NSW schools will be limited to a maximum of one take-home assessment task worth no more than 15 per cent of the school-based assessment mark under new rules aimed at protecting the integrity of the HSC.
The limit means a take-home task can contribute no more than 7.5 per cent of a student’s total HSC mark, as school-based assessment accounts for half of the final HSC result.
The new rule follows advice from the NSW Education Standards Authority after Acting Premier and Minister for Education and Early Learning Prue Car asked NESA to examine measures to respond to the growing use of generative artificial intelligence in schools.
Under current arrangements, schools determine how much of the school-based assessment component is completed through take-home tasks and how much is undertaken under supervised conditions.
Schools will continue to be able to use a range of assessment formats appropriate to individual courses, including examinations, oral tasks and process diaries.
HSC major works will not be covered by the new restriction, although schools will still be required to authenticate students’ work. Some assessment tasks linked to the development of major works will also be exempt, including courses in creative arts, technologies and English Extension 2.
The changes will apply to students beginning their HSC studies in Term 4, 2026 for the 2027 HSC, as well as students beginning Year 11 in Term 1, 2027.
The NESA Board will also consider further subject-specific advice and guidance for teachers, which is expected to be provided to schools from 2027 for the 2028 HSC and beyond.
The new limit is intended to ensure HSC assessment marks more accurately reflect students’ own knowledge, skills and thinking while reducing opportunities to rely heavily on generative AI for unsupervised assessment tasks.