The Technical Committee on Scaling,which is responsible for calculating the ATAR in NSW on behalf of universities,compared results from the 2016 HSC mathematics exams with the same students'numeracy results in NAPLAN from 2013.
It found that at every level of NAPLAN performance,students who had a similar ability in Year 9 ended up with a"significantly higher"ATAR rank if they opted for the more advanced HSC maths course. On average,the"advantage"was five points on the zero to 99.95 ATAR scale.
Committee chair Rod Yager said that was"extraordinarily large",and a"dramatic change"from all previous analysis,which had shown students with equivalent mathematics ability in year 9 or 10 obtained"essentially the same ATAR"whether they took advanced or general maths in the HSC.
The scaling system is supposed to iron out any advantage students could gain by choosing one subject over another,which made this week's findings a concern.
"I’m rather at a loss to explain why this should be the case,"Dr Yager said."Just as people would be worried if students were being advantaged by taking the less difficult course,they should also be worried if students were deriving an undue advantage from taking the more difficult course."
The disparity could arise because advanced maths students were"responding to the challenge",Dr Yager said,or it could be related to them performing better in all of their other HSC subjects.