Completing SBA marks without inventing them
You teach Grade 10 English at a school with 128 Grade 10 students in three classes. The zonal deadline for entering School-Based Assessment (SBA) marks is 18 school days away. You have completed two of five planned assessments. Oral presentation records for 22 students are missing because they were absent during the presentations; 7 students transferred in after the assessment. The principal tells you to “fill in reasonable marks” so the school is not flagged in monitoring. A parent has complained that oral marks are subjective and that her daughter’s mark is lower than a friend’s. You have one double period per week with each class, no additional clerical support, and the SBA guidelines require evidence for each criterion. Your school’s assessment committee meets only once a month.
1. Design a realistic plan to complete valid SBA marks within 18 school days.
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Start from the evidence required, not from the deadline. Use the existing rubric for the oral presentation with four criteria, each with three descriptors. For the 22 absent students, schedule two make-up oral sessions in the double period, using the same task and a different prompt set; record date, prompt and rubric. For the 7 transfer students, assess only work done after arrival and note “not assessed before transfer” where the SBA guideline permits; do not invent earlier marks. Use one group oral task for the whole class to generate evidence quickly, but keep individual criterion scores. Moderate with another English teacher by scoring three samples together and discussing differences. Enter marks only from evidence. A realistic timetable: week 1 make-up orals; week 2 group task; week 3 moderation and data entry. Tell the principal this plan in writing.
2. How do you respond to the principal’s instruction to “fill in reasonable marks”?
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Refuse to fabricate marks. Explain that SBA marks must be based on recorded evidence; invented marks are an assessment integrity breach and can invalidate results or trigger disciplinary action. Offer the completion plan and ask for relief from non-teaching duties, not false data. If the principal insists, ask for the instruction in writing. Keep copies of your assessment records and the plan. This is not insubordination: you are complying with the assessment rules and protecting the school from a bigger problem. If the deadline cannot be met honestly, request a short extension from the zonal office with evidence of the plan already in progress.
3. What do you say to the parent who complains that oral marks are subjective?
Read the worked answer
Show the rubric, the task prompt and the record of her daughter’s presentation. Explain each criterion and the descriptors. If the mark was based on a single performance, acknowledge that and offer a moderated second opportunity if school policy allows. Do not discuss another student’s marks. If the parent believes there is an error, refer the matter to the school assessment committee for review. Record the meeting. The aim is transparency and consistency, not defending the mark at all costs. If the committee finds an error, correct it through the proper procedure rather than adjusting marks informally.