3. The advantages of the BTEC qualification are that it: How the qualification fits into the National Qualifications Framework

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1 Advice for assessors BTEC qualifications 1. These BTEC Awards were developed by the Eastern Region SEN Partnership in 2005 through consultation with its local authorities. The occupational requirements for SEN casework were analysed by drafting a set of national standards for SEN officers. The national standards were the starting point for the three BTEC awards. 2. The BTEC awards represent a substantial part of a continuum of professional accreditation for all staff working in SEND assessment, coordination and support for parents/carers. The qualifications aim to provide candidates with the knowledge, understanding and skills required to carry out their job role effectively. Existing staff can use the qualification most suited to their current role to evaluate their performance and gain a recognised award for their current levels of competence. 3. The advantages of the BTEC qualification are that it: can be offered to both new and experienced staff, providing a comprehensive training programme for new staff and the chance for existing staff to update and improve their skills and knowledge allows a range of assessment methods and so can be flexible to fit in with workplace needs provides a career progression path for staff working in SEND assessment and coordination How the qualification fits into the National Qualifications Framework 4. The qualifications have been designed at levels 2, 3 and 4. The table on the next page shows the National Qualifications Framework in 2005 to demonstrate how these qualifications were designed to fit within the National framework at that time. The intermediate, advanced and professional level qualifications are highlighted in the table on the next page. SEN Casework Award 1 September 2015

2 The National Qualifications Framework (NQF) NVQs Vocational Qualifications BTEC Qualifications Academic Qualifications 5 Professional Development Diploma Postgraduate and Professional BTEC Advanced Professional Award/Certificate/Diploma 4 Higher National Certificate Diploma First Degrees Professional Development Certificate BTEC Professional Award/ Certificate/Diploma BTEC Professional Award in SEN Casework- Level 4 3 Vocational A Levels National Certificate/Diploma GCE A Level Professional Development Award BTEC Advanced Award/ Certificate/Diploma BTEC Advanced Award in SEN Casework- Level 3 2 Intermediate GNVQ First Certificate/Diploma GCSE BTEC Intermediate Award/Certificate/Diploma BTEC Intermediate Award in SEN Casework-Level 2 1 Foundation GNVQ BTEC Foundation Award/Certificate/Diploma National Curriculum Entry Level BTEC Introductory Award/Certificate/Diploma Note: The designation of a BTEC qualification as an Award, Certificate or Diploma depends on the number of guided learning hours the programme is expected to involve. SEN Casework Award 2 September 2015

3 The structure of the qualifications 6. Each qualification is made up of three mandatory units of thirty guided learning hours. Guided learning hours give an indication of the time a candidate with little previous experience might need to spend acquiring the knowledge for the unit. Experienced candidates will already have much of that knowledge, so 90 guided learning hours is unlikely to be required for the award. 7. The same three units for each level are: Knowledge and understanding Communication skills Personal management skills 8. To gain a qualification at the appropriate level, candidates should complete all three units at that level. Individual units can be taken and accredited without the candidate gaining the full award. Level descriptors are provided later in this section to assist in assessing the appropriate level for a candidate. Composition of each unit 9. The qualification is written in terms of learning outcomes, assessment requirements and underlying content, with brief guidance notes. The format of each unit is structured in the same way: Learning outcomes- Learning outcomes summarise what candidates need to do to achieve each unit Assessment requirements- Each learning outcome is translated into more detailed assessment requirements indicating what candidates need to demonstrate when being assessed for the unit Content - The content section of the specification details the underlying knowledge that candidates need in order to meet the assessment requirements and defines any key words or terms. It also gives some examples of evidence which might be used. Guidance- At the end of each unit there is a guidance section giving advice on assessment, delivery and available resources The content section is the key starting point for any queries about what each assessment requirement is looking for. If it is not clear from the content section, please contact the programme co-ordinator for clarification and advice. SEN Casework Award 3 September 2015

4 Delivery and process 10. The qualifications are intended to be work-based and delivered through on-the-job assessment and training, supplemented by professional development programmes where appropriate. Candidates, their managers and assessors should identify any areas where further development is required and suitable training courses needed to enable that development to take place. 11. It is difficult to estimate the time involved for assessors. A significant factor is whether the assessor line manages the candidate and sees him or her on a regular basis. Much of the support and assessment role can be carried out through normal performance management or appraisal arrangements. 12. Previous candidates have appreciated meeting regularly with their assessor and other candidates to bring the portfolio up to date, say for an hour and a half every half-term, to check on appropriateness of pieces of evidence and to have assessment requirements signed off. 13. The candidate will take on average one year to complete the award. It is possible to do it more quickly. Candidates have several years to complete the award if their professional or personal circumstances change such that they have to stop working on it for a while. Contact details for further advice and support 14. There is a growing network of assessors within and between the 50 or so local authorities now involved in the award. Assessors establish and maintain contact at assessors meetings and the termly workshops. 15. If what you're looking for is not contained within this manual or if you have any queries about your role or an individual candidate, please contact the programme co-ordinator, Ian Palmer (ian@lindassociates.co.uk or / ). What is the assessor s role? 16. The role of the assessor is to support individual candidates as well as assess them. Elements of the role include: a) Support: mentoring and encouragement help and feedback on initial self-evaluation explaining/unpicking individual assessment requirements guidance on appropriate evidence phone calls/ s/face-to-face contact SEN Casework Award 4 September 2015

5 directing candidates towards resources identifying professional development opportunities b) Assessment: signing off individual assessment requirements regular checks on progress moderating within and across local authorities confirming completion of each unit and the whole award 17. An assessor s role can be carried out by a line manager or by another person in the authority with sufficient understanding of the candidate s role. 18. Typically assessors will have up to three candidates at any one time, because of the time involved, although it is possible to have more if necessary. (We can arrange for external assessment of candidates if you do not have sufficient / any assessors available. Please contact Ian Palmer to discuss possibilities and likely cost.) 19. Three principal learning points from local authorities already doing the award are that: candidates can initially have little confidence in or some difficulty recognising what they already know, understand and can do it is important just to get started and add to the portfolio little and often, otherwise the award can take longer than expected it helps to target particular assessment requirements initially for quick wins and to gain momentum 20. Assessors are supported by internal verifiers for the award. Internal verifiers are available to answer any questions and check on your candidates progress as well as moderate your assessment of their portfolios. There are currently three internal verifiers: Ian Palmer, Liz Malcolm and Ollie Pardo. What kind of evidence is required? 21. The award is looking for candidates to meet two types of criteria: factual, e.g. understanding of the statutory basis for their work performance, e.g. various communication skills. 22. Evidence is drawn from material routinely produced in day-to-day work, e.g. s, file notes and letters. It is important that candidates annotate this material, e.g. to identify which part of the statutory framework the letter is demonstrating knowledge of, and personalise it, i.e. to make clear what their particular role/contribution is in that situation. SEN Casework Award 5 September 2015

6 23. The portfolio should tell the story of what a candidate knows and can do to carry out his or her work role. The more personalised the material is, the better the impression conveyed of a candidate who knows what they are doing and why. A variety of types of evidence makes a good impression, e.g. a balance of letters, s, file notes, reflective accounts and witness testimonies. 24. Handwritten annotation and personalisation of material is fine. This helps evidence to be compiled in the moment, rather than waiting for a designated half day in three weeks time- little and often is the mindset to advocate. There is no requirement to word process evidence. As long as the evidence is clear and legible, the format and neatness of it does not matter. Electronic portfolios are acceptable if that is the local authority s working practice. 25. It is important not to underestimate the value of the professional conversations which you regularly have with your candidates. If you are line manager of your candidate or work closely with him or her, there will be many opportunities to gather evidence when you discuss a particular case with that person. Any written outputs from those conversations, e.g. s or file notes, can be used as evidence. If there is no written output naturally occurring, the candidate can write a brief reflective account to confirm his or her particular knowledge or skill linked to an individual assessment requirement. 26. As a candidate portfolio progresses with naturally occurring pieces of evidence, you can encourage the candidate to fill in any remaining gaps with reflective accounts and witness testimonies. Professional conversations or observations can be done with an individual or group of candidates with a large number of the assessment requirements, and the same witness testimony can be used for all candidates taking part in the same group discussion. Recording evidence 27. For each assessment requirement, evidence of achievement must be clearly recorded. Each candidate should have an ongoing record of assessment requirements which have been met. Tracking documentation in the form of assessment grids is provided to assist in this. Candidates should keep a file or portfolio of evidence from assessments. Evidence might include: copies of documents prepared e.g. letters, s, minutes, statements or reports witness testimonies reflective accounts of work activities written by the candidate 28. Candidates must annotate the evidence or provide some kind of commentary on it to demonstrate both their understanding of the SEN Casework Award 6 September 2015

7 assessment requirement and how it influences their day-to-day work. Recording documents are contained as required in each manual and available electronically. A full set of templates and forms is contained in section 3 of this manual. How do I know what the standard is? 29. Assessors will develop an understanding of the standards required through: assessor briefings or meetings exemplar material internal verifier feedback on individual portfolios or phone contact with an internal verifier contact with assessors in neighbouring authorities 30. Standards in different authorities will be moderated by internal verifiers, to ensure that there is consistency between assessors within and between authorities across the country. 31. The content section of each unit is intended to give guidance to candidates and assessors by defining the terms of the assessment requirements and giving some examples of possible evidence. Choosing the right level 32. Candidates, their managers and assessors should decide on the appropriate level for the candidate to achieve. This will largely be determined by the candidate s level of experience and job role in SEND. The award can also be used to help a candidate prepare for promotion, so there may be elements which are not routinely covered in their current role. 33. Level 3 has been designed for staff who work independently, often in a support officer role, and Level 4 for staff who have a senior officer or management role, which will involve case co-ordination and/or lead responsibility roles in a team. The following level descriptors from Edexcel/Pearson guidance are given as a further reference for choosing the right level for candidates: 34. Level 3: Level 3 candidates are in roles that involve the application of knowledge in a broad range of varied work activities, performed in a wide variety of contexts, most of which are complex and non-routine. There is considerable responsibility and autonomy, and some guidance of others. 35. Level 4: Level 4 candidates are in roles that involve the application of knowledge in a broad range of complex, technical or professional work activities performed in a wide variety of contexts and with a substantial degree of personal responsibility and autonomy. They will often also SEN Casework Award 7 September 2015

8 have responsibility for the work of others and the allocation of resources. 36. A self-evaluation grid is provided to help candidates identify whether they currently meet the assessment requirements. The self-evaluation grid is not part of the assessment of the portfolio, but it is helpful in giving candidates some initial familiarity with the broad learning outcomes and individual assessment requirements. Candidates may need help from you or their peers to be confident that they will be able to meet the assessment requirements; new candidates typically underestimate what they already know, understand and can do. 37. Completing the grid will help to confirm that the right level of award has been selected, as well as giving a candidate a list of professional development needs and activities. Where the demand for particular professional development activities cannot be met by existing courses or programmes, these can be organised at an individual authority or regional/national level as appropriate. 38. Candidates will not be registered with Pearson until a few months into the course, so it is possible to change the level upwards or downwards if the candidate and assessor agree that it is appropriate to do so. How to get started? 39. As well as referring to the getting started guidance for candidates, assessors should consider how best to initiate and maintain momentum with their own candidates. This could involve: using the completed self-evaluation form to see where initial gaps in knowledge or skills might be and identify suitable CPD opportunities an initial session with candidates to discuss the self-evaluation exercise and plan how the evidence will be collected (e.g. making a second copy of everything for a period of one week, which could later be sorted against individual assessment requirements) identifying assessment requirements which you know candidates will have evidence for, so that they can quickly get the portfolio started by having some individual assessment requirements signed off making sure that candidates have a clear tracking system for their portfolios, using the assessment grid in the manual or the electronic grid available on the website (the key is that it is clear for the assessor and the verifiers to see which piece(s) of evidence is meeting which assessment requirement) SEN Casework Award 8 September 2015

9 40. Termly workshops are a good opportunity for candidates to understand what they have to do, meet others in a similar role with different authorities and to gather some evidence. SEN Casework Award 9 September 2015