8. Board Examinations

In January 2005 people/organisations whose names appear on the Board/EWLG mailing list were advised of proposed changes to Board examination format. To enable all registered electrical workers the opportunity to comment on the proposals the closing date for submissions has been extended two months.

One of the Board’s strategic goals is to set electrical worker competency standards which achieve maximum public and worker safety with the least impediment to industry.

As part of its ongoing development of the above mentioned strategic goal, the Board has carried out a review of the format of all registration examination papers and proposes to introduce a system whereby all categories of examinations will require the same percentage pass mark and will be presented in the same format.

The Board proposes to introduce the new format at the commencement of the 2006 tutorial year.

Fundamentally, the proposed format will require candidates to obtain 60% to achieve a pass in any Board examination and all examinations will be presented in two sections with the first section having ten 2 mark questions and the second section having eight 10 mark questions.

The following table summarises the proposed format. All interested persons are invited to provide comment on the proposed examination format.

If you would like to comment, please address your correspondence to the Registrar at PO Box 10156 Wellington or email to john.sickels@med.govt.nz by 30 May 2005.

Examination	Present Format	Shortcomings	New Proposed Format	Reason for change
ESTA	Section 1 Ten 5 mark multi-choice questions. Section 2 Ten 5 mark questions 60% pass mark, but at least 25 marks must be obtained in this section.	Skewed towards multi-choice questions. 5 mark questions: – lack depth – make it difficult to achieve consistency of marking and mark allocation for similar questions in other papers. Candidates can get 74 marks and still fail. Little emphasis on legislation and standards.	Section 1 Ten 2 mark multi-choice questions Section 2 Eight 10 mark questions 60% pass.	60% pass park. No confusion over pass mark More in-depth questions 10 mark questions confined to one area. More focus on legislation/ standards. Easier to achieve consistency of marking and mark allocation for similar questions in other papers.
ESTB	Ten 10 mark questions 60% pass mark.	Short answer questions scattered throughout paper. Little emphasis on legislation and standards.	Section 1 Ten 2 short answer questions Section 2 Eight 10 mark questions 60%pass.	10 mark questions confined to specific areas. More focus on legislation/ standards
TEWC	Section 1 – All candidates 70 marks – questions of varying length and value Section 1 – Plumbers only 30 marks – questions of varying length and value Section 1 – Gasfitters only 30 marks – questions of varying length and value To pass must gain at least: – 40/70 marks section 1 – 20/30 marks section 2 – 20/30 marks section 3	Mark allocation skewed. 57% pass required for section 1 67% pass required for sections 1 and 2 A plumber or a gasfitter can gain 88% (88/100) and still fail. A plumber/gasfitter can gain 83% (108/130) and still fail Difficult to achieve consistency of marking and mark allocation for similar questions in other papers.	Split into two papers: First paper for plumbers or gasfitters Section1 – All candidates Ten 2 mark questions Three 10 mark questions Section 2P – Plumbers only Five 10 mark questions Section 2G – Gasfitters only Five 10 mark questions Second paper for Plumbers/Gasfitters Section 1 Ten 2 mark questions Section 2 Eight 10 mark questions Will be derived solely from the 1st paper 60% pass	60% pass mark for either paper. No confusion over pass mark. Consistent question values More in-depth questions 10 mark questions confined to one specific area Easier to achieve consistency of marking and mark allocation for similar questions in other papers.
Electrician Regulations	Section 1 Seventeen 2 mark questions Section 2 Eleven 6 mark questions 60% pass mark	6 mark questions: – limit the depth to which questions can be asked – make it difficult to achieve consistency of marking and mark allocation for similar questions in other papers. – widen the subject matter being examined comparatively to other papers. 2 mark questions inconsistent with electrician theory paper where questions of similar degree of difficulty are worth only one mark. Skewed towards short answer questions.	Section 1 Ten 2 mark questions Section 2 Eight 10 mark questions 60% pass mark.	More in-depth questions. 10 mark questions confined to one specific area – less areas covered but more depth. Easier to achieve consistency of marking and mark allocation for similar questions in other papers.
Electrician Theory	Section 1 – Compulsory Question 1 Twenty 1 mark questions Questions 2 to 4 Three 10 mark questions Section 2 Questions 5 to 10 Six 10 mark questions. Candidate to choose 5 questions 60% pass mark.	Inconsistent with ESTA and TEWC. Candidate can fail section 1 and still pass. Candidates often confused with the requirements of Section 2.	Section 1 10, 2 mark questions Section 2 8, 10 mark questions. 60% pass.	Consistency with electrician regulations examination. All questions must be answered.
Electrical Inspector	Section 1 Twenty 1 mark questions Section 2 Eight 10 mark questions		Section 1 Ten 2 mark questions Section 2 Eight 10 mark questions 60% pass	Consistency
Security Alarm installer	Section 1 – Theory 5, 2 mark questions 4, 10 mark questions Section 1 – Regulations and Safety 5, 2 mark questions 4, 10 mark questions		Section 1 Ten 2 mark questions Section 2 Eight 10 mark questions 60% pass	Consistency

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Page Last Modified: 2006-08-31

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