At NIS we believe in offering our students opportunities to extend test themselves. The University of New South Wales offers one such opportunity. Annually, we offer children the chance to participate in the International Competitions and Assessments for Schools (ICAS). ICAS assessments have taken place annually in schools for over 30 years and in 20 countries. Educational Assessment Australia (EAA) who design and deliver the assessments, is the not-for-profit arm of the University of New South Wales. ICAS provides an opportunity for all Grades 2 – 12 students to challenge themselves and gain an insight into their own achievement in a variety of subjects. These assessments come in the form of written examinations which last between 30-60 minutes. These examinations are undertaken in school and are supervised NIS staff. The ICAS documentation provided after the assessment(s) are marked provides teachers, parents and students with an independent and comprehensive record of a student's performance. Testing and comprehensive reporting of results is offered in the areas of Digital Technologies, English, Mathematics, Science, Spelling and Writing. All students receive a certificate and an individual student report indicating which questions they answered correctly and their score compared with the rest of the students tested. Results are available to parents and students online; these reports and analyses remain available indefinitely. Entries are administered through the school, so teachers can also access the information.
Achievement certificates are awarded to all students at a range of levels:
High Distinction to the top 1% of entrants
Distinction to the next 10% of entrants
Credit to the next 25% of entrants
Merit to the next 10% of entrants
Participation to all other participating students.
