Teachers' Union Warns Against Full AI Exam Marking

Secondary teachers in New Zealand are being urged to keep control of student assessment grading as the use of artificial intelligence in education grows. A paper presented at the Post Primary Teachers' Association conference on Wednesday highlighted that automated marking is already being used by the Qualifications Authority, known as NZQA, for NCEA co-requisite tests in reading, writing and maths.

Marking Changes

According to the report, AI marking achieved an agreement range of over 80 percent with human markers, which matched or beat human-to-human agreement levels. This shift allowed NZQA to cut the number of human check markers from 100 in the year 2024 down to 34. Education Minister Erica Stanford stated she wants automated marking expanded to cover internally-assessed assignments by 2028, aligning with the rollout of qualifications replacing NCEA between 2028 and 2030.

Union Concerns

The report argues that grading student work provides valuable professional learning for teachers, deepening their understanding of academic standards and student performance. It warns that AI grading for complex work is much weaker than human assessment, noting that current tools can squeeze or inflate grades and fail to properly tell different performance levels apart. Many union members still see AI as a helpful administrative time-saver if used properly, but the report calls on the PPTA to reject full automation in favor of a hybrid model where human teachers stay responsible.

Context

As educational institutions worldwide look to technology to manage growing workloads, balancing administrative efficiency with assessment accuracy remains a major challenge. The debate highlights ongoing questions about how digital tools fit into traditional teaching roles and grading standards.