Marking the NEA: Cambridge Technical in Business

Mark Sirot-Smith, Business and Economics Subject Advisor

Here at OCR we often have queries from centres about marking coursework, or non-exam assessment (NEA). For our Cambridge Technical in Business (2012 and 2016), this means all units where a piece of coursework has been written by students. In this blog I summarise the key points to be aware of to make sure you are marking to the correct standard.

Guides to applying the grading criteria

There are several resources that will help you have confidence in your application of the grading criteria for Cambridge Technicals in Business:

• A free on-line marking course is available on OCR Train. This can be completed in your own time and includes a series of tests designed to ensure that you are correctly allocating levels to pieces of work. 
• Candidate exemplar coursework is available to view and help understand the quality of work that needs to be produced. 
• Materials from past professional development events are available to view on Teach Cambridge (login required). 
• You are able to book into upcoming professional development events which focus on many different NEA units.
  

Administrative points to remember

General information on NEA administration is available on Teach Cambridge. For Cambridge Technical in Business specifically, please remember to have completed the following to ensure you are ready for moderation:

• Students complete their NEA work 
• Assessors complete summative marking and fill in a unit URS 
• Candidate authentication statements are completed and signed 
• Internal standardisation takes place 
• Grades are internally agreed and claimed by your exams officer 
• An external moderation will be arranged.

Looking forward to next year’s cohort

We hope that your students enjoy the NEA elements of the Cambridge Technicals. There is a wide variety of units which should have something interesting for everyone. As we move forward into next year, do remember to keep an eye on our subject updates: you can sign up for these using the link below. 

There are student-facing resources on Teach Cambridge which you may wish to use with students to support them in achieving the best grade they can.

Stay connected

Share your thoughts in the comments below. If you have any questions, you can email us at support@ocr.org.uk, call us on 01223 553998 or tweet us @OCR_BusEcon. You can also sign up to subject updates to keep up-to-date with the latest news, updates and resources.

About the author

Mark recently joined OCR, after over 30 years in teaching, lecturing and senior leadership in a variety of secondary schools and FE colleges. He loves being active: walking his dog, playing tennis and visiting his three grown-up children in the midlands and north, especially if it coincides with a Crystal Palace away game!