AS 91608 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, 6.1 MB]

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For Excellence, the student needs to undertake comprehensive brief development to address an issue within a determined context.

This involves justifying why the specifications allow a judgement of an outcome’s fitness for purpose in the broadest sense.

This student has developed a brief for a one-seater Drift Kart within the context of affordable and enjoyable methods for practicing essential driving skills.

Not seen in this exemplar is evidence of the establishment of the issue, need or opportunity, and explanation of related context considerations. The student has also reflected on views of key stakeholders and the context considerations throughout the evidence.

The student has justified why the specifications allow a judgement of the outcome’s fitness for purpose in the broadest sense (1), including:

• consideration of the outcome’s technical (2) and social acceptability (3)
• sustainability of resources used (4)
• determination of life cycle, maintenance (5), and ultimate disposal
• health and safety (6).

For a more secure Excellence, additional evidence of ongoing reflection of context considerations is needed, including the social and physical environment where the outcome will be developed.

For Merit, the student needs to undertake in-depth brief development to address an issue within a determined context.

This involves demonstrating how the specifications allow a judgement of an outcome’s fitness for purpose in the broadest sense.

This student has developed a brief for a gluten free food bag product to feed a family of five. Not seen in this exemplar is evidence of the establishment of the issue, need or opportunity, and explanation of related context considerations. The student has also reflected on views of key stakeholders and the context considerations throughout the evidence.

There is sufficient depth in the evidence to place the sample at High Merit. The student has demonstrated why the specifications allow a judgement of an outcome’s fitness for purpose in the broadest sense.

Consideration of the outcome’s technical (1) and social acceptability (2) is seen throughout the final brief, and the final specifications also allow judgement of the:

• sustainability of resources used (3)
• cultural appropriateness of trialling procedures (4)
• health and safety (5).

For Excellence, the student could have provided more specific details of how wider stakeholder feedback informed development of the brief, in particular the final specifications.

For Merit, the student needs to undertake in-depth brief development to address an issue within a determined context.

This involves demonstrating how the specifications allow a judgement of an outcome’s fitness for purpose in the broadest sense.

This student has developed a brief for a storage solution to be located in a teenager’s bedroom. Not seen in this exemplar is evidence of the establishment of the issue, need or opportunity. The student has also explained related context considerations and reflected on the views of key stakeholders.

There is sufficient depth in the evidence to place the sample at Merit. Consideration of the outcome’s social acceptability (1) is seen throughout the final brief, and the final specifications also allow a judgement of the outcome’s fitness for purpose in the broadest sense, including: 

• determination of life cycle, maintenance and ultimate disposal (2)
• health and safety (3).

For a more secure Merit, the specifications should be communicated in more measurable terms to demonstrate precisely how they allow a judgement of fitness for purpose in the broadest sense. Additional consideration for the technical acceptability of the potential outcome and views of wider stakeholders would also strengthen the evidence.

For Achieved, the student needs to undertake brief development to address an issue within a determined context.

This involves:

• establishing an issue, identifying and explaining related context considerations
• determining a need or opportunity that resides within the established issue
• ongoing reflection of views of key stakeholders associated with the need or opportunity and wider stakeholders associated with the context
• ongoing reflection of context considerations, including the social and physical environment where the outcome will be developed and situated
• developing a final brief that allows judgement of an outcome’s fitness for purpose in the broadest sense.

This student has developed a brief for building an electric guitar to solve the issue that buying an electric guitar is very expensive for beginner musicians.

They have established an issue (1) and identified related context considerations (2), and the context considerations have been explained as related to the established issue. They have determined a need or opportunity that resides within the established issue (3).

Evidence is seen of ongoing reflection of views of key stakeholders associated with the need or opportunity and wider stakeholders associated with the context (4). The student shows ongoing reflection of context considerations, including the social and physical environment where the outcome will be developed and situated (5).

The student has developed a final brief that allows judgement of the outcome’s fitness for purpose in the broadest sense (6).

To reach Merit, in-depth development of the brief is required. To demonstrate this, evidence of deeper interrogation of how and why the specifications allow judgement of the outcome’s fitness for purpose in the broadest sense is needed.

For Achieved, the student needs to undertake brief development to address an issue within a determined context.

This involves:

• establishing an issue, identifying and explaining related context considerations
• determining a need or opportunity that resides within the established issue
• ongoing reflection of views of key stakeholders associated with the need or opportunity and wider stakeholders associated with the context
• ongoing reflection of context considerations, including the social and physical environment where the outcome will be developed and situated
• developing a final brief that allows judgement of an outcome’s fitness for purpose in the broadest sense.

The student is undergoing brief development to make a bespoke pair of trousers for a friend. The excerpts show that the student has established an issue (1) and identified related context considerations.

They have conducted ongoing reflection of context considerations, including the social (2) and physical (3) environment where the outcome will be situated.

Ongoing reflections of views of the key stakeholder (4) with the need or opportunity is evident. The final brief allows some judgement of the outcome’s fitness for purpose in the broadest sense (5).

Social acceptability is the focus of the developing brief. For a more secure Achieved, additional evidence of the outcome’s technical acceptability, wider stakeholder feedback and consideration for the physical environment where the outcome would be developed (the school workshop) is needed.

The developed brief could also include further details about how the judgement of the outcome’s fitness for purpose in the broadest sense could be made. For example, additional evidence of exploring the sustainability of the materials used, or health and safety.

For Achieved, the student needs to undertake brief development to address an issue within a determined context.

This involves:

• establishing an issue, identifying and explaining related context considerations
• determining a need or opportunity that resides within the established issue
• ongoing reflection of views of key stakeholders associated with the need or opportunity and wider stakeholders associated with the context
• ongoing reflection of context considerations, including the social and physical environment where the outcome will be developed and situated
• developing a final brief that allows judgement of an outcome’s fitness for purpose in the broadest sense.

The refined and final brief has been developed (1), (2), (3) and (4), with evidence of ongoing reflection of context considerations including the social (5) and physical environment (6) where the outcome will be developed and situated.

To reach Achieved, the student could also establish an issue and identify and explain related context considerations to determine the need/opportunity. Ongoing reflections of views of the wider stakeholders associated with the context, and a judgement of the outcome’s fitness for purpose in the broadest sense are also needed.