Hi, I'm sitting this exam for the first time and have gone through a few past papers and examiners reports. Is it fair to say that SA7 examiners typically award 1 mark per valid point in each answer? This seems generous relative to previous subjects, where a half mark was the norm with the odd exception. What's the catch?
Yes - I agree with you. This did not used to be the case. In SA6 and SA5 there were loads of halves and a few one marks. But in recent SA7 papers they have moved to almost entirely full marks - even in questions where some items are just listed. It sounds good and generous at first, but it has a downside. There are less ideas on the schedule. So instead of 170 ideas - many worth only a half, we have 120 ideas on the schedule - all worth one. So if you miss an idea it is more of a penalty. SA7 is a bit unusual in this respect, even among other SA subjects, and its only in the last year or so.
