Have you ever wondered how your VCE exams are marked? At ACED, our Revision Lectures are presented by experienced VCAA Assessors, so read on to find out what happens behind the scenes.
VCAA’s assessment processes are very rigorous. Every question is marked by at least two independent Assessors, and when there is a discrepancy between the two, it will proceed to a third and possibly more markers (eventually to be marked by the Chief Assessor panel for the subject).
All VCAA Assessors undergo a full day’s training for a specific exam paper to ensure that marking is valid and consistent. At the training day, the Assessment Guide which details marking criteria for every question (including all valid answers and even common mistakes to look out for) is presented and discussed. Dozens of sample scripts are then reviewed, and any ambiguities arising are resolved (which often includes updates to the marking schemes), before the Assessors are allowed to begin marking.
Many VCE subjects’ exams are marked online (they are scanned and distributed via an online portal to VCE exam markers), which means that two independent Assessors would mark your response to question 1 (for example), then a different set of two Assessors would mark question 2, and so on, until the paper is completely marked. This means that your single exam paper may be marked by dozens of independent markers!
Furthermore, there are also ‘control scripts’ (sample student responses that have already been marked by the Chief Assessor Panel which are blind to the markers until they have submitted their marks) that Assessors need to mark to ensure they are marking consistently. This means that every Assessor must carefully read through and judge the validity of every student’s response.
If you think your exam still has been marked unfairly, read our post on reviewing and appealing your exam grades.
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ACED wishes you the best VCE exam success!
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