Writing an HSC maths assessment task starts with the official requirements for the course and syllabus version used by the cohort. The 2026 Year 12 cohort remains on the 2017 Stage 6 syllabuses; the 2024 syllabuses began with Year 11 in 2026 and have their first HSC examinations in 2027.
This guide provides a drafting workflow, not a substitute for the applicable NESA course page, ACE rules, or your school's assessment policy.
Download the Free HSC Maths Assessment Task Template
Use the editable version to draft the task, then export a PDF for faculty review or student distribution:
- Get the editable HSC maths assessment task template
- Download the HSC maths assessment task template (PDF)
The template includes fields for task weighting, assessed outcomes, notification details, question-to-outcome mapping, marking guidelines and an internal review checklist. Adapt those fields to the requirements that apply to your course, cohort and school.
Start With the Applicable Official Requirements
NESA requires schools to develop an assessment program for each Year 11 and Year 12 course. Course-specific pages identify mandatory program elements and the elements schools can determine. For example, the 2024 Mathematics Advanced school-based assessment page states that:
- formal Year 12 tasks should reflect syllabus outcomes and content
- the course-component weightings apply across the assessment program
- schools determine the number and type of tasks and the weighting allocated to an individual task, within the course requirements
- NESA's listed schedules and notifications are samples, not a universal format for every school
The Mathematics Standard school-based assessment page publishes the corresponding requirements for that course. Extension courses have their own course pages. Do not transfer a task count, weighting range or component table from one course or syllabus version to another without checking it.
Notification timing and required notification fields can also be governed by ACE requirements and school policy. Use your school's approved process and the applicable official sample notification rather than assuming one universal notice period or field list.
The current NESA guidance on marking formal assessment should be read alongside the course page when preparing criteria and marking arrangements.
Choose Outcomes and Content Deliberately
Begin with the formal outcomes and content from the syllabus used by the cohort:
- Confirm the course, year group and syllabus version.
- Identify the outcomes and content taught before the task.
- Check how the task contributes evidence across the full school assessment program.
- Check the applicable mandatory course components and component weightings.
- Record the mapping between each question, the evidence it elicits and the formal outcome wording.
There is no universal rule against assessing an outcome in consecutive tasks. Reassessment can be appropriate when it provides new evidence or reflects the design of the program. The important question is whether the complete program reflects the required outcomes, content, components and weightings without an accidental coverage gap.
Do not allocate marks merely because a topic has traditionally appeared often in an external examination. School-based task design should start from the applicable syllabus and assessment program. Past papers can help calibrate style and demand, but they do not replace course-specific requirements.
For formal outcome wording, use the current NSW Curriculum course page rather than curriq's shorter content identifiers. The NESA outcome-code lookup explains this distinction.
Choose a Task Format That Fits Its Purpose
NESA's course pages distinguish mandatory assessment-program elements from choices schools can make. A faculty may choose a written examination, investigation, modelling task or another suitable format where the course requirements and school policy allow it.
There is no universal NESA rule that every Semester 2 task must contain an extended response, nor a universal mark range for procedural, multi-step or extended-response questions. Select formats and mark values that:
- elicit the intended knowledge, understanding and Working mathematically skills
- give students a fair opportunity to demonstrate the targeted outcomes
- can be marked consistently using stated criteria
- fit the task weighting, conditions and time available
- comply with the applicable course page, ACE rules and school assessment policy
The official Mathematics Advanced HSC examination page says external-examination marking guidelines are based on criteria related to response quality. A school task should likewise use criteria that make the evidence for each mark clear, while following the current guidance for marking formal assessment.
Build the Marking Guidelines With the Task
Draft the marking guidelines while writing each question. For every mark or mark range, specify the mathematical evidence the marker needs to see.
A practical review asks:
- Does the question actually elicit the intended outcome and content?
- Are valid alternative methods anticipated?
- Is it clear how method, reasoning, communication and accuracy contribute?
- Can two teachers apply the criteria consistently?
- Are adjustments or access arrangements handled through the school's approved process?
Questions that require only a final answer can be appropriate where the intended evidence is the answer itself. Where the task is intended to assess method, modelling, reasoning or communication, the prompt and marking criteria need to elicit and recognise that evidence.
For a deeper rubric workflow, use the HSC maths marking-rubric guide.
Worked Example: An Illustrative 40-Mark Advanced Task
Suppose a faculty has already verified that a 40-mark in-class task worth 20% fits its applicable Mathematics Advanced assessment program and school policy. The class has completed differential calculus, applications of differentiation and introductory statistical analysis.
This blueprint is illustrative, not a NESA-prescribed section structure:
| Section | Content focus | Marks | Evidence sought | | --- | --- | ---: | --- | | A | Differentiation and data interpretation | 10 | Accurate use of core techniques and interpretation of supplied information. | | B | Multi-step calculus applications | 18 | Method selection, modelling and mathematical communication. | | C | Integrated application and interpretation | 12 | Sustained reasoning against explicit marking criteria. | | Total | | 40 | 20% task weighting in this example only |
Before approval, the writer would replace each broad content label with the formal outcomes from the applicable syllabus, map the questions to the mandatory assessment components, check the weighting against the faculty schedule, draft the marking criteria, and have another teacher complete and moderate the task.
Moderate the Draft Before Students Sit It
Moderation is a quality check, not a claim that every task must follow one fixed layout. Ask a colleague to review:
- syllabus and outcome mapping
- task conditions and student instructions
- accessibility and approved adjustments
- timing, total marks and arithmetic
- worked solutions and alternative methods
- marking criteria and likely boundary cases
- consistency with the faculty assessment schedule and school policy
After a sample is marked, use the faculty's documented process to resolve ambiguous criteria consistently. Record any agreed clarification so all markers apply the same interpretation.
Track Coverage Across the Program
A task can be well written and still sit inside an unbalanced program. Maintain a program-level map showing:
- formal outcomes and content assessed
- mandatory course components and accumulated weightings
- task types and conditions
- opportunities for students to demonstrate reasoning, modelling and communication
- evidence available for reporting
Review the official course requirements whenever the cohort or syllabus version changes. For content navigation and practice, use the curriq Standard 2, Advanced, Extension 1, and Extension 2 pages, while taking formal outcome wording from NESA.
FAQ
Must every task use the same notification fields and notice period?
Use the current ACE requirements, applicable course materials and your school's assessment policy. This guide does not assert a universal two-week notice period or one mandatory notification template for every NSW school.
Can the same outcome be assessed in more than one task?
Yes, where that choice fits the assessment program and produces useful evidence. Check the complete program for required coverage and weightings rather than applying a blanket ban on repeated outcomes.
How many marks should an extended response be worth?
NESA does not prescribe one universal extended-response mark range for every school-based HSC maths task. Set marks from the evidence required, task purpose and applicable course and school requirements.
Where do I verify the rules for my task?
Start with the school-based assessment page for the applicable NESA course and syllabus version, then check current ACE requirements and your school's approved assessment policy.