Clarification details
Updated November 2015. This document has been updated in its entirety to address new issues that have arisen from moderation.
The purpose of clarifications
We create clarification documents to help people understand the current requirements of achievement standards. Clarifications do not introduce new criteria, change the intent of the standard, or change what we expect from assessment.
These documents unpack and explain the language and intent of the standard so people interpret and apply the standard consistently. We provide examples or guidance as illustrations only. They are not prescriptions or requirements.
For official requirements, always refer to the current version of the achievement standard as published by NZQA.
General Notes
This standard requires students to research and synthesise information to create a report or presentation that demonstrates their understanding of the application of a technical area within a field of technology. Students will explain how technical ideas have underpinned past, contemporary, and possible future developments in diverse fields of technology.
Students should select a technical area where the scope and application is not too broad or difficult, thus enabling the technical ideas that have led to the development of these areas and their changes over time to be explored.
Explanatory Note 3 suggests that suitable technical areas could include Artificial Intelligence, nanotechnologies, smart materials, cryptographic algorithms, Computer Numerical Control, functional foods, laser technologies, modern materials, virtual modelling and robotics.
Explanatory Note 4 suggests the technical area must be applied to a specific field (for example, medicine, sport, communications, entertainment, food production, urban planning, gambling and military).
Teachers and students may decide to study technical areas and specific fields that are not included in Explanatory Notes 3 and 4.
Presentation of Evidence
The students may present their report in any appropriate format and medium, by advance agreement with the teacher. For example, they could present it as a slideshow, a display board, a written report, or a portfolio.
Creating a report or other means of presenting information (for example, video, oral, written report, poster, slide show) is an individual activity, but students may investigate the selected field and technical area either independently, with a partner, or in a group.