About ESA
Who is ESA?
ESA Publications (NZ) Ltd is a New Zealand owned private publishing company that specialises in quality New Zealand educational books for the primary and secondary school ages. Book production is done in-house, assisted by several contractors, editors and proofreaders. All marketing, sales and accounts are in-house, with dispatch from our warehouse in Penrose, Auckland.
What books does ESA have?
The current ESA list includes Study Guides for Years 7 to 13, AME Workbooks for NCEA and Start Right Workbooks for Years 3 to 8. There are numerous new titles and new editions always in progress and it is expected that the total list will be about 140 titles by mid-2005. Many of these new editions and titles are specifically for NCEA at Years 11, 12 and 13. All our titles can be seen in our catalogue.
Where can I find ESA titles?
All titles are sold directly to schools (teachers sometimes sell them to the students), are available in all good bookshops and are sold directly to students and parents by mail order and through this website. They are also exported to Pacific Island countries. For details on how to contact ESA click here.
What are Study Guides?
ESA Study Guides are A5 sized books of 200 to 400 pages for use all year round. There is a Study Guide for most subjects at Years 7 to 13 and they contain all the year's work. They are New Zealand's most complete series for home study use throughout the school year for revision and to support classroom work. The NCEA editions cover all Achievement Standards (including those internally assessed). Where material covers externally assessed Achievement Standards, Study Guides have NCEA questions and full answers detailing NCEA grades (Achieved, Merit, Excellence). Study Guides have worked examples, diagrams and a glossary.
What are AME Workbooks?
AME Workbooks are approximately A4 sized books of 120 to 150 pages for most subjects at Years 11, 12 and 13. They cover all NCEA Achievement Standards with very brief revision notes. For material covering external Achievement Standards, they contain NCEA questions and full answers detailing NCEA grades (Achieved, Merit, Excellence). They are ideal from the end of Term 3 for preparing for the NCEA externals - revision and practising for the external exams.
What are Start Right Workbooks?
Start Right Workbooks are a series of English, Homework, Mathematics and Science books covering Years 3 to 8 for Primary and Intermediate School students and teachers. They cover all New Zealand curriculum material for each year, clearly and concisely explained and fully illustrated. They are authored by expert teachers and thoroughly checkread to ensure material is accurate and easy to follow for teachers, parents and students alike. Activities with full answers are provided.
What is NCEA?
NCEA (National Certificate of Educational Achievement) covers three levels. Level 1 is normally studied at Year 11, Level 2 at Year 12 and Level 3 is studied at Year 13. Internally assessed Achievement Standards are assessed during the year as tests, assignments or as portfolios of work; most externally assessed Achievement Standards are tested at the end of the school year as written exams called 'external exams'. Each NCEA at each Level is awarded to a student who obtains sufficient credits at the Level. Credits are obtained by achieving a grade value ('Achieved', 'Merit' or 'Excellence') from assessment of an Achievement Standard.
A course of work in a subject will typically comprise 24 credits, made up of up to nine Achievement Standards (Achievement Standards have values of between 2 and 6 credits each).
For more information about NCEA visit http://www.nzqa.govt.nz/ncea
Which books does ESA have available?
To see which books are available go to the online catalogue. ESA cannot give more accurate publication dates until a book is in its final stages because the new NCEA editions take time - authors and checkreaders have to interpret the Achievement Standards and write and check new material. Determining how long this will take is difficult to judge.
How can I be advised of a new edition or title?
Send us your email address (click here) and tell us what book(s) you are interested in. When the book(s) are available we will advise you by email and you can then place an order or go to a local bookshop. Alternatively, keep an eye on the ESA website - especially the Publication Dates feature.
What does the date in the top right corner mean?
This is the year(s) the book is suitable for. A book is suitable for use in 2007 if this date includes '2007'.
A book, although having been written several years ago, is usually still current. Any doubts, contact ESA, contact details at the bottom of this page.
Why does ESA not have some titles?
In most cases because we have not found capable authors with enough time and interest.
Why are some titles late in being published?
With increasing demands in the last three or four years upon teachers' time and commitment and the introduction of NCEA, it has becoming increasingly difficult for authors and checkreaders to update material or to find the time to write new material.
What is the difference between a Study Guide and an AME Workbook?
A Study Guide covers the year's work for a subject at a particular year, concentrates on the content and is best used all year round for revision and to support classroom work. An AME Workbook is a briefer book, with a compilation of recent NZQA questions, is often write-in and concentrates on the end-of-year NCEA externals and last minute revision.
Why buy an ESA Study Guide?
No matter how enthusiastic or well-meaning your teachers, the back up and support provided by a Study Guide is vital - over 100 000 ESA books are purchased every year by students for this reason. ESA Study Guides are written specifically for students to support the year's classroom work. They are widely recommended by teachers - they have respectively been called 'the bible' and the 'no-nonsense' books. Used regularly, to support classroom work, a Study Guide will be your best investment for complementing your classroom work and succeeding at school.
Why do students purchase ESA Study Guides?
Students tell us:
* They are sick of photocopied notes or 'filling in the gaps' workbooks.
* They don't always understand the teacher and the work they are doing.
* They just 'want to get on with it' and 'learn the work'.
* They like the structure that Study Guides provide.
How should a student use their ESA Study Guide?
We recommend you use the Contents page or Index/Glossary any time throughout the year to look up any topic, concept or word for any work you have trouble understanding in class or to reinforce class work. When you find the topic, use it to:
* Try a worked example.
* Locate missing data or try a few key questions.
* Fill in missing classroom material or work you don't understand.
* Check the course material from the revision notes in the Study Guide.
Why do students use AME Workbooks?
The very brief notes and NCEA questions in the AME Workbooks are best for last minute revision to practise for the Externals - the end of year NZQA examinations. You can practise actual recent NZQA exam questions, mark them and read the tips and explanations offered. Used any time during the year as Achievement Standards are covered but especially at the end of the year for end of year revision and exam practise.
Why should parents buy Start Right Workbooks for their younger children?
Start Right Workbooks have been written to enable parents (and many teachers) to:
* See what, in understandable terms, is meant by the curriculum, at the Level and Year 'their child is at'.
* Allow parents to see the terminology being used, see and understand what is being taught, the skills needed and thus offer back-up and support to their children.
* To provide friendly homework opportunities that reinforce school programmes and classroom work and which a parent can understand, explain, mark and support.
What are ESA's contact details?
Postal address: Box 9453, Newmarket, Auckland, New Zealand
Street address: Unit 14, 180 Montgomerie Rd, Airport Oaks, Auckland.
Email: info@esa.co.nz
Phone: 09-256-0831
Customer freephone: 0800-372-266
Freefax: 0800-329-372
International: +64-9-256-0831, Fax +64-9-256-9412
Sales and Administration: Andrea Tihore on andrea@esa.co.nz
Accounts enquiries: Julie Clifford on julie@esa.co.nz
Publisher and Managing Director: Mark Sayes on mark@esa.co.nz
Internet: www.esa.co.nz
