THE NATIONAL BENCHMARK TESTS:
PREPARING YOUR LEARNERS FOR THE
ACADEMIC AND QUANTITATIVE LITERACY
(AQL) TEST
Natalie le Roux and Kabelo Sebolai
Centre for Educational Testing for Access and Placement
(CETAP):
Centre for Higher Education Development (CHED)
University of Cape Town
February 2016
Supported by:
1
,Contents
1. PURPOSE OF THE DOCUMENT .................................................................................................... 3
2. BACKGROUND ............................................................................................................................. 3
3. THE ACADEMIC AND QUANTITATIVE LITERACY (AQL) TESTS...................................................... 5
4. WHAT CAN YOU EXPECT FROM THE NBT ACADEMIC LITERACY TEST?....................................... 6
4.1. The NBT AL subdomains...................................................................................................... 6
4.2. Exemplar questions ............................................................................................................. 9
5. WHAT CAN YOU EXPECT FROM THE NBT QUANTITATIVE LITERACY TEST? .............................. 12
5.1 The NBT QL test subdomains ............................................................................................ 12
5.2 Exemplar questions ........................................................................................................... 14
5.3 How can you help prepare your learners for AL and QL tests? ........................................ 18
6. THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN the NATIONAL BENCHMARK TESTS AND THE NATIONAL SENIOR
CERTIFICATE ...................................................................................................................................... 20
6.1. The NBT AL and the NSC English and Afrikaans examinations ......................................... 20
6.2. The NBT QL test and NSC Mathematical Literacy examination ........................................ 20
6.3. The NBT QL test and NSC Mathematics ............................................................................ 20
7. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS .............................................................................................. 22
8. WHO HAS PERMISSION TO PROVIDE SPECIAL PREPARATORY SESSIONS FOR NBT? ................ 23
List of Tables
Table 1: NBT benchmark bands .............................................................................................................. 4
Table 2: Description of AL subdomains................................................................................................... 7
Table 3: Description of the QL subdomains .......................................................................................... 12
2
, INFORMATION FOR TEACHERS ON THE NATIONAL BENCHMARK TESTS OF ACADEMIC AND
QUANTITATIVE LITERACY
1. PURPOSE OF THE DOCUMENT
This booklet will assist you in understanding what the National Benchmark Test (NBT) of Academic
and Quantitative Literacy (AQL) is about and provide you with guidelines on how you could help
prepare your learners for these tests.
2. BACKGROUND
The National Benchmark Tests (NBTs) are an outcome of the National Benchmark Tests Project
(NBTP) that was commissioned by Universities South Africa (formerly known as Higher Education
South Africa) in 2005. They are designed to measure a candidate’s levels of proficiency in Academic
Literacy (AL), Quantitative Literacy (QL) and Mathematics (MAT) in relation to the demands of
tertiary study.
The NBTs also provide information to assist in the selection and placement of students in
appropriate curricular routes (e.g. regular, augmented, extended, bridging or foundation
programmes) and with the development of curricula for Higher Education programmes. In addition,
they assist Higher Education to interpret school-leaving results, such as those of the National Senior
Certificate (NSC).
The AL and QL tests focus on the application of knowledge that was learned in the senior phase of
secondary school. The cognitive abilities and skills underlying the school curriculum are required to
be transferable to another context, the higher education context, and this is essentially what the AL
and QL tests are assessing.
Based on their performance on each of the tests, candidates are placed in one of three categories:
Basic, Intermediate, or Proficient. These categories, or bands, are rigorously determined through a
Standards Setting process which takes place every three years to ensure that benchmarks are
current and relevant.
3
PREPARING YOUR LEARNERS FOR THE
ACADEMIC AND QUANTITATIVE LITERACY
(AQL) TEST
Natalie le Roux and Kabelo Sebolai
Centre for Educational Testing for Access and Placement
(CETAP):
Centre for Higher Education Development (CHED)
University of Cape Town
February 2016
Supported by:
1
,Contents
1. PURPOSE OF THE DOCUMENT .................................................................................................... 3
2. BACKGROUND ............................................................................................................................. 3
3. THE ACADEMIC AND QUANTITATIVE LITERACY (AQL) TESTS...................................................... 5
4. WHAT CAN YOU EXPECT FROM THE NBT ACADEMIC LITERACY TEST?....................................... 6
4.1. The NBT AL subdomains...................................................................................................... 6
4.2. Exemplar questions ............................................................................................................. 9
5. WHAT CAN YOU EXPECT FROM THE NBT QUANTITATIVE LITERACY TEST? .............................. 12
5.1 The NBT QL test subdomains ............................................................................................ 12
5.2 Exemplar questions ........................................................................................................... 14
5.3 How can you help prepare your learners for AL and QL tests? ........................................ 18
6. THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN the NATIONAL BENCHMARK TESTS AND THE NATIONAL SENIOR
CERTIFICATE ...................................................................................................................................... 20
6.1. The NBT AL and the NSC English and Afrikaans examinations ......................................... 20
6.2. The NBT QL test and NSC Mathematical Literacy examination ........................................ 20
6.3. The NBT QL test and NSC Mathematics ............................................................................ 20
7. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS .............................................................................................. 22
8. WHO HAS PERMISSION TO PROVIDE SPECIAL PREPARATORY SESSIONS FOR NBT? ................ 23
List of Tables
Table 1: NBT benchmark bands .............................................................................................................. 4
Table 2: Description of AL subdomains................................................................................................... 7
Table 3: Description of the QL subdomains .......................................................................................... 12
2
, INFORMATION FOR TEACHERS ON THE NATIONAL BENCHMARK TESTS OF ACADEMIC AND
QUANTITATIVE LITERACY
1. PURPOSE OF THE DOCUMENT
This booklet will assist you in understanding what the National Benchmark Test (NBT) of Academic
and Quantitative Literacy (AQL) is about and provide you with guidelines on how you could help
prepare your learners for these tests.
2. BACKGROUND
The National Benchmark Tests (NBTs) are an outcome of the National Benchmark Tests Project
(NBTP) that was commissioned by Universities South Africa (formerly known as Higher Education
South Africa) in 2005. They are designed to measure a candidate’s levels of proficiency in Academic
Literacy (AL), Quantitative Literacy (QL) and Mathematics (MAT) in relation to the demands of
tertiary study.
The NBTs also provide information to assist in the selection and placement of students in
appropriate curricular routes (e.g. regular, augmented, extended, bridging or foundation
programmes) and with the development of curricula for Higher Education programmes. In addition,
they assist Higher Education to interpret school-leaving results, such as those of the National Senior
Certificate (NSC).
The AL and QL tests focus on the application of knowledge that was learned in the senior phase of
secondary school. The cognitive abilities and skills underlying the school curriculum are required to
be transferable to another context, the higher education context, and this is essentially what the AL
and QL tests are assessing.
Based on their performance on each of the tests, candidates are placed in one of three categories:
Basic, Intermediate, or Proficient. These categories, or bands, are rigorously determined through a
Standards Setting process which takes place every three years to ensure that benchmarks are
current and relevant.
3
