Understanding the GAT

Understanding the General Achievement Test (GAT)

The General Achievement Test (GAT) is a written examination completed in two parts. The GAT assesses literacy and numeracy skills and general knowledge.

All Unit 3 and 4 VCE students will complete the GAT on June 18. As such, there are no

U1-4 classes on the 18th June.

All students completing VCE Units 3 and 4 (including students completing a school-based VCE) complete the GAT as the results achieved ensure the quality and fairness of VCE assessments. The Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority uses statistical moderation to compare school assessments with external assessments (examinations), adjusting scores if necessary. GAT scores are used in the moderation process. For example, the GAT serves as a final check on external assessment scores and significant differences between final scores and GAT-predicted scores may lead to reassessment by the chief assessor in a VCE Study.

The Derived Examination Score (for students who miss an examination) calculation uses all available assessments, including moderated school-based assessments, GAT component scores, other external assessment scores and indicative grades supplied by the teacher. If the highest predictor score exceeds the achieved external assessment score, it becomes the final score.

The GAT is divided into two sections, Section A and Section B, each containing various question difficulties. Marks are not deducted for incorrect answers.

Section A: Literacy and Numeracy Skills

Writing Task: Students respond to two prompts based on a stimulus (image or text). The first part is a 10-minute short answer, and the second part is a 20-minute detailed response, assessed on effectiveness, ideas, structure, grammar, punctuation and spelling.
Section A Multiple-Choice Questions: There are 50 numeracy questions and 50 reading questions, each allocated 45 minutes, covering everyday contexts.

Section B: General Knowledge and Skills

Writing Task: Students write a piece presenting a viewpoint in response to several prompts, drawing on provided information and their own ideas.
Section B Multiple-Choice Questions: This section includes 25 questions each in mathematics, science, technology, humanities, the arts and social sciences.

Each student will receive a GAT Statement of Results with the end-of-year results, indicating if they have ‘met the standard’, ‘not met the standard’, or ‘met the standard with excellence’ in literacy, numeracy and general knowledge.

Students are permitted to bring a paper English dictionary or a paper bilingual dictionary to the test. The school will not supply these. Students must also adhere strictly to the VCE Rules for Examinations, which have been explained to them in a briefing.

Students have been provided an information sheet on the GAT, and more information, including past papers, is available online via this link.

Tristan Hill

VCE Coordinator