A/AS level Chemistry TAS
Workshop for Teachers
22 October 2005
1
Teacher Assessment Scheme
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Practical paper of the A/AS level
Chemistry Examination
20% of the subject mark
Compulsory to all school candidates
(including first-timers and repeaters)
Private candidates : either (i) use previous
TAS result , or (ii) take practical exam
2
TAS allows:

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better link bet’n theory and practical work
students to experience a wider range of
experimentation
the assessment of a full range of practical
abilities
a reduction in examination pressure
teachers to provide frequent feedback to
students
an increase in teachers’ professionalism
3
Information about TAS:

Refer to Handbook on the A/AS Chemistry
Teacher Assessment Scheme
HKEAA website: www.hkeaa.edu.hk
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Enquiry: 28343211 Ext 668
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Requirements of TAS

Enough bench space and apparatus per
candidate
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Lab work should cover different areas
and types of experiment
Area : CH, EQ, KI & EN
Type: P, QL and QN
5
Requirements of TAS(cont’d)

Ability area A
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Ability area B
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Ability area C
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Manipulative skills, skill in
observation and general
bench performance
Presentation of data,
interpretation of results,
planning of experiments and
project work
attitude towards practical
chemistry
6
Starting from 2007 Examination
Minimum number of experiments:
[2007 TAS handbook: P.5---3.3--- (b)]
S6: (2007: 15) (2006: 18)
A-level:
S7: (2007: 8) (2006: 10)
Over two years, at least 7 expts
should be assessed.
AS-level:
Over two years:
(2007: 13) (2006: 16)
A/AS-level:
over two years, at least:
2 preparative
5 qualitative
5 quantitative
7
Starting from 2007 Examination
Assessment Requirement:
[2007 TAS handbook: P.6--- (d)]
A-level
Ability
area
A
B
C
No. of Assessed Marks Required
S6
S7
Over the two-year
2
1
2
1
2
1
4
2
1
5
4 5
( 4  5 detailed reports)
2
 10
 12
8
Starting from 2007 Examination
Assessment Requirement:
[2007 TAS handbook: P.6--- (d)]
AS-level
Ability
area
No. of Assessed Marks Required
S6
S7
Over the two-year
A
1
1
2
B
1
1
C
---
1
2
( 3 detailed reports)
1
7
9
Starting from 2007 Examination
Assessment Requirement
S7 repeater/transfer candidate :
[2007 TAS handbook: P.6--- (e)]
A-level
Ability
area
No. of Assessed Marks
Required in S7
A
2007:  3
B
2007:  3 (2006:  4 )
( 2 detailed reports)
1
C
(2006:  4 )
10
Starting from 2007 Examination
Assessment Requirement
S7 repeater/transfer candidate :
[2007 TAS handbook: P.6--- (e)]
AS-level
Ability
area
No. of Assessed Marks
Required in S7
A
2
B
2
( 1 detailed report)
1
C
11
Making assessments
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Assess each student sufficiently on each
ability.

Not necessary to assess all students on
the same day and on the same
experiment.
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Assess as unobtrusively as possible.
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Making assessments (cont’d)
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Assess on a 10-point scale:
10-9
8-7
6-5
4-3
2-1
very good
good
average
weak
very weak
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Making assessments (cont’d)
3 ways for allocation of marks:
(i) Mark Scheme
(ii) Impression
(iii) Overall impression over a longer
period of time, for a particular area
e.g. area C
14
Project work in TAS
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Not compulsory
Involve practical work and experimental
investigation
Include:
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designing experiment
performing the investigation
writing the report
15
Project work in TAS (cont’d)
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One project = max. 3 experiments
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For each student, each project can be
used to assess 1A & 1B only
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Common questions raised by teachers
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(1) Swapping courses
(A)
From
School candidates (first-timers)
To
Policy of
HKEAA
AL
(S6)
ASL

(S7) (06&07)
ASL
(S6)
AL
(S7)
Remarks
School must run
ASL Chem *
(2006)
(2007)
* If school is not currently registered in the list of AS
TAS school, it must obtain approval from ED for
running AS Chem and inform HKEAA.
18
(1) Swapping courses (cont’d)
(B) School candidates (repeaters)
From
AL
ASL
Policy of
To
Remarks
HKEAA
(2006)
School must run
ASL approval
ASL Chem *
needed(07)
(2006)
School must run
AL
approval
AL Chem *
needed(07)
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(3) Lab reports
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Language medium used must be the
same as that chosen for the written exam.
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Detailed reports include:
object of expt, chemical principles
involved, experimental method, results,
interpretation and discussion, conclusion.
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All reports should be marked.
20
Reminder
Always consult your group
coordinators when you have
queries or problems
21
Common problems reported by
coordinators
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(1) Unclear experiment titles
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E.g. (i) Project 1
(ii) To prepare a carboxylic acid
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Titles entered in the TAS assessment
records should be informative and
specific.
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(2) No preparative experiments
Experiments indicated as P are not
preparative experiments.
Preparative experiments should involve
techniques such as:
handling of gases, filtration, crystallization,
recrystallization, distillation, reflux, drying,
liquid-liquid extraction, purity control by
determining melting point / boiling point.
A minimum of 2 P experiments should be carried
out w.e.f. 2006 examination for both AL & AS.
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(3) Mark range too narrow / too wide
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For each candidate, the mark awarded
should reflect the typical standard of the
candidate.
For the whole class, the marks awarded
should be able to discriminate candidates
with different abilities
.
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(4) Teacher changes
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Best to have more than one teacher
familiar with the Scheme
Out-going teacher to hand over his/her
work on TAS to new teacher, including:
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List of experiments and their handouts
Records of TAS marks awarded to
students e.g. printouts of software
TAS program, its passwords, and backup
diskettes, if any
Inform coordinator of the change
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Common problems reported by
TAS Administration Team
Late submission
Common problems reported by
TAS Administration Team
Schools did not submit declaration
or did not sign the declaration
properly
Common problems reported by
TAS Administration Team
Schools did not submit full set of
assessment record, diskettes or
some pages of the hardcopies are
missing
Common problems reported by
TAS Administration Team
Many schools did not check out
student who have dropped
Chemistry or quitted school or
admitted to universities through
the Early Admission Scheme
Common problems reported by
TAS Administration Team
Schools did not provide signature
of teacher or principal
Common problems reported by
TAS Administration Team
Schools didn’t provide explanations
for those candidates not fulfill
minimum TAS requirements
Questions & Answers
Will the final mark of a candidate
be affected if he/she has been
absent from some of the TAS
assessment occasions ?
Questions & Answers
If a candidate suspends his/her study for
some time during the 2-year course due to
medical or other reasons (such as
engagement in an exchange programme in
a foreign country), will his/her TAS results
obtained before the suspension of study be
counted in his/her final TAS result when
he/she resumes his/her study?
Questions & Answers
Within the same class, can some
students take the examination in
Chinese, and some in English? If
yes, what language medium should
these students use when writing the
laboratory report?
Questions & Answers
Should the teacher keep all the
reports of the students? What
happens if they lose some of the
reports?
Questions & Answers
How to handle the data of students
who have left the school or will not
take the examination?
Questions & Answers
How can teachers safeguard the
data entered against any loss due
to reformatting of the hard-disk or
other unfortunate incidents?
Questions & Answers
Do teachers need to complete all
the experiments listed in the
AL/ASL syllabus? Can teachers
arrange experiments other than
those listed in the syllabus for their
students?
Questions & Answers
Is it necessary for the teacher to
mark all the laboratory reports?
Can the teacher just mark the
reports that are to be assessed?