03CHE

NCEA Level 3 Chemistry

Course Description

Teacher in Charge: Zev Fishman, Emma Howden.


This course aims to grow students’ curiosity about the world around us through understanding how and why substances exist and change. Our course focuses on the chemistry that occurs around us, learning about the composition and properties of matter, changes to matter, and the energy involved in these changes. We will expand on our knowledge from Level Two Chemistry and prepare students for further study in Chemistry. 


This course contributes towards University Entrance and endorsement at NCEA Level Three. Students will complete three internal assessments and two external assessments as part of the core course. Optionally, students can also complete the AS91392 Aqueous Chemistry external.

Course Overview

Term 1
The course starts by building on the Level Two external (C2.4) content to develop our foundational chemistry knowledge. This focuses on the properties of particles and matter, and energy changes.

Term 2
We will move on to two internal assessments, looking first at how some chemical reactions produce electrical energy while others can be forced to occur by electricity, then at the acid-base and equilibrium chemistry related to ocean acidification. At the end of this term we will begin our learning for the Organic Chemistry external, focusing on identifying different organic compounds.

Term 3
Using our understanding of organic compounds, we will begin this term with the Spectroscopy internal, which studies how unknown compounds can be identified. This is the same process used by forensic scientists to identify unknown drugs. The remainder of the term will focus on the reactions which convert one organic compound to another, completing our learning programme.

Term 4
This term will focus on revision and external assessment preparation for C3.4 (Properties of Particles and Thermochemistry) and C3.5 (Organic Chemistry).

Recommended Prior Learning

You should have gained at least 14 credits in Level 2 Chemistry, including 8 from external standards.

Course Costs

This Course Contribution covers the cost of the Level 3 Chemistry Workbook.

Description Type Value
Course Contribution Contribution $30.00
$30.00

Career Pathways

Credit Information

You will be assessed in this course through all or a selection of the standards listed below.

Total Credits Available: 23
Internal Assessed Credits: 0
External Assessed Credits: 23
Optional Credits Available: 0
Optional Internal Assessed Credits: 0
Optional External Assessed Credits: 0
Assessment
Description
Level
Internal or
External
Credits
L1 Literacy Credits
UE Literacy Credits
Numeracy Credits
A.S. 91388 v2
NZQA Info

Chemistry 3.2 - Demonstrate understanding of spectroscopic data in chemistry


Level: 3
Internal or External: Internal
Credits: 3
Level 1 Literacy Credits: 0
University Entrance Literacy Credits: 0 *
Numeracy Credits: 0

Assessments:
Term: 3, Week: 3

A.S. 91389 v2
NZQA Info

Chemistry 3.3 - Demonstrate understanding of chemical processes in the world around us


Level: 3
Internal or External: Internal
Credits: 3
Level 1 Literacy Credits: 0
University Entrance Literacy Credits: 3r,3w *
Numeracy Credits: 0

Assessments:
Term: 3, Week: 6

A.S. 91390 v2
NZQA Info

Chemistry 3.4 - Demonstrate understanding of thermochemical principles and the properties of particles and substances


Level: 3
Internal or External: External
Credits: 5
Level 1 Literacy Credits: 0
University Entrance Literacy Credits: 0 *
Numeracy Credits: 0

Assessments:
Term: 1, Week: 10

A.S. 91391 v2
NZQA Info

Chemistry 3.5 - Demonstrate understanding of the properties of organic compounds


Level: 3
Internal or External: External
Credits: 5
Level 1 Literacy Credits: 0
University Entrance Literacy Credits: 0 *
Numeracy Credits: 0

Assessments:
Term: 2, Week: 9

A.S. 91393 v2
NZQA Info

Chemistry 3.7 - Demonstrate understanding of oxidation-reduction processes


Level: 3
Internal or External: Internal
Credits: 3
Level 1 Literacy Credits: 0
University Entrance Literacy Credits: 0 *
Numeracy Credits: 0

Assessments:
Term: 2, Week: 2

A.S. 91411 v2
NZQA Info

Earth and Space Science 3.2 - Investigate a socio-scientific issue in an Earth and Space Science context


Level: 3
Internal or External: Internal
Credits: 4
Level 1 Literacy Credits: 0
University Entrance Literacy Credits: 4r *
Numeracy Credits: 0

Assessments:
Term: 3, Week: 6

Credit Summary
Total Credits: 23
Total Level 1 Literacy Credits: 0
Total University Entrance Literacy Credits: 7
Total Numeracy Credits: 0

Approved subject for University Entrance

Number of credits that can be used for overall endorsement: 23

Only students engaged in learning and achievement derived from Te Marautanga o Aotearoa are eligible to be awarded these subjects as part of the requirement for 14 credits in each of three subjects.

Disclaimer

Course availability is dependent on numbers and staffing, and course entry cannot be confirmed until the beginning of the 2025 school year.