[Year 12 IPM] Question 5 - the verdict!

[Mark Kelly]

Party time, fellow IPMers: the response from the VCAA about the IPM Q5 
disaster...

Dear Mr Kelly,

I am responding to your message dated 15 November about Question 5 in 
the VCE examination in Information Processing and Management, which was 
forwarded to me by Paula Christophersen.

Thank you for your detailed comments on this question, relating to the 
"application for copyright" and the ambiguity. Following discussions 
between VCAA staff and the Chief Assessor, Question 5 has been re-scored.

I am pleased to report that no student who attempted it will lose a 
mark. This will be reflected in students' results, the VCE Examination 
Results Service and in the Assessment Report.

I trust you find this outcome satisfactory. Thank you for your 
constructive feedback on the examination.

Yours sincerely,

Dr Bob Peck
Manager, VCE Examinations

-------------------------

My original complaint follows...

This is an official request to the VCAA to disregard IPM's multiple
choice question 5 in exam marking.

The question is fatally flawed and no-one can be fairly assessed by
whatever answer they give.

1.  The premise of the question is simply incorrect in law.  Copyright
in Australia is never sought nor given.  It is automatically assigned to
the creator of any intellectual property.  It is not registered like
trade marks and patents are.

2.  The question is imcomprehensible.  Does Crazy Cartoons create
cartoons and sell them to clients? If so, what's the stuff about
copyright details on the invoice for? What does 'copyright details'
refer to? And what are the 'GST charges related to the copyright'?

OR does Crazy Cartoons earn its money by getting copyright for its
clients' cartoons? (Which is impossible by Australian copyright law.)

Even if the question is not bad enough, none of the answers is
satisfactory.

Putting GST on an invoice is mandatory, but listing copyright details
(whatever that means) is optional...

So when the question asks "THIS is an example..." which "this" are the
examiners referring to - the GST, the copyright details? The answer must
be <B> and <D>.

--

No student deserves to lose marks on this question because of its
serious deficiencies.  An A+ student and an E student cannot be
distinguished by their answers.

Sincerely

Mark Kelly


-- 
Mark Kelly
Manager - Information Systems
McKinnon Secondary College
McKinnon Rd McKinnon 3204, Victoria Australia
Phone +613 95780844  Fax +613 95789253
http://www.mckinnonsc.vic.edu.au
IPM Lecture notes: http://vceit.com
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