of each paper.
It would therefore be expected that the scaled marks would be lower, except near the top, than the average of the Board's marks. For papers with "average"
candidatures, the difference at the middle of the distribution (near the mean) would be about 5 marks per unit.
In the case of English 2U/3U Common the total candidature was 13,383 (including both 2U and 3U students). The mean of the Board's marks was 31.3 and the scaled mean 31.4. (The mean of the Board's marks exceeded 30 because of the inclusion of 3U students.) The 90th percentile for the Board's marks was 39.5 and for the scaled marks, 41.7. The 50th percentiles were 31.3 and 31.9 respectively. The parameters indicate that the candidature of the English 2U/3U Common paper was above average as regards academic achievement.
In the case of Biology 2U the total candidature was 18,747. The mean of the Board's marks was 29.8 and the mean of scaled marks 24.0. (The mean of the Board's marks was close to 30 as Biology has no 3U candidates.) The 90th percentile for the Board's marks was 38.6 and for the scaled marks 35.7. The 50th percentiles were 30.0 and 23.9 respectively. These parameters indicate that the candidature of Biology was close to average as regards academic achievement.
1
TABLE 1: MEANS, STANDARD DEVIATIONS AND S E L E C T E D
PERCENTILES FOR INDIVIDUAL PAPERS IN THE 1992 HSC EXAMINATION.
Paper Mark N Mean SD
P90i
P75 P50
Contemporary English 2U
AWM SM
10397 30.4 17.5
6.0 f 9.5 'j.
37.7 30.5
' 34.3 23.2
30.8 J 6 . 6 English
General 2U
AWM SM
32625 30.1 24.4
6.0
8.5 35.1 j
34.0 30.0
' 30X|
24.8 J
English 2U/3U Common
AWM SM
13383 31.3 31.4
6.3 8.2
3975^.
41.7 J
35.4
37.1
:
3L9J
English 3U Additional
AWM SM
3520 34.1 35.0
6.2 8.1
42.3 45.0
38.3 41.0
34.0 35.7 Mathematics in
Practice
AWM SM
1338 30.3 12.2
6.4 9.0
38.7 25.3
34.5 16.2
30.3 9.8 Mathematics in
Society
AWM SM
19391 30.6 19.4
6.9 8.7
39.5 31.5
35.2 24.6
30.9 18.7 Mathematics
2U/3U Common
AWM SM
30298 33.4 27.4
7.9 8.6
44.1 39.3
39.7 33.8
33.4 27.0 Mathematics
3 U Additional
AWM SM
9891 39.8 34.3
5.6 6.0
45.9 41.4
44.0 38.9
40.8 35.0 Mathematics
4U Common
AWM SM
4346 45.5 41.5
3.4 4.4
48.7 46.3
47.8 44.5
46.4 42.1 Mathematics
4 U Additional
AWM SM
4345 44.5 38.1
3.6 5.4
48.3 44.6
47.0 41.8
45.1 38.5 Science 3D AWM
SM
247 30.2 30.7
6.6 9.3
39.2 42.5
33.9 36.6
30.5 32.0 Science 4U AWM
SM
808 35.0 33.2
7.7 9.4
45.1 45.1
41.2 40.9
34.9 33.5 Biology 2U AWM
SM
18747 29.8 24.0
6.8 8.8
38.6 35.7
34.2 29.7
30.0 23.9 Chemistry 2U AWM
SM
13857 30.2 29.8
7.1 9.2
39.8 41.9
34.7 36.2
30.1 30.2 Geology 2U AWM
SM
576 30.1 23.9
6.9 10.4
39.0 38.1
34.3 30.5
30.0 23.4 Physics 2U AWM
SM
12321 30.5 29.5
7.0 9.3
40.0 41.6
35.0 35.9
30.5 30.1
TABLE 1: MEANS, STANDARD DEVIATIONS AND SELECTED
PERCENTILES FOR INDIVIDUAL PAPERS IN THE 1992 HSC EXAMINATION.
Paper Mark
General AWM
Science 2U SM Science for AWM
Life 21) SM
Aboriginal AWM Studies 2U SM Ancient History AWM 2U General SM Ancient History AWM 2U/3U Common SM Ancient History AWM 3U Additional SM Business Studies AWM 2U73U Common SM Business Studies AWM 31) Additional SM Economics AWM 2U/3U Common SM Economics AWM 3U Additional SM General Studies AWM
1U SM
Geography AWM 2U/3U Common SM Geography AWM 3U Additional SM Legal Studies AWM
2U SM
Modern History AWM
P & E SM
Modern History AWM 2U/3U Common SM
N Mean SD
3459 29.8 6.7
18.8 8.9
2205 30.6 6.4
15.7 8.6
66 32.7 8.1
13.8 10.2
1519 30.2 6.7
17.5 9.3
5132 31.9 6.4
26.1 9.2
1887 34.9 5.4
30.3 7.8
5610 30.7 6.8
21.9 8.8
1 133 34.0 5.6
26.2 7.3
17181 31.9 6.8
26.9 9.2
5399 35.3 5.4
31.6 7.3
18399 30.4 6.3
23.4 9.1
14025 32.1 6.5
23.3 9.3
5246 35.1 5.5
27.6 7.8
8079 30.3 6.6
22.6 8.9
3405 30.3 6.4
18.7 8.7
10565 31.6 6.5
27.0 9.3
P90 P75 P50
38.5 30.9
34.0 23.8
29.9 18.0 38.7
27.4
34.8 20.2
30.8 14.2
38.7 30.1
34.5 22.7
30.4 16.4 39.9
38.0
36.0 32.2
32.3 26.5 42.2
41.1
38.1 35.2
34.5 29.7 39.5
33.9
35.2 27.5
30.9 21.4 41.4
36.0
37.8 30.9
33.9 25.7 40.6
39.0
36.5 33.4
32.2 27.3 42.1
40.9
39.1 36.8
35.5 31.9 38.4
35.4
34.6 29.5
30.6 23.4 40.4
36.0
36.4 29.4
32.4 23.1 42.3
38.3
39.0 33.1
35.0 27.1 38.8
34.6
34.4 28.1
30.3 22.1 38.4
30.6
34.4 23.8
30.6 18.1 40.1
39.4
36.0 33.5
31.7
27.2
TABLE 1: MEANS, STANDARD DEVIATIONS AND S E L E C T E D
PERCENTILES FOR INDIVIDUAL PAPERS IN THE 1992 HSC EXAMINATION.
Paper Mark
Modern History AWM 3U Additional SM Society & Culture AWM 2U/3U Common SM Society & Culture AWM 31) Additional SM Arabic 2UZ AWM
SM Arabic 2U/3U AWM
Common SM
Arabic 3U AWM Additional SM Bahasa Indonesia AWM Malaysia 2U/3U SM Bahasa Indonesia AWM Malaysia 3U A SM Chinese 2UZ AWM
SM
Chinese AWM
2U/3U Common SM
Chinese AWM
31) Additional SM Classical Greek AWM 2U/3U Common SM Classical Greek AWM 3U Additional SM
Croatian AWM
2 Unit SM
Czech 2U AWM
SM
Dutch 2U AWM
SM
N Mean SD
3360 35.1 6.3
32.0 9.0
3312 31.6 6.2
22.5 8.9
932 34.1 5.9
26.0 8.3
24 31.2 11.5
23.0 8.9
313 30.1 8.2
32.1 8.9
180 34.1 6.7
37.4 7.4
68 32.9 8.1
32.1 8.9
36 36.2 7.5
37.4 7.4
5 25.2 15.2
23.0 8.9
514 31.9 6.5
32.1 8.9
314 32.7 6.5
37.4 7.4
9 45.7 2.7
45.7 2.7
8 45.2 4.2
45.2 4.2
44 31.8 7.9
32.1 8.9
7 35.1 5.2
32.1 8.9
5 32.7 5.0
32.1 8.9
P90 P75 P50
43.3 43.6
39.6 38.8
35.4 32.8 39.9
34.9
35.7 28.1
31.6 21.8 41.7
37.3
38.4 32.0
33.9 25.3
41.5 43.5
36.2 38.9
29.7 32.5 43.1
46.7
39.1 43.5
33.7 37.9
40.6 36.6 32.4
43.0 38.7 33.5
40.5 36.8 33.0
45.6 42.5 38.3
TABLE 1: MEANS, STANDARD DEVIATIONS AND SELECTED
PERCENTILES FOR INDIVIDUAL PAPERS IN THE 1992 HSC EXAMINATION.
Paper Mark N Mean
French 2UZ AWM SM
540 30.4 22.1 French
2U General
AWM SM
153 30.3 25.8 French 2U/3U
Common
AWM SM
961 32.9 32.2 French
3U Additional
AWM SM
338 38.0 38.3 German 2UZ AWM
SM
198 30.5 23.9 German 2U
General
AWM SM
90 29.2
24.1 German 2U/3U
Common
AWM SM
565 32.8 32.0 German 31)
Additional
AWM SM
226 36.9 36.6 Hebrew 2U
General
AWM SM
5 7 30.9 32.6 Hebrew 2U/3U
Common
AWM SM
24 38.0
33.3 Hebrew 311
Additional
AWM SM
16 39.2
34.9 Hungarian 2U AWM
SM
15 40.1
32.1 Indonesian 2UZ AWM
SM
55 29.7
23.0 Indonesian
2U/3U Common
AWM SM
165 35.0 32.1 Indonesian 3U
Additional
AWM SM
79 40.3
37.4 Italian 2UZ AWM
SM
230 30.1 24.0
SD P90 P75 P50
6.7 8.8
39.1 34.0
34.3 27.0
30.5 21.7 8.7
9.7
41.4 38.6
36.8 32.8
30.6 25.2 7.5
9.0
43.1 43.7
37.9 38.4
33.0 32.8 6.3
7.5
46.0 47.1
42.5 43.7
38.1 39.0 9.2
9.0
42.5 36.0
37.5 30.1
30.4 22.8 8.8
9.8 7.8 8.7
43.7 43.6
38.3 38.2
32.8 32.3 6.5
7.3
45.4 45.6
41.9 42.2
37.2 37.2 8.2
8.0 7.6 9.8 6.0 7.7 5.4 8.9 9.8 8.9 9.3 8.9
46.3 43.5
42.7 39.2
35.9 32.2 6.2
7.4 7.5 10.4
39.7 37.9
34.6 30.4
30.3
23.9
TABLE 1: MEANS, STANDARD DEVIATIONS AND S E L E C T E D
PERCENTILES FOR INDIVIDUAL PAPERS IN THE 1992 HSC EXAMINATION.
Paper Mark N Mean
Italian 2U/3U Common
AWM SM
433 32.8 32.1 Italian 3U
Additional
AWM SM
175 36.8 37.4 Japanese 2UZ AWM
SM
574 30.0 23.7 Japanese 2U/3U
Common
AWM SM
561 33.1 32.1 Japanese 3U
Additional
AWM SM
212 37.5 37.4 Japanese (native
speakers) 2U
AWM SM
72 29.7
32.1 Latin 2UZ AWM
SM
7 41.3
32.4 Latin 2U/3U
Common
AWM SM
1 69 33.1 38.2 Latin 31)
Additional
AWM SM
70 37.0
41.7 Macedonian 2U AWM
SM
62 32.3
32.1 Modem Greek
2UZ
AWM 5 34.8
23.0 Modern Greek
2U/3U Common
AWM SM
516 34.3 32.1 Modern Greek
3U Additional
AWM SM
334 36.3 37.4 Polish 2U AWM
SM
41 32.3
32.1 Russian 2UZ AWM
SM
1 0 42.2 42.2 Russian 2U/3U
Common
AWM SM
2 6 41.0 32.1
SD P90 P75 P50
6.8 8.9
42.0 43.5
36.7 37.6
32.9 32.7 5.6
7.4
44.4 47.0
40.8 43.5
36.1 37.4 8.0
9.4
40.0 36.7
34.6 28.9
30.6 23.1 7.4
8.9
43.0 43.6
38.0 38.2
33.1 32.5 5.7
7.4
44.6 46.1
42.3 43.7
38.0 38.6 7.6
8.9 2.4 3.9 8.7 7.6
44.6 46.5
39.4 43.4
33.8 39.7 7.3
6.4 6.8 8.9 7.3 8.9 6.5 8.9
41.9 42.2
39.1 38.9
34.9 33.2 5.8
7.4
43.3 45.6
40.1 42.5
36.9 38.8 7.6
8.9
3.7
3.7
4.9
8.9
TABLE 1: MEANS, STANDARD DEVIATIONS AND SELECTED
PERCENTILES FOR INDIVIDUAL PAPERS IN THE 1992 HSC EXAMINATION.
Paper Mark N Mean SD
P90 P75 P50Russian 3U Additional
AWM SM
1 4 43.8 43.8
2.6 2.6 Serbian 21) AWM
SM
1 4 40.3 32.1
5.8 8.9 Slovenian AWM
SM
8 41.9
32.1
7.2 8.9 Spanish 2UZ AWM
SM
46 30.8
23.0
9.3 8.9 Spanish 2U/3U
Common
AWM SM
261 33.1 32.1
7.2 8.9
42.0 42.8
38.6 39.1
33.0 32.4 Spanish 3U
Additional
AWM SM
148 35.7 37.4
6.2 7.4
43.9 46.4
40.0 43.0
35.2 37.7 Turkish 2U/3U
Common
AWM SM
87 31.7
32.1
7.0 8.9 Turkish 3U
Additional
AWM SM
59 32.9
37.4
7.3 7.4 Ukrainian 2U AWM
SM
1 0 39.3 32.1
5.8 8.9 Vietnamese 2U AWM
SM
306 30.4 32.1
6.6 8.9
39.3 43.4
35.0 39.1
29.9 32.4 Accounts
Clerical 2U
AWM SM
396 30.0 25.0
6.7 8.0
39.4 36.5
33.6 29.2
28.9 23.3 Agriculture
2U/3U Common
AWM SM
2288 31.2 22.7
6.3 9.5
39.2 35.7
35.3 29.0
31.4 22.4 Agriculture
3U Additional
AWM SM
562 33.3 25.9
6.5 9.9
41.7 39.5
37.8 33.0
33.4 25.5 Computing
Studies 2U
AWM SM
10618 30.2 22.1
6.6 8.8
38.8 34.1
34.4 27.5
30.3 21.7 Electronics
Technology 2U
AWM SM
176 31.7 24.5
8.6 8.5
43.6 36.2
37.5 29.2
30.0 22.3 Engineering
Science 2U/3U Common
AWM SM
4009 31.3 26.7
6.6 9.1
39.9 38.8
35.5 32.7
31.6 27.0
!3
TABLE 1: MEANS, STANDARD DEVIATIONS AND S E L E C T E D
PERCENTILES FOR INDIVIDUAL PAPERS IN THE 1992 HSC EXAMINATION.
Paper Mark N Mean
Engineering Science 31) Additional
AWM SM
1059 34.1 30.6
Home Science 2U/3U Common
AWM SM
4760 32.1 21.8 Home Science
311 Additional
AWM SM
1898 34.4 25.2 Industrial
Technology 2U
AWM SM
5247 30.5 18.6 Rural
Technology
AWM SM
144 29.4 20.0 Sheep Husbandry
& Wool
Technology 2U
AWM SM
66 30.0
24.3
Small Business Practice 2U
AWM SM
25 33.0
22.3 Textiles & Design
2U/3U Common
AWM SM
2056 31.8 21.9 Textiles & Design
3U Additional
AWM SM
743 34.4 25.5 Travel Agency
Practice 2U
AWM SM
349 30.1 22.0 Classical Ballet
2U/3U Common
AWM SM
1 5 34.3 34.3 Music (Board)
Course 1
AWM SM
2276 30.3 21.5 Music (Board)
2U/3U Common
AWM SM
847 31.6 29.7 Music (Board)
3U Additional
AWM SM
394 33.2 31.6 Music (AMEB)
2U
AWM SM
72 31.2
31.1
SD P90 P75 P50
6.3 42.0 38.1 34.2
8.7 41.7 36.4 30.8
6.1 39.7 36.1 32.6
9.0 33.9 27.6 21.7
5.1 40.9 37.7 34.5
7.6 35.2 30.0 24.8
6.4 38.7 34.6 30.6
8.5 29.9 23.3 17.7
7.8 39.1 34.7 30.3
8.0 30.3 25.0 20.2
7.8 7.5 8.3 8.5
6.6 40.3 36.1 32.0
9.2 34.5 27.6 21.2
5.6 41.5 38.2 34.2
7.7 35.9 30.7 24.6
6.5 38.0 33.8 28.9
7.4 31.0 25.9 20.4
8.2 8.2
6.3 38.3 34.5 30.5
8.7 33.1 27.1 21.1
6.9 40.9 36.4 31.5
8.1 40.4 35.5 29.8
7.0 43.0 37.7 33.1
8.3 43.0 37.1 31.6
7.9
8.5
TABLE 1: MEANS, STANDARD DEVIATIONS AND SELECTED
PERCENTILES FOR INDIVIDUAL PAPERS IN THE 1992 HSC EXAMINATION.
Paper Mark N Mean SD
P90 P75 P50Music (AMEB) AWM 34 36 .0 8.2
3U SM 31 .7 9.7
Visual Arts AWM 8972 31 .8 6.4 40.3 36.0 32.0
2U/3U Common SM 22 .3 9.4 35.6 28.3 21.7
Visual Arts AWM 4362 33 .2 6.5 41.3 37.4 33.2
3U Additional SM 24 .3 9.6 37.3 30.5 23.5
P.D. Health & AWM 1514 30 .4 6.6 39.1 34.7 30.2
P.E. 2U SM 20 .0 8.3 31.2 24.8 19.0
Notes: 1. AWM = Average Weighted Mark
= Average of moderated school assessment and examination mark provided by Board of Studies.
SM = Scaled Mark.
2. Only candidates presenting for 10 or more Board units are included.
3. 4U Mathematics additional paper scaled according to the new procedure, advised in 1990, whereby the 3U/4U common paper is "restandardised" prior to scaling.
4. In the 1992 HSC the following Community Languages achieved a higher mean by scaling than by tying to French/German, and were thus given their scaled mean and S.D. as shown below:
Paper
Italian 2UZ Japanese 2UZ
No.
230 574
Mean 23.97 23.72
S.D.
10.38 9.41 5. Courses not included in the scaling process because of too few candidates:
Dutch 31) Additional, Japanese-2U, Latvian 2U, Classical Ballet 3U Additional.
6. Courses not scaled for other reasons:
Classical Greek 2U/3U, Classical Greek 31) Additional, Russian 2UZ, Russian 3U Additional, Classical Ballet 2U/3U
Final note:
The total number of candidates presenting for at least 10 Board units and eligible for a TER was 56405.
Of these, 272 candidates had their TER computed using less than 10 units after restricting units from 'Category B' courses to a maximum of 2.
The 1992 'Category B' courses were Mathematics in Practice, Science for Life, Accounts Clerical,
Electronics Technology, Small Business Practice, Travel Agency Practice, Classical Ballet 2U/3U and Classical Ballet 3U Additional. / <r
Library Digitised Collections
Author/s:
Technical Committee on Scaling Title:
Report on the Scaling of the 1992 New South Wales Higher School Certificate Date:
1993
Persistent Link:
http://hdl.handle.net/11343/115714
