POLICIES AND PROCEDURES

ATTENDANCE IN CLASS

Regular attendance is required for course completion. Please note that for Te Punga - Year 11 Certificate, 95% attendance (no more that 5% unexplained absences) is required.

TEACHING & LEARNING

LEARNING LANE:

During classroom learning time, use of approved AI tools is permitted with teacher permission. Approved GenAI tools include: Gemini, Notebook LM and Gems within the TBC Google domain. When using these, students must log in with their school login and access work in Google Classroom to complete learning-related tasks. Students are encouraged to use these tools to improve their knowledge and understanding of the concepts required for each course when the teacher deems appropriate. NOTE: If you are completing work at home, the above rules still apply.

The use of free tools such as ChatGPT is discouraged, as they are public and therefore lack the enhanced filters designed to meet professional and educational safety standards. For this reason, the entering of personal data or private information is strictly prohibited.

It is expected that all students are aware that GenAI can provide biased and inaccurate information.

ASSESSMENT LANE: 

No use of AI unless teacher-directed. You must use appropriate referencing of any quotes or information sourced to avoid plagiarism. 

AUTHENTICITY

1.  All work that is submitted for assessment must be your own work.

2. Following the rules of academic integrity, if you use a source to help support your final piece of work, this must be referenced. See guidelines below.

• A direct quote from a text must have quotation marks, and you must acknowledge where this came from. For example: "If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster and treat those two impostors just the same" (Kipling, 1910).

• If using a picture, infographic, graph, data table, or other source, you must cite the source. For example: Figure 1: NZ Temperature Trends (NIWA, 2026).

3. To protect the integrity of assessment practices here at TBC, it is expected that students and staff will follow the rules below for any work that is essay or assignment-based and worked on over a period of time. 

Procedures followed by staff include:

• Creating milestones/check-ins and conducting minichats with students throughout the assessment period.

• Staff will set up a Google Classroom-based assignment where all final work is completed and submitted. They will verify that students are logged in to their TBC school profile and are only using the Tauranga Boys College Wi-Fi when completing any of this work. 

• Will use tools such as Revision History to track student progress.

• Staff can choose to conduct interviews at any time during the assessment lane to check your understanding of your work. This could be before it is handed in or after it is submitted. 

• Exam.net assessments will be recorded, and staff can request to view your work at any time.

• Chrome extensions will be limited to those approved by the TBC Senior Leadership Team for learning purposes.

Rules for students during the assessment lane:

• All work must be completed whilst you are logged in to your TBC profile, whether you are at school or at home. Work completed outside the TBC school profile cannot be verified for authenticity and will therefore not be accepted for marking.

• When completing work at school, all students must be connected to the Tauranga Boys College Wi-Fi.

• Be prepared to explain your work at any time. 

• Always accurately reference any ideas or work that is not your own (see guidelines under Authenticity above)

• No work can be copied and pasted into an online assignment (unless the source is quoted, as explained above).

• You may only use approved Chrome extensions (as above).

• NZQA - Guidance on the acceptable use of Artificial Intelligence

  • NZQA rules override TBC rules with regard to certain information related to specific standards in NCEA Levels 2 & 3.

4. For all in-class assessments (e.g., end-of-topic tests, mid-year exams), TBC exam rules apply. 

• When completing any online assessment, you must be using your TBC profile and the Tauranga Boys College Wi-Fi when completing any of this work. 

• Your cellphone must be turned off and in your bag.

• You should have only the correct materials on your desk that are allowed for your assessment.

• Chrome extensions will be limited to those approved by the TBC Senior Leadership Team.

• Exam.net assessments will be recorded, and staff can request to view your work at any time.

5. A reminder of the NZQA philosophy - staff should know their students and use the following to ensure they are satisfied with the authenticity of their work.

• assessor observations and conversations   

• meeting with the student at set milestones or checkpoints   

• the student’s record of progress, such as photographic entries or any GenAI prompts used.  

6. You have the right to appeal if you think the decision about breaking the rules is unfair. You need to write to the Principal within 7 days of being notified about the decision. (see ‘APPEALS’ section for further information).

7. If you break the rules for an assessment in a subject, you will not get another chance to do the assessment for that subject.

8. To ensure you have met authenticity requirements, complete this checklist before you submit your final work.

• [ ] TBC Profile: I completed this work while logged into my @tbc.school.nz account.

• [ ] Authenticity: All work is my own. I have not copied or "paraphrased" from a friend, the internet, or AI without citation.

• [ ] Revision History: I have typed my work directly into the document (no large "copy-pastes" from external notes).

• [ ] Citations: Every direct quote has "quotation marks" and a (Name, Year) reference.

• [ ] Visuals: Any graphs, images, or data tables used include a source label underneath.

• [ ] Reference List: I have a full list of sources at the end of my work in alphabetical order, if required by the teacher or the assessment.

Student Signature: _______________________By signing/typing my name here, I acknowledge that I understand the TBC Assessment Policy and that this work is my own.

MISSED OR LATE INTERNAL ASSESSMENTS

1.  Each department will tell you when your assessments are due. Generally, these can be found on your SchoolBridge App - under Assessment Calendar.

2. If you do not submit your work by the deadline and you had enough time to complete it, you will get a "Not Achieved" grade, unless one of these situations applies:

1. You were sick or had an accident.
2. You were on a school trip that was approved by the school.
3. Something really important and out of your control happened.

If you know one of these situations exists before the deadline, talk to your teacher about getting more time or withdrawing from the assessment. Usually, you will need proof (such as a doctor's note) to get an extension or a withdrawal. Just a note from your parents might not be enough. If the assessment is a test, you'll have to take it when you return to school or as soon as possible afterwards.

3. If you miss an internal assessment (test) due to illness or school-based activity, you will complete it on the first day back at school, or as communicated by your teacher.

FURTHER ASSESSMENT OPPORTUNITIES

Students must take every assessment opportunity as the ‘best’ opportunity. Further assessment opportunities are not offered in every standard. Students need to be aware of the standards for which a further assessment opportunity is offered. These will be publicised by the department.

APPEALS

1.  Students have the right to challenge an assessment decision they think is unfair. The first step is to talk to your subject teacher about it.

2. If you cannot resolve the issue with your teacher, you can appeal to the Head of Department within two school days after receiving the assessment back. You will need to explain why you are appealing using the Assessment Appeals Form.

3. The Head of Department will let you know the result of your appeal in writing. If you are still not satisfied, the final step is to appeal to the Deputy Principal of the Senior School.

CHECKING ENTRIES AND GRADES

1. Students should regularly check their entries and grades on the NZQA website. You need to create your own login and password on the NZQA website, as the school does not have access to it. This should have been completed as part of the co-requisite assessment process.

2. You will have a chance to make sure your grades are recorded correctly on the results database. You can do this by checking and confirming the grades on KAMAR in the student Dashboard, and by signing off on them (in class), which means you accept them.

3. If you see any mistakes in the entries or grades, they need to be fixed before you sign off on them.

SPECIAL ASSESSMENT CONDITIONS

If you need extra help in your learning, you might be able to get special assistance during tests and exams. This applies to both tests done in class and those done outside of school. To get this help, you should talk to the "Learning Centre", their Head of Department, or your Academic Tutor. They will guide you on what you need to do.

CATCH UP CREDITS

If you leave school without getting a qualification like University Entrance (UE), you will not be given extra chances to make up for it the next year. So, it's important to do well in each assessment opportunity and earn enough credits to complete your qualification before you leave school.

1. Referencing Guide for Websites - TBC Maths Department

2.  Point 2 - TKI - RAMP update - Level 2 Physical Education Example

   Ensuring Authenticity of Evidence from NZQA

   Authenticity of student evidence needs to be assured regardless of the method of collecting evidence. This must be in line with the learning centre’s policy and NZQA’s Assessment Rules for Schools with Consent to Assess.   

   Ensure that the student’s evidence is individually identifiable and represents the student’s own work. The evidence must accurately reflect what the student independently knows and can do, according to the Standard being assessed. This includes evidence submitted as part of a group assessment, evidence produced outside of class time or without assessor supervision, and evidence produced with any use of generative artificial intelligence tools (GenAI). GenAI use should be carefully considered in the context of the Standard being assessed and its Conditions of Assessment, discussed with students before the assessment, and its use must be acknowledged. For example, an investigation carried out over several sessions could include:    

   • teacher guidance on the nature and extent of acceptable GenAI use, if any   

   • assessor observations and conversations   

   • meeting with the student at set milestones or checkpoints   

   • the student’s record of progress, such as photographic entries or any GenAI prompts used.