Introducing Unit Specifications and Unit Assessment Support Packs National 3, 4 & 5

Unit Assessment  Assessments can be designed to provide evidence across more than one Unit or Outcome – combined assessments  Flexible and open Evidence Requirements in Units  Greater range of techniques and methodologies for assessment – encouraged through Unit assessment support packages  More opportunities to gather naturally occurring evidence – assessment as part of learning and teaching

Unit Structure National 3National 4National 5 Understanding Music Performing Skills Composing Skills

Key points: Music Units  standards remain the same  feature the best approaches of the current Music Units  have a hierarchical Unit structure that provide progression from National 3 to Higher  learners will reflect on their performance/choices/progress  evidence will be flexible

Unit Specifications UnitMusic – Understanding Music National 3 Outcome 1 Recognise and identify simple music concepts and styles by: Assessment Standards 1.1Identifying simple level-specific music concepts in excerpts of music 1.2Identifying and recognising the distinctive instrumental and/or vocal groupings used in music styles 1.3Understanding the meaning of simple music signs, symbols and terms

Unit Specifications UnitMusic – Composing Skills National 4 Outcome 1 Create original music by: Assessment Standards 1.1 Identifying the compositional methods and music concepts used in given examples of music 1.2 Experimenting and using music concepts and compositional methods to develop and create original music 1.3 Developing musical ideas that convey their creative intention 1.4 Reflecting on their music and their creative choices

Unit Specifications UnitMusic – Performing Skills National 5 Outcome 1 Perform music in a range of music styles by: Assessment Standards 1.1 Developing musical and technical skills, showing clear understanding of the composers’ intentions 1.2 Self-reflecting on the quality and accuracy of their playing and performing, and identifying personal strengths and areas for improvement

Unit Specifications Evidence Requirements for this Unit:  Assessors should use their professional judgement, subject knowledge and experience, and understanding of their learners, to determine the most appropriate ways to generate evidence and the conditions and contexts in which they are used.  Evidence should be gathered in combination with other Outcomes where possible, either from this Unit or in combination with the Outcomes from the Unit Performing Skills. Evidence may also be gathered for individual Outcomes where appropriate.

Unit Specifications The purpose of this unit is to provide evidence of the candidates’:  understanding of how music concepts and compositional methods are used by others  ability to experiment with and use compositional methods and music concepts in imaginative ways when creating original music.

Unit Assessment Support Packages - purpose UASPs can be used to: Assess your candidates. Adapt for your own assessment programmes. Apply the skills from across the three Units.

UASPs – key features  Valid from August 2013  Designed to encourage professional judgement  Provide broad-based tasks – allow assessors to choose appropriate context and forms of evidence  Show range of approaches to generating assessment evidence  This is a formal assessment event.

Music UASPs Package 1  Unit by Unit approach N3, N4 & N5 – discrete assessment tasks for each Unit. Package 2  Combined across Units N3, N4 & N5 (Performing and Composing: Understanding Music and Composing) Package 3  Portfolio approach N3, N4 and N5 (across all three units)

National 4 Added Value Unit  Makes the Course more than the sum of its parts  Builds on current Course assessment and Group Award approaches  Defined as breadth, challenge and/or application as outlined in Building the Curriculum 5  May involve accumulation, assimilation, integration and/or application of skills, knowledge and understanding  Controlled assessment –setting conducting and marking

N4 Added Value - Performance  Focus on challenge and application of Music Performing skills  Unit Specification and Unit Assessment Support package  Apply the skills across the three units  Assesses skills in performing, listening and reflecting  Internally marked pass or fail

N4 Added Value - Performance Controlled assessment: This performance is:  set by centres within SQA guidelines  conducted under a high degree of supervision and control  Evidence will be internally marked by centre staff in line with SQA marking instructions.  Marking will be quality assured by SQA.  This is an Assessment Event. .

Moving on  Workshop 1 and 2 will give you the opportunity to look at the Unit Specifications and Unit Assessment Support Packages in detail.