AS 91291 annotated exemplars

This annotated exemplar is intended for teacher use only. Annotated exemplars are extracts of student evidence, with commentary, that explain key parts of a standard. These help teachers make assessment judgements at the grade boundaries.

Download all exemplars and commentary [PDF, 206 KB]

TKI Agricultural and Horticultural Science assessment resources (external link)

For Excellence, the student needs to demonstrate comprehensive understanding of advanced plant propagation techniques used for commercial production in New Zealand.  

This involves the evaluation of advanced plant propagation techniques. This involves comparing and/or contrasting or justifying the use of these techniques or steps within techniques in terms of quality, quantity, genetic potential, timing, and the economics of production.

The student briefly justifies the use of tissue culture as an asexual propagation technique in terms of quality (1), quantity (2), genetic potential (3), timing (4) and the economics of production (5). 

For a more secure Excellence, the student could provide more extensive comparison using the terms of quality, quantity, genetic potential, timing and the economics of production.  

For Merit, the student needs to demonstrate in-depth understanding of advanced plant propagation techniques used for commercial production in New Zealand.

This involves explaining how advanced plant propagation techniques, or steps within techniques, provide conditions that are important for successful propagation.  Reference to related plant structural features and functions, and/or to horticultural science concepts is required.

The student explains how steps within the advanced plant propagation technique of tissue culture provide asexual environmental (1) and biological (2) conditions that are important for successful propagation.

To reach Excellence, the student could either compare and contrast two advanced plant propagation techniques, or justify their decision on utilising tissue culture with reference to examples of plants propagated in New Zealand, such as orchids or Pinus radiata.

For Merit, the student needs to demonstrate in-depth understanding of advanced plant propagation techniques used for commercial production in New Zealand.

This involves explaining how advanced plant propagation techniques, or steps within techniques, provide conditions that are important for successful propagation.  Reference to related plant structural features and functions, and/or to horticultural science concepts is required.

The student briefly explains how steps within the advanced plant propagation technique of whip and tongue grafting provides asexual environmental (1), and the biological (2) conditions that are important for successful propagation.    

For a more secure Merit, the student could provide a more detailed explanation of how the steps provide conditions for successful propagation. For example, the cambium needs to be aligned so that xylem and phloem connect to allow movement of water and nutrients between the rootstock and the scion.

For Achieved, the student needs to demonstrate understanding of advanced plant propagation techniques used for commercial production in New Zealand.

This involves describing the steps taken when performing advanced plant propagation techniques.

The student describes the sequential steps (1) taken when performing the advanced plant propagation technique of tissue culture, linking some to plant parts (2) and their functions (3) as well as some horticultural science concepts relating to plant disease (4). The descriptions are generic in nature, and they would have benefited from references to New Zealand plant material such as Pinus radiata.

To reach Merit, the student could explain the conditions that are important for successful propagation.

For Achieved, the student needs to demonstrate understanding of advanced plant propagation techniques used for commercial production in New Zealand.

This involves describing the steps taken when performing advanced plant propagation techniques.

The student describes the basic steps (1) taken when performing the advanced plant propagation technique of cleft grafting.

For a more secure Achieved, the student could provide a more detailed description of steps for cleft grafting, such as binding of the graft.

For Achieved, the student needs to demonstrate understanding of advanced plant propagation techniques used for commercial production in New Zealand.

This involves describing the steps taken when performing advanced plant propagation techniques.

The student briefly describes some very basic steps (1) of what is done when performing the advanced plant propagation technique of whip and tongue grafting.

To reach Achieved, the student could describe more accurate steps about how the technique of whip and tongue grafting is performed, such as what it means to make a straight slanting cut and match the two parts, so that the technique can be carried out successfully.