Final-year high school students who sat a national history exam in New Zealand have launched a petition asking the exam be marked based on students’ own definition of an “unfamiliar” word.

The year 13 students were worried they might fail their New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA) level 3 history test because they didn’t know what the word “trivial” meant.

According to Stuff.co.nz, the word appeared in the paper on Wednesday in a quote from Julius Caesar: “Events of importance are the result of trivial causes.”

The question asked students to analyse the extent to which they agreed or disagreed with Caesar, with reference to the causes and consequences of a historical event.

According to the Oxford Dictionary trivial means “of little value or importance”.

Students were quick to comment on the petition, which has already been signed more than 2400 times, expressing their frustration with the exam question.

Student Logan Stadnyk of Taieri College in Dunedin is one of those who sat the paper and signed the petition.

He said he was “lucky” to understand the word, but at least half of his class didn’t.

“I too took the level 3 history examination. The inclusion of the word ‘trivial’ completely through (sic) me and make (sic) the continuation of the paper difficult!” Josh wrote.

Daniel Snakez agreed, saying the “essay should definitely be marked upon the each student’s own definition”.

New Zealand History Teachers’ Association chairman Graeme Ball sided with the students, calling the exam a “little bit of a snafu” on the part of NZQA, and said the language used in questions should be “accessible to all”.

“The exam was not testing comprehension, so it was unfair to make that part of the assessment,” Mr Ball told Stuff.co.nz

On whether year 13 students know the word “trivial”, he said it was “debatable”.

“I don’t think we can make assumptions about what students should and shouldn’t know at that level,” he said.

The protest was deemed a success after a spokeswoman for NZQA confirmed to the publication candidates would not be penalised for misinterpreting the word “trivial”.

However, she did say the language used in the question “was expected to be within the range of vocabulary for a NCEA (National Certificate of Educational Achievement) level 3 history student”.