Endorsed Programs and the WACE

TO ACHIEVE AWESTERN AUSTRALIAN CERTIFICATE OF EDUCATION(WACE)2016 AND BEYOND

2014/14453 2014 School Curriculum and Standards Authority 1Complete a Literacy and Numeracy Assessment to demonstrate a minimum standard based on skills regarded as essential for individuals to meet the demands of everyday life and work in a knowledge-based economy.Complete a minimum of four Year 12 ATAR courses including the external examination (i.e. be eligible for an ATAR) or complete a Certificate II or higher. Complete two Year 11 English units and a pair of Year 12 English units.Complete at least one pair of units from a Year 12 List A (arts/languages/social sciences) course and one pair of units from a Year 12 List B course (mathematics/sciences/technologies).

Complete at least 20 units (or equivalents) including a minimum of 10 Year 12 units.Achieve a minimum of 14 C grades in Year 11 and Year 12 units (or equivalents) including at least 6 C grades in Year 12 units (or equivalents).

If students do not meet the literacy and numeracy standard by the time they exit secondary school, they can apply to the Authority to re-sit the assessment.

All students (whether they have achieved the WACE or not) will receive a Western Australian Statement of Student Achievement a record of all courses and or programs completed.

To achieve a WACE students must:This slide outlines what a student needs to achieve in order to be awarded a WACE in 2016 and beyond.

DEFINITION of completion:A course unit is completed when a grade is assigned. To be assigned a grade, a student must have had the opportunity to complete the structured education program and the assessment program for the course unit (unless the school accepts that there are exceptional and justifiable circumstances). If there is an examination or an externally set task for the pair of units, the student must also make a genuine attempt in that examination or externally set task for the grade to count towards the C grade requirement.

2What does this mean?To achieve a WACE from 2016 all students will need to be eligible for a university entrance rank (ATAR) or achieve a training Certificate II or higher.They will also need to demonstrate a minimum standard of literacy and numeracy. To do this they will be required to complete the Online Literacy and Numeracy Assessment (OLNA). Your child will already have sat the OLNA in March this year. Or, if they achieved Band 8 or above in their Year 9 NAPLAN tests they may not have had to sit the OLNA at all.

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4What types of courses are there?There are WACE courses across a range of subject areas.These are grouped into List A (arts/languages/social sciences) and List B (mathematics/science/technology).Its important that students have breadth and depth in their study, so they need to choose subjects from List A and List B. At least one pair of units from each List in Year 12.They must do English in Year 11 and Year 12.Students will undertake a minimum of 10 courses across Years 11 and 12 (typically 6 in Year 11 and a minimum of 5 in Year 12).

5What types of courses are there?ATAR courses for students who are aiming to go to university and will need to sit an external exam which will get them an ATAR.General courses for students aiming to enter further training or the workforce straight from school. These are not examined.Foundation courses for those students who need extra support to meet the literacy and numeracy standard by the end of Year 12.Only students who have not demonstrated the minimum achievement in the relevant components of the OLNA may enrol in Foundation courses.Students who achieve the minimum standard of literacy in Semester 2 of Year 11 or during Year 12 will be permitted to continue in Foundation English and other List A Foundation courses in Year 12.Students who achieve the minimum standard of numeracy in Semester 2 of Year 11 or during Year 12 will be permitted to enrol in Foundation Mathematics and other List B Foundation courses in Year 12.

6What types of courses are there?Preliminary courses have been developed for students who have been identified as having a learning difficulty and/or an intellectual disability.They provide a relevant option for students who:cannot access the ATAR or General course content with adjustment and/or disability provisionsrequire modified and/or independent education plans.Preliminary courses do not contribute to achievement of the WACE.VET industry specific courses have VET qualifications integrated into the course and they contribute to the Certificate II requirement for a WACE.Students who do not achieve a WACE will still receive a Western Australian Statement of Student Achievement (WASSA).

A WASSA is issued to Year 12 students who complete any study that contributes towards a WACE.

Preliminary courses are designed for students who have been identified as having a recognised disability under the Disability Discrimination Act 1992, and who meet the above criteria.

7What other programs are there?There are also Vocational Education and Training (VET) programs and Endorsed programs which contribute to WACE equivalence and address areas of learning not covered by courses.VET programs are nationally accredited and consistent with the requirements of the Australian Qualifications Framework.A wide range of endorsed programs can be delivered in a variety of settings by schools, training organisations and workplaces, universities and community organisations.Students can mix and match these options to provide the best platform to meet the requirements to achieve a WACE.8VET programsIf a student chooses not to complete the course requirements to achieve an ATAR, they will need to complete a minimum of a Certificate II in addition to their other course enrolments to achieve their WACE.Studying VET provides credit towards the number of course units students need to complete to achieve their WACE.There are limits to the number of VET programs (not VET industry specific courses) that may contribute to achievement of the WACE.Students will typically enrol in 4 or 5 additional courses to meet the WACE requirement.9VET equivalencesCompleted qualificationEquivalence (total)Credit allocation (units)1112Certificate I2 units2-Certificate II4 units22Certificate III and higher6 units24For a completed Certificate I, units of competency must have a minimum of 110 nominal hours.For a completed Certificate II, the achievement of units of competency must be a minimum of 220 hours. More substantial elective units may be required to ensure the minimum is met.For a completed Certificate I, a student is credited with two Year 11 units provided that the achievement in units of competency is equal to or greater than 110 nominal hours. Where the number of hours is less than 110 students may choose more substantial elective units within the qualification to ensure that the Certificate I meets the requirements for the full allocation of unit equivalents. Certificate I qualifications where student achievement in units of competency are less than 110 nominal hours in total will not be awarded any unit equivalence towards the WACE. For a completed Certificate II, a student is credited with two Year 11 units and two Year 12 units provided that the achievement in units of competency is equal to or greater than 220 nominal hours. Where the number of hours is less than 220 students may choose more substantial elective units within the qualification to ensure that the Certificate II meets the requirements for the full allocation of unit equivalents. A student who achieves a Certificate II qualification with units of competency that are less than 220 nominal hours in total will be able to meet the minimum Certificate II qualification requirement but the qualification will only contribute towards the WACE as two Year 11 unit equivalents.

10VET industry specific coursesContribute towards the WACE.Enable students to count their VET achievement as having met the C grade requirement and satisfy the Certificate II or higher requirement and as.

VET industry specific course structure and unit credit

VET industry specific course qualificationGeneral course unitsMeets minimum qualification requirement for WACEYr 11Yr 12Certificate IUnit 1/2Certificate IIUnit 1/2Unit 3/4Certificate IIIUnit 1/2Unit 3/4A VET industry specific course includes a full, nationally recognised AQF qualification; mandatory industry related workplace learning, and; contributes towards the WACE as a WACE General course.

Students who enrol in VETis courses can undertake further VET courses and receive additional VET credit transfer. Current training packages are used in VETis courses and are updated regularly to reflect the latest versions.

Course unit credit for VETis courses is reported as completed and as having met the C standard for each VETIS course unit.

VETis courses will no longer be identified as List A or List B and will not satisfy the breadth requirement for the WACE this is to support students being exposed to a broad general education, including study in English/the arts/languages/social sciences/mathematics/science/technology.

Changes to current arrangements include:the inclusion of additional Creative Industries qualification optionsa new Engineering VETis course.

11Endorsed programsA student can only use endorsed programs for 2 units of equivalence in Year 11 and two units in Year 12 - but this must be considered in relation to the total number of equivalences being claimed for through VET.Workplace Learning is an Authoritydeveloped endorsed program that is managed by individual schools. To complete this program, a student works in one or more real workplace/s to develop a set of transferable workplace skills. Students may accrue a maximum of two Year 11 units and two Year 12 units in Workplace Learning to contribute towards their WACE.

Students may elect to undertake additional VET programs and endorsed program units but will be limited to a maximum of eight units credit as part of the requirement to complete a minimum of 20 units over Years 11 and 12.

The Western Australian Statement of Student Achievement (WASSA) will show all endorsed programs undertaken by a student.

Some endorsed programs have zero unit equivalence. These endorsed programs are reported on the WASSA but do not contribute to the requirements of the WACE. Typically these endorsed programs have an average learning time of less than one unit equivalent.

12The courses we are offering in our school

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The programs we are offering in our school14

A Year 10 Handbook and brochure for parents is available on the Authoritys website (www.scsa.wa.edu.au). As is a copy of this PowerPoint.15NEED MORE INFORMATION?www.scsa.wa.edu.au 16