[Year 12 SofDev] Scaling - renamed
David Dawson
David.Dawson at wesleycollege.net
Thu Sep 13 15:16:23 EST 2007
OK Andrew
Well explained. But we need to sell that notion to both the students
who are not selecting our subjects and the Careers Counsellors who tell
the students to do Maths and Physics.
The Universities seem to prefer these subjects so we get stuck between
a rock and a hard place and when competition gets more important in
schools - we lose - and we lose our subjects in the schools due to low
enrolments.
David
David Dawson
Head of Information Technology
Head of Learning Technologies
St.Kilda Rd Campus
Wesley College, Melbourne
Wk 8102 6340
>>> a.shortell at braemar.vic.edu.au 13/09/2007 2:57:08 pm >>>
Also
Scaling indicates how many students have taken the subject because
they
are "also rans" - people who cannot be bothered working or are
incapable
of academic achievement but who are still at school because what else
can they do and they do not want to miss out on all of the 18th
parties
(yes, I have some of them in my class)
Any subject scaled down has a larger number of theses sorts of people.
Thus if you are a moderately good academic sort of and AND you are
prepared to work AND study AND listen to the teacher AND study then
you
can actually do quite well because you float to the top because of the
others. The scaling pulls you back a little. You are still ahead!! The
more duds there are in the subject then the better you can do
RELATIVELY
. And RELATIVE is what the study score is all about.
Andrew Shortell
Braemar College
> -----Original Message-----
> From: sofdev-bounces at edulists.com.au [mailto:sofdev-
> bounces at edulists.com.au] On Behalf Of Adrian Janson
> Sent: Thursday, 13 September 2007 2:26 PM
> To: 'Year 12 Software Development Teachers' Mailing List'
> Subject: RE: [Year 12 SofDev] Scaling - renamed
>
> Hi David and all,
>
> I have to agree wholeheartedly with David's comments. This issue is
> especially vital at an academic school such as ours, where it seems
to
be
> one of the first questions students ask me.
>
> As VITTA President, I have mentioned this fact at countless industry
> meetings and forums - so can assure you that I have been lobbying
for
this
> to be changed. It doesn't seem to have had a big effect though - I
don't
> know if this year it will be any different?
>
> The whole scaling system is itself quite derisive. I can understand
why
> it
> is done, but what it does in students eyes - is in effect - to rank
the
> relative merits of subjects against each other.
>
> Cheers,
> Adrian
>
> Adrian Janson,
> VITTA President
> Director of ICT,
> Melbourne High School,
> Forrest Hill, South Yarra 3141 Australia.
> Phone: 03 9826 0711 International: +61 3 9826 0711
> Fax: 03 9826 8767 International: +61 3 9826 8767
> E-mail: janson.adrian.a at edumail.vic.gov.au
> Website: http://www.mhs.vic.edu.au
>
> IMPORTANT - This email and any attachments may be confidential. If
> received
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> damage or consequence, whether caused by the negligence of the
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or
> not, resulting directly or indirectly from the use of any attached
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> our
> liability is limited to resupplying any affected attachments. Any
> representations or opinions expressed in this email are those of the
> individual sender, and not necessarily those of the Department of
> Education
> and Early Childhood Development.
> -----Original Message-----
> From: sofdev-bounces at edulists.com.au [mailto:sofdev-
> bounces at edulists.com.au]
> On Behalf Of David Dawson
> Sent: Thursday, 13 September 2007 1:37 PM
> To: sofdev at edulists.com.au
> Subject: RE: [Year 12 SofDev] Scaling - renamed
>
> Hi Andrew
> At both this and my previous school - I have had *lots* of kids who
> both do Specialist and who are *really serious* about getting a
great
> ENTER. So serious, in fact, that the knowledge that they are going
to
> get scaled down for my subject stops them enroling in it.
> This is the reality and I have to ask - since the subject gets
> penalised - are smarter students being penalised for doing it? I
really
> do want a genuine public debate about this because the students who
do
> SD and Physics tell me that my/our subject is just as hard - some
say
> harder.
> David
>
> David Dawson
> Head of Information Technology
> Head of Learning Technologies
> St.Kilda Rd Campus
> Wesley College, Melbourne
> Wk 8102 6340
>
>
> >>> a.shortell at braemar.vic.edu.au 13/09/2007 11:55:52 am >>>
> Hi David
>
> Scaling is an attempt to equate outcomes for the purposes of
> university
> entry. It is only important for students who are serious about
getting
> a
> good ENTER.
>
>
>
> Info Sys was scaled down because of the students who took the
subject.
>
>
> VCAA always assigns 30 as the mean study score with a standard
> deviation
> of 6. This is publicly available knowledge (not always easy to find
> though!!)
>
> It does not matter about the quality of the students - the mean is
> still
> 30.
>
>
>
> When you equate this to students who do Specialist and Latin who
also
> get a mean of 30 you can probably see that there is perhaps not an
> equivalence of result. VTAC attempts to address this inequity by
> scaling. If you look at last year's scaling report then you will see
> that some subjects were scaled down by over 10 points (wow you might
> say
> - but look at the subjects. Would a student who could do Latin and
> Specialist do those subjects? Seriously, ?)
>
>
>
> Now think about the students who take SD (and ITA ) . Are they
really
> as good as the students doing Specialist and Latin ????? So they
need
> to
> have their results processed or manipulated so that it can be seen
to
> have some equivalence of outcome with those who do the harder
> subjects.
>
>
>
> You can always ask me more off list - if others are interested in
more
> then reply on list otherwise off list to andrew at braemar.vic.edu.au
>
>
>
> Cheers
>
> Andrew Shortell
>
> Braemar College
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> > -----Original Message-----
>
> > From: sofdev-bounces at edulists.com.au [mailto:sofdev-
>
> > bounces at edulists.com.au] On Behalf Of Claudia Graham
>
> > Sent: Thursday, 13 September 2007 9:47 AM
>
> > To: Year 12 Software Development Teachers' Mailing List
>
> > Subject: RE: [Year 12 SofDev] Gamemaker
>
> >
>
> > Hi David,
>
> >
>
> > The scaling process is not VCAA but VTAC and the scaling changes
> each
>
> > year based on cohort and their abilities and results. With a
> different
>
> > style of paper this year, who knows what might happen.
>
> >
>
> > Claudia
>
> >
>
> > -----Original Message-----
>
> > From: sofdev-bounces at edulists.com.au
>
> > [mailto:sofdev-bounces at edulists.com.au] On Behalf Of David Dawson
>
> > Sent: 13 September 2007 8:56 AM
>
> > To: sofdev at edulists.com.au
>
> > Subject: Re: [Year 12 SofDev] Gamemaker
>
> >
>
>
>
> <snip>
>
>
>
> > I am also curious as to whether Software Devt will be marked
"down"
>
> > like IS was. What is the actual justification for this? Can it be
>
> > changed? When can this be reconsidered?
>
> >
>
> > Is there anyone out there from the VCAA panel for this subject who
> can
>
> > respond?
>
> > David Dawson
>
> >
>
> > David Dawson
>
> > Head of Information Technology
>
> > Head of Learning Technologies
>
> > St.Kilda Rd Campus
>
> > Wesley College, Melbourne
>
> > Wk 8102 6340
>
> >
>
> <snip>
>
>
>
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> IT Software Development Mailing List kindly supported by
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IT Software Development Mailing List kindly supported by
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Authority and
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VITTA Victorian Information Technology Teachers Association Inc
____________________________________________________________________________
Sapere Aude - Dare To Be Wise
Wesley College Melbourne is a world class coeducational independent school
developing the whole person through timeless principles of learning:
- to know
- to do
- to live with
- to be
with innovation and wisdom
ABN 38 994 068 473 CRICOS 00354G
____________________________________________________________________________
This email is intended only for the use of the individual or entity named
above and may contain information that is confidential and privileged. If
you are not the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any
dissemination, distribution or copying of this email is strictly prohibited.
If you have received this email in error, please email a reply to Wesley
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