NCEA L1 Drama study guide
NCEA L1 Drama · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
NCEA Level 1 Drama is the first-year Drama offering within New Zealand's National Certificate of Educational Achievement, delivered through The Arts learning area of the New Zealand Curriculum. It is aimed at Year 11 learners who want to build performance skills while exploring how drama expresses cultural perspectives and worldviews through the histories and traditions carried in performance. The subject is assessed through a mix of internal assessment and external assessment (exams), and NZQA publishes Level 1 Drama achievement standards, assessment specifications, past exams, exemplars and assessment schedules, plus annual moderator's reports and clarifications. Preparation should start from the official Level 1 standards and the latest assessment specifications, since these define what is assessed. Topics on this exam: Internal assessment (Drama achievement standards) and External assessment (exams). The NCEA L1 Drama study guide has 2 sections and about 848 words.
01Internal Assessment: Making, Performing and Explaining Drama
Internal assessment in NCEA Level 1 Drama is where the drama you make, rehearse and perform is assessed, together with your explanation of the choices behind it. Evidence is gathered across the year: a teacher observes live performance (usually recorded for moderation), and you build a portfolio of rehearsal notes, annotated scripts, director's notes and self-evaluation. Standards are graded Achieved, Merit and Excellence, and the higher grades turn on the wording of the descriptors - "convincingly", "effectively", "integrated", "sustained". Techniques work through voice (pitch, pace, pause, projection, diction, tone), body (posture, gesture, facial expression, gait), movement (levels, direction, weight, proxemics), plus focus, energy, timing and tension.
435 words, about 2 min02External Assessment: Drama/Theatre Form and Practitioner
The external Drama papers are written examinations. They typically ask you to demonstrate understanding of a drama or theatre form and of the work of a drama or theatre practitioner. Questions demand specific terminology and specific examples from the form or practitioner you studied - not a retelling of a play's plot. Answers are marked on how precisely you describe features and explain their purpose or effect.
413 words, about 2 min