Delivering and Assessing ABC Awards Qualifications

Delivering and Assessing ABC Awards Qualifications Delivering and Assessing ABC Qualifications V6 Feb 2014 Page 1 of 19 ABC Awards

Thank you for choosing to work with ABC Awards (ABC). You are one of over 1,000 approved centres offering qualifications from our portfolio of over 600 Ofqual regulated qualifications covering 14 sectors. All our qualifications have been designed with the support of relevant stakeholders to ensure that they meet the needs of both learners and industries across the UK. This means that the qualifications are designed to give learners the skills needed to find employment, progress within education or enhance their skills in their current job role. At ABC, we recognise the importance of continuing to offer not only a wide range and breadth of qualifications, but just as significantly, excellent customer support. All our centres have access to a dedicated Qualification Administrator as well as unlimited access to a Business Development Manager who can answer any queries or concerns you might have. Our Moderators are all subject specialists and are chosen by us for their experience, knowledge and ability to support centres to deliver ABC s qualifications successfully. Virtually all of our qualifications sit on the Qualifications and Credit Framework (QCF) regulated by Ofqual. THE QUALIFICATIONS AND CREDIT FRAMEWORK All units developed for the QCF have Clear Learning Outcomes and Assessment Criteria A Level from Entry Level to Level 8 showing the difficulty of the unit A Credit Value indicating how much time it takes for a learner to complete. Guided Learning Hours indicating the time that a typical learner will require in direct guidance from a teacher, tutor or other identified guidance provider to complete their programme of learning for the unit successfully. This does not include marking assessments when the learner is not present; work experience when an assessor or centre / employer learning provider is not present; or custodial supervision. These units are used as building blocks for all qualifications which sit on the QCF. The units are put together in a Rule of Combination to form a qualification. The size of a qualification is determined by the minimum number of credits a learner must achieve from the units included in the qualification. Qualifications with a minimum target of 1-12 credits are given the title Awards Qualifications with a minimum target of 13-36 credits are given the title Certificates Qualifications with a minimum target of over 37 credits are given the title Diplomas The Guided Learning Hours for a qualification is determined by the total of guided learning hours required to achieve the minimum units and credits which make up the qualification. All qualifications and units are published on the Register of Regulated Qualifications http://register.ofqual.gov.uk/ Delivering and Assessing ABC Qualifications V6 Feb 2014 Page 1 of 19 ABC Awards

1 Getting started Once you have selected the qualification you wish to deliver, what do you do next? 1.1 Make sure that you understand the structure of the qualification Read and understand the Unit and Rule of Combination document available on the ABC web site to make sure you Know how many credits are needed to successfully achieve the qualification Know which units are Mandatory Know how many Optional units you will need to deliver Consider which units you and your centre are best equipped to deliver Consider which units best meet the needs of your learners and, if appropriate, the local area s needs Check that the qualification you have selected is at the correct level for your learners to ensure that they have the best opportunity of success Consider possible progression routes for learners 1.2 Check what you need to deliver / assess Use the Qualification Guide for your chosen qualification. These are available to you as an approved centre from ABC s web site via a centre log-in. For every unit in the Qualification Guide, you will find Indicative Content This provides an indication of the scope for the Learning Outcomes and Assessment Criteria General Teaching and Learning tips Assessment Information Any specific assessment requirements e.g. external assessment, assessment in the workplace, grading etc. Consider The physical resources you will need to deliver and assess the qualification e.g. specialist equipment The staffing resources you will need including any specific requirements such as qualifications which may be needed to deliver and assess Any external resources that you could make use of e.g. visits out, guest speakers / providers, work placements Ways in which learners could gather evidence to demonstrate achievement of the Learning Outcomes and Assessment Criteria Some of ABC s qualifications are designed to confer competence in a job role and may be included in an Apprenticeship Framework. If learners need to demonstrate their competence in the work place how will you manage this? Ways that you will track and record learner achievement. ABC does provide Learner Achievement Checklists to help with this. They are available to you as an approved centre on our web site The Internal Quality Assurance process you are going to use. More about this later! Delivering and Assessing ABC Qualifications V6 Feb 2014 Page 2 of 19 ABC Awards

2 Planning the delivery of the units 2.1 Decide on the order that you will deliver the units required You may wish to consider delivery of Mandatory units first as these often provide the background for the Optional units, but it may be appropriate to deliver a number of Mandatory and Optional units alongside each other. You decide what would be appropriate in your circumstances. 2.2 Decide if you could combine the delivery of any units You may wish to combine the delivery of units within your programme to make learning relevant to learners. For example, there may be a health and safety unit which will lay down knowledge and principles, but will need to be applied in practical units. Remember, all assessment evidence provided by learners will need to be cross referenced to specific units. 2.3 Ensure that you have appropriately qualified staff to deliver and assess units The staff delivering and assessing units should have subject specific knowledge for the unit / units that they deliver, understand how qualifications operate in the QCF and understand the structure of the qualification. For qualifications with a vocational focus, staff should have knowledge of current professional practice. ABC advises that staff should spend time in a relevant work environment as part CPD to ensure that they keep up to date within the sector they are delivering unit(s). 2.4 Think about methods that you could use to bring learning to life for learners Many ABC qualifications are practically based. Where knowledge needs to be delivered, think how this can be related to practice. Some of ABC s qualifications are designed to confer competence in a job role and may be included in an Apprenticeship Framework. In these circumstances, learners will need to demonstrate their competence in the work place. You will need to consider how learners will be helped to develop these skills to the required level for assessment. This may require some formative assessment of a learner s performance before their final assessment to the required standard. 2.5 Decide if you could make use of external specialists to enhance delivery This could involve bringing them into the training environment or arranging visits / placements out in the working environment. If you decide to do this, it is important that the external specialists are well briefed and any legal requirements are met. 2.6 Build in time to discuss progress with individual learners to support them through the learning and assessment process This is an important aspect of delivery. This could be through a tutorial process or a reflection/review process. Where learners are required to demonstrate their ability to perform tasks, it is important that they are given time to practice and develop these skills before their final assessment against a specific assessment criteria. Learners need to be given ongoing feedback to help them reach the required standard. It is up to you as a centre to decide on what is best for your learners. Delivering and Assessing ABC Qualifications V6 Feb 2014 Page 3 of 19 ABC Awards

You must be aware of individual needs of learners. ABC expects that you make adjustments to delivery to support learners to achieve their best. 2.7 Consider how you will make sure that learners understand what their programme will involve It is important that your learners understand what their learning programme involves and what is expected of them in terms of the units which will be studied with a programme outline; any specific requirements for them such as a requirement for work placement; their involvement in the learning process e.g. managing their time to meet deadlines, participating in learning activities etc.; the assessment process to include production of evidence of achievement, recording / tracking systems etc.; their involvement in the review process including receiving feedback from assessors and planning next steps; the possible progression routes that they may have on successful completion of the qualification. This can be achieved in a variety of ways. Some centres may run an Induction Programme, others may produce information packs / booklets. Some centres may have a standard approach across all programmes. You need to decide which is best for your centre and learners. NB Some learners may only be aiming to achieve units. All of the above would still apply. 2.8 Decide how you will record learner achievement Learner achievement needs to be recorded and referenced so that it is clear where the learner has provided evidence to meet the Learning Outcomes and Assessment Criteria for all units which contribute to a qualification. As an assessor, you will need to be sure that all learners have provided sufficient, authentic evidence of their achievement. This needs to be available for your Internal Quality Assurance process and your ABC External Quality Assurer (External Moderator) who will be assigned to your centre by ABC Awards in line with our Quality Assurance Process. More about this later! 3 Assessing Learner Achievement A learner s achievement is based on the presentation of evidence to meet all the Learning Outcomes and Assessment Criteria for a unit. 3.1 Planning assessment activities to demonstrate achievement Delivering and Assessing ABC Qualifications V6 Feb 2014 Page 4 of 19 ABC Awards

You need to plan assessments, identifying relevant methods of assessment and the evidence that the learner needs to produce to meet the required standards set within the Learning Outcomes and Assessment Criteria. Learners need to be clear about what is being assessed how it is to be assessed timescales for assessment You will find that some Learning Outcomes and Assessment Criteria within units will focus on underpinning knowledge and understanding, others will focus on skills development and/or the demonstration of competence. You need to be clear about this by checking the Qualification Guide for your chosen qualification. In work based situations the assessor may be required to work with the individual learner(s) to identify and agree opportunities for assessment; determine an appropriate means of assessment; and agree arrangements for the assessment with the learner(s). In any scenario it is good practice to plan the assessment and record this where appropriate on documentation provided by your centre or, alternatively, the templates made available by ABC (e.g. Assessment Action Plan Template). You must ensure that all learners are prepared thoroughly prior to assessment activities. Remember, your learners may need to practice skills before they are assessed. You must ensure that all activities are conducted in line with appropriate current legislation and regulations including health and safety and you must ensure that learners are fully aware of what is required. ABC expects that your centre will ensure all learners are given fair access to assess assessment. If you feel that any of your learners would benefit from special arrangements to enable them to access assessment activities, ABC are happy to discuss this with you. Where possible, you could offer integrated assessment opportunities to learners whereby a number of Learning Outcomes and Assessment Criteria from different units can be assessed through a single assessment. This will reduce the assessment burden. It is essential that all evidence is clearly signposted to the relevant Learning Outcome(s) and Assessment Criteria. For many of its qualifications, ABC has assessment tasks / sample assessments which are available for approved centres on our web site. It is worthwhile checking to see what is available for the qualifications you wish to deliver. It is important that the assessment task which learners are asked to perform is attached to the evidence which is being put forward to show achievement. This also needs to clearly state what the task/tasks are that a learner is being asked to do; refer to the Learning Outcomes and Assessment Criteria which are being assessed through each task. 4 Assessing learner achievement Delivering and Assessing ABC Qualifications V6 Feb 2014 Page 5 of 19 ABC Awards

4.1 Do I need any specific qualifications to assess ABC Awards Qualifications? We require those involved in the assessment process to be suitably experienced and / or qualified. In general terms, this usually means that the assessor is knowledgeable of the subject / occupational area to a level above that which they are assessing. Assessors should also be trained and qualified to assess or be working towards appropriate qualifications. In some sectors and for certain types of qualifications, there may be additional requirements specified by, for example, a Sector Skills Council (SSC), professional body and / or regulatory authorities. These will be identified in sector specific Assessment Guidance. If applicable, this guidance will be sent to the person within your centre that you have named as the contact for the qualification. It will also be made available on the ABC web site to approved centres. 4.2 Making Assessment Decisions When making an assessment decision there are four key principles which should always be applied. Is the evidence of the learners achievements valid? validity is the extent to which evidence and theory support the interpretation that the assessment outcomes meet their intended uses current?- especially if prior experience of the relevant knowledge / skill is claimed sufficient?- all aspects of the standards set within the learning outcomes and assessment criteria of the unit should be met consistently authentic? - especially if work has been done with the assessor not present. Learners are required to confirm they are the sole generator of the evidence by completing a Declaration of Authenticity available on our web site and placing it in their portfolios/with their evidence. We require one per portfolio. The evidence produced needs to clearly signpost the Unit(s) it refers to the Tasks a learner has been asked to complete the Learning Outcome and Assessment Criteria that the task relate to This could be done via an Assessment Sheet which is given to the learner, an Assessment Action plan etc. It is up to you to use systems which suit your centre. When making assessment judgements, you will need to check carefully against the Learning Outcomes and Assessment Criteria being assessed. Remember, your Internal Quality Assurance process will require this information to understand the assessment decisions you as an assessor are making as will ABC s External Quality Assurance Process. You should always ensure that any assessment takes place in an appropriate environment and one that provides reliable and manageable opportunities that are comparable and fair for all learners. Delivering and Assessing ABC Qualifications V6 Feb 2014 Page 6 of 19 ABC Awards

You may have set up group activities as assessment activities. It is important in these situations that all learners must be able to provide evidence that they have individually met the required Assessment Criteria. If you are assessing performance, you may wish to use witness testimony to confirm the performance of the learner. Assessors should ensure that where witness testimony is used to confirm achievement, the credibility of the witness is confirmed. For example, if assessing learner competence is the witness providing the testimony occupationally competent in a particular area is the witness qualified in assessment of workplace performance OR has a professional work role which involves evaluating the everyday practice of staff You may want to use expert witness. This person will need to be occupationally competent in specialist areas agreed by assessor and who is either qualified in assessment of workplace performance OR has a professional work role which involves evaluating the everyday practice of staff.). The use of expert witness should always be agreed by the assessor. Make sure that learners acknowledge the sources of their research. If a learner hasn t yet reached the required standard, or one or more of the required Assessment Criteria has not been satisfactorily met, you need to advise them on how they can get to the required standard. This may involve further learning / training or practice. Where appropriate, and in line with any timescales for assessment set by the centre, learners should be allowed further attempts to provide evidence to meet any learning outcomes and assessment criteria that have yet to be demonstrated. 5 Recognition of Prior Learning, Credit Transfer and Exemption ABC encourages you to recognise the previous achievements of learners through Recognition of Prior Learning, Credit Transfer and Exemption. The following provides guidance on the use of Recognition of Prior Learning as an assessment tool for all QCF qualifications. Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) is a term which has been adopted within the QCF to describe A method of assessment that considers whether a learner can demonstrate that they can meet the assessment requirements for a unit through knowledge, understanding or skills they already possess and do not need to develop through a course of learning. 1 Assessment methods which take into account a learner s previous qualifications and/or experience have developed over a period of time. This has resulted in there being a number of different terms often used to describe these processes. Some of the most common are: 1 Regulatory arrangements for the Qualifications and Credit Framework 2008 Glossary Delivering and Assessing ABC Qualifications V6 Feb 2014 Page 7 of 19 ABC Awards

Accreditation of Prior Learning (APL); Accreditation of Prior Achievement (APA); Accreditation of Prior Learning and Achievement (APLA); Accreditation of Prior Learning and Experience (APLE). These terms all broadly describe a similar process. However, the general term Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) is the one which is commonly applied to QCF qualifications. One of the important principles of the QCF as a credit based qualification system is that a learner should not have to study again something which they have already learned. The QCF offers three strategies by which this principle can be achieved, these are: Credit Transfer Exemption Recognition of Prior Learning Each of these terms is used to identify different processes within the QCF. 5.1 Credit Transfer - the process of using credit(s) awarded in the context of one QCF qualification or awarded by a different awarding organisation towards the achievement requirements of another QCF qualification. Every awarding organisation in the QCF must support credit transfer by recognising credits of other QCF units / qualifications. Previous achievement of common and shared units within the QCF will be recognised and credit transferred, subject to continued currency and adherence to the ABC published Rules of Combination (RoC) following submission of evidence of certification. This would apply when a unit within one level is also listed within another level/qualification and the unit has the same QCF number. Assessors must ensure that original certificates OR copies of certificates that have been signed and dated by the internal moderator confirming the photocopy is a real copy are available for scrutiny by the External Moderator. 2 Where past certification only provides evidence that could be considered for exemption for part of a unit, learners must be able to offer additional evidence of previous or recent learning to supplement their evidence of achievement. 5.2 Exemption - refers to a qualification or unit which may have been achieved outside of the QCF. This could be considered in the same way as RPL. Assessment would need to map the achievements and identify any gaps in the criteria. These gaps would then need to be assessed. There may be restrictions upon learners ability to claim exemption or credit transfer which will be dependent upon the currency of the qualification and learners existing levels of skill or knowledge. Any queries about the relevance of any evidence, credit or exemption should be referred in the first instance to your centre s internal moderator and then to ABC. 5.3 Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) - the recognition of non-certificated learning towards a full or partial unit or qualification. 2 Evidence of certificated achievement may also be verified via the Personal Learning Record (PLR) Delivering and Assessing ABC Qualifications V6 Feb 2014 Page 8 of 19 ABC Awards

Evidence of RPL must be explicitly referenced to previously uncertified learning undertaken by a learner. The process a centre uses to assess a learner through RPL must include the evaluation of all evidence presented against the learning outcomes and assessment criteria from the relevant qualification. When making assessment decisions using RPL, assessors must be satisfied that the evidence produced by the learner meets the assessment standard described within the learning outcome and the assessment criteria. Assessments based on the RPL process must be integrated within the centres overall assessment arrangements and requires a structured assessment process which is planned and implemented with integrity as in any other assessment strategy which leads to the award of credit within the QCF. The integration of RPL within a centre s assessment strategy will enable centres to assess evidence presented as part of a unit. There is no requirement for the process to cover an entire unit. The process adopted by centres should enable the learner to present evidence for part of a unit from prior experience with the remaining evidence coming from more traditional methods of assessment. RPL Process Step 1 Information & Guidance Prior to enrolment you should discuss the purpose of RPL with your learners and outline the possibility this presents to claim some credit for their previous learning. The learner will need to know: the process involved in claiming achievement via RPL; details of any support and guidance relating to the process which may be available to them; details of any associated additional costs, type of evidence required and deadlines for submission; the Internal Quality Assurance and Appeals process. Step 2 Evidence Collection This is the stage where the learner has to collect evidence against the requirements of the assessment criteria. For this activity it is recommended that centres develop assessment plans and tracking documents to support the learner and assessor through this process. It is important that every opportunity is given to learners to prove their ability and to provide the appropriate evidence. This evidence may be drawn from a number of sources e.g. paid/unpaid work/experience. Step 3 Assessment and Internal Quality Assurance Assessment via RPL requires a structured assessment process which is planned and implemented with integrity as in any other assessment strategy. The assessor is required to make judgements regarding the evidence and its suitability in relation to the assessment criteria. In making these judgements the assessor may be looking for evidence from: review of Work Experience Records and documents confirmed by witness statements which have been validated by a manager/supervisors validation; reflective accounts or journals; Delivering and Assessing ABC Qualifications V6 Feb 2014 Page 9 of 19 ABC Awards

previous portfolios; reports; projects or case studies. You must confirm that the evidence gathered is validated as being the learner s own work. The assessment must be valid, sufficient, reliable and authentic. 3 There is no requirement to develop special arrangements for RPL but the assessment process should be conducted in line with the centres usual assessment and internal quality assurance procedures. All records of assessment and internal quality assurance (internal moderation) should be retained in accordance with the centre s and ABC s requirements. 4 Step 4 External Quality Assurance and Certification Assessments which include the use of RPL will be subject to the normal external quality assurance (external moderation) process. Centres will, therefore, need to have available clear records of assessment tracking, assessor decisions, appeals and internal quality assurance in relation to the assessment decisions made via RPL. These records should be retained in accordance with ABC s requirements 5. Funding Where centres are delivering qualifications which access public funding they should ensure that all funding requirements in relation to RPL are understood and met. It should be noted that the use of RPL may result in reduced funding. 6 Types of Evidence Learners will need to present their evidence of achievement of Learning Outcomes and Assessment Criteria in a portfolio of evidence. All evidence needs to be appropriate to the learning outcomes and assessment criteria of particular units, and to take into account the circumstances in which learners are operating. ABC has developed a range of sample documentation that can be used and/or amended by you as appropriate if you wish to use them. These documents are available to approved centres on our website and are listed below. As an assessor, you should consider what is an appropriate range, type and volume of assessment which may include a combination of the following. Methods of Assessment Observation of learner performance Examples of evidence of Achievement Video recording of learner performance Written record of learner performance (Observation ABC Template available for assessor to complete) Witness Testimony (Witness Statement ABC Template available for assessor to complete) 3 Cf. page 6 4 Centre Record Keeping; External Moderation Policy 5 Centre Record Keeping; External Moderation Policy Delivering and Assessing ABC Qualifications V6 Feb 2014 Page 10 of 19 ABC Awards

Role play Presentations Interview / professional discussion with learner Oral questioning Written questions Assignments/Projects/Case Studies Product evidence Recognition of Prior Learning Audio/Video/written record of learner performance in the role play (Observation / Oral Questioning ABC Template available for assessor to complete) Written transcript of learner performance in the role play Audio / Video / written recording of learner presentation Learner s artefacts, photographs, notes and/or products used during the presentation Assessor s feedback on the presentation (Observation / Oral Questioning ABC Template available for assessor to complete) Written record of learner responses to interview/contribution to discussion (Professional Discussion ABC Template Observation / Oral Questioning ABC Template available for assessor to complete Records may also be in Audio and / or Video format Audio / Video recording of learner responses to oral questioning Written record of learner responses to oral questioning (Observation / Oral Questioning - ABC Template available for assessor to complete) Written answers / responses Audio / Video / written reports, reflective journals / diaries Learner s artefacts, photographs, notes and / or products produced Artefact or product Certificated and / or authenticated evidence of prior experience / achievement that may include any of the above. Acceptance of this may be subject to time restrictions This list is not exhaustive and other types of evidence are acceptable. Often, a variety of forms of evidence are used to demonstrate learner achievement and these are often collated to form a portfolio. ABC encourages you to use innovative and exciting ways in which to demonstrate learner achievement to ensure that all learners have access to assessment without diminishing the rigour or validity of the assessment process. Portfolios do not need to be very large and must contain the learners own work, not an abundance of handouts produced by the centre. Simulation is acceptable in some circumstances. However, in many cases where competence is being assessed, learners need to demonstrate achievement in a real work environment. Specific details relating to the use of simulation can be found in ABC Assessment Guidance for specific qualifications and/or sectors. This guidance will be sent to the person within your centre that you have named as the contact for the qualification. It will also be made available on the ABC web site to approved centres. 6.1 Can learners use e-portfolios? Learners may wish to record evidence of assessment and achievement in electronic format. An e-portfolio is an electronic version of a traditional paper based recording system. It provides for the management of digital artefacts for assessment and / or verification. For example word documents, digital photographs, digital audio and video files Delivering and Assessing ABC Qualifications V6 Feb 2014 Page 11 of 19 ABC Awards

and the systems for storing and structuring the work, such as PowerPoint and other commercial e-portfolio systems. Centres who provide such systems for their learners must ensure that they provide a secure facility for the learner to store evidence of assessment and achievement; provide the centre with an audit trail of assessment decisions and internal quality assurance processes; allow access to ABC Awards External Moderators for quality assurance purposes. Whatever the evidence produced, it must all be clearly signposted to the relevant Learning Outcomes and Assessment Criteria and recorded appropriately. 6.2 Recording Achievement Your centre may have its own system for recording learner achievement, and we are happy for you to use that. Alternatively ABC has developed a range of sample documentation that can be used and/or amended by you as appropriate. These documents are available to approved centres on our web site. One of these documents is the Learner Achievement Checklist for learners, assessors and internal quality assurers to use to record evidence produced and assessment decisions. They available for all ABC qualifications, and can be customised to your own needs. Learners will need to cross reference evidence to specific Learning Outcomes and Assessment Criteria. Once you as the assessor are satisfied that a learner has provided sufficient evidence of achievement for all Learning Outcomes and Assessment Criteria for a unit, you need to acknowledge this by signing off the unit. Learners will need to keep this Checklist along with their evidence, as it may be required as part of the Internal Quality Assurance process of your centre and ABC s External Quality Assurance Process. Remember recording assessment decisions is clearly an important part of the internal and external quality assurance process. All evidence produced needs to clearly signpost the Unit(s) it refers to; the Tasks a learner has been asked to complete; the Learning Outcome and Assessment Criteria to which the task relates. 6.3 Retaining and Storing Evidence You need to make sure that all internally assessed evidence is retained by your centre until external moderation is completed and you receive results/certificates. We advise that you also retain the evidence for at least 28 days after this, in case evidence is needed for enquiries or appeals following certification. Further information regarding results, certificates and appeals are available on ABC s website. Delivering and Assessing ABC Qualifications V6 Feb 2014 Page 12 of 19 ABC Awards

7 Quality Assurance Processes 7.1 Internal Quality Assurance The main purposes of internal quality assurance (moderation) are to assure that the assessment decisions made by assessors are accurate and reliable when interpreting the standards set in unit/s by the learning outcomes and assessment criteria; to assure the consistency of assessment decisions across assessors; to address the key principles of consistency, transparency, validity and reliability. Irrespective of the size or type, your centre is required to have its own Internal Quality Assurance system in place. The person(s) responsible for the internal quality assurance process in your centre will usually be an Internal Quality Assurer / Moderator. Their role should involve supporting programme planning by delivery teams by sampling proposed assessment activities to check that they are hitting the Learning Outcomes and Assessment Criteria they are designed to and that the activities are appropriate for the target learners; supporting assessors on a regular basis through feedback regarding assessment setting and assignment decisions. This could be useful in supporting future continuing professional development (CPD); ensuring assessments are conducted both accurately and consistently across units and assessors; planning, in consultation with assessors, the sampling process to include all assessors and a full range of assessment decisions e.g. assessment of performance, assessment of knowledge and understanding; sampling of final portfolios prior to claiming certification; ensuring effective recording of learning achievement; ensuring security of assessment materials during the IQ process. Internal Quality Assurance activity should be an ongoing activity, and not just at the end of a programme of learning and assessment. Assessors need to be provided with support regarding their assessment practice throughout to ensure accuracy and consistency. Your Internal Quality Assurer/Moderator may also observe an assessor carrying out assessments from time to time. This is particularly appropriate where learners are required to demonstrate performance of skills to the standard required in the unit. Where there are new or less experienced assessors, it may be important to observe them carrying out assessments a few times across the year to support the new member of staff. It is best practice to bring assessors from a centre together to confirm that the assessor team has a common understanding of the learning outcomes and assessment Delivering and Assessing ABC Qualifications V6 Feb 2014 Page 13 of 19 ABC Awards

criteria, and what is required from learners in order to meet them. This is called 'standardisation', and is at the heart of the quality assurance process. Sampling - You must follow your own internal quality assurance policy with regard to the size of sample but ABC recommends that the sample should include evidence from both the full range of units and decisions made by all staff with an assessment responsibility, and should be at least 10% of the total number of learners or a minimum of 6. Where there are fewer than 6 learners all work should be internally moderated. Supporting the IQA Process - According to the size and type of centre, Internal Quality Assurers/Moderators should be supported by someone who leads on Internal Quality Assurance, for example a Lead Internal Moderator / Senior Manager / Head of Centre / Proprietor. Their role should be to ensure internal moderators receive an appropriate induction to the centre s IQA requirements and all necessary documentation. This is particularly important when new members join the delivery and assessment teams ensure that appropriate resources are available to carry out assessments and internal quality assurance activities in a safe, secure environment. This includes providing time for staff to conduct these activities facilitate structured meetings to ensure quality and consistency of practice within the centre and across delivery locations, encouraging discussion and contribution to the assessment process advise on the provision of special arrangements for learners with special assessment requirements carry out observations, as appropriate, using feedback to inform future continuing professional development (CPD) ensure appropriate induction and learner support is available deal with complaints and appeals from learners, assessors and internal moderators Some smaller centres may wish or need to externally source the services of colleagues or consultants to carry out the IQA role. More information is available in the guidance for Internal Quality Assurance available from the ABC s web site. ABC has produced templates which you may use and adapt to support and record such activities e.g. Internal Moderation Sampling Report - Template. These are available from ABC s web site for approved centres. Do Internal Moderators / Quality Assurers need specific qualifications? We require those involved in the Internal Quality Assurance process to be suitably experienced and / or qualified. In general terms, this usually means they are knowledgeable of the subject / occupational area to a level above that which they are internally assuring; Delivering and Assessing ABC Qualifications V6 Feb 2014 Page 14 of 19 ABC Awards

are vocationally competent, where required, for the specific qualification and the SSC Assessment Strategy; have experience and expertise in internally assessing different types of evidence; have an understanding of what is sufficient, valid and authentic evidence; be familiar with their centre s internal quality assurance policy and the ABC qualification and assessment requirements as laid out in the ABC Unit and Rules of Combination and Qualification Guidance documents. It is best practice for Internal Moderators / Quality Assurers to have one of the older Internal Quality Assurance Qualifications e.g. D34 Internally Verifying the Assessment Process V1 Conduct Internal Quality Assurance of the Assessment Process or have / be working towards relevant Internal Quality Assurance qualifications QCF Level 4 Award in Internal Quality Assurance of Assessment Processes and Practice QCF Level 4 Certificate in Leading the Internal Quality Assurance of Assessment Processes and Practice For further details about these new QCF Qualifications look on ABC s website and / or contact ABC direct by phone or email. ABC strongly advise that Internal Quality Assurers / Moderators attend training events organised by ABC to support delivery, assessment and Internal Quality Assurance. Check ABC website for details. NB There may be a charge for these events. Further guidance on Internal Quality Assurance can be found on ABC s web site. 8 External Quality Assurance The External Quality Assurance process is managed by ABC Awards to ensure that centres have provided learners with access to fair and reliable assessment opportunities, and that ABC qualifications are delivered in accordance with the standards agreed in the qualification guidance and approval documents. It is a flexible system which may be applied at any time of the year, usually when learners have completed all the assessment requirements required for units of achievement being claimed by learners. The cost of annual moderation is included in ABC s enrolment fees. Any additional moderation may incur a charge. ABC appoints all external moderators as sub-contractors. They are subject specialists and have detailed knowledge of the qualifications and administrative arrangements to support centres in their assessment decisions and internal quality assurance procedures. Sub-contractors act as ABC s representatives liaising with centres to establish consistency in the processes and standards of assessment decisions. They sample the internal Delivering and Assessing ABC Qualifications V6 Feb 2014 Page 15 of 19 ABC Awards

assessment process and agree achievement for certification. In addition they offer advice and guidance to centres in order to support continuous improvement. Centres will need to ensure that the external moderator has access to all the assessed evidence, records of the assessment process and internal quality assurance process they request prior to the moderation process. These may include digital media such as video, audio and picture files or e-portfolios. The External Moderator may ask for copies of evidence to assist us at ABC to conduct standardisation activities across centres and they may also request your permission to use some of the evidence produced by your learners and assessed by you as exemplars to support other centres. Your ABC External Moderator will discuss this with you. Further details about the ABC External Moderation process are available from the ABC Awards website. and finally If you would like to discuss any aspect of assessment, contact ABC Centre Support at centresupport@abcawards.co.uk or your allocated external moderator. Delivering and Assessing ABC Qualifications V6 Feb 2014 Page 16 of 19 ABC Awards

Remember to check our website for information and guidance on ABC s full range of qualifications, advice and guidance We provide additional information on how to build learner portfolios, including e-portfolios recording assessment using learner unit achievement checklists internal quality assurance external quality assurance credit transfer, exemption and recognition of prior learning equality and diversity/access to assessment We hope that the information in this guide will help you to support your learners need to successfully achieve units which contribute to the ABC qualification/s that you have chosen to deliver. Don t forget learners can take any number of units, they do not have to take a full qualification learners can take extra units if they want to you can always request an advisory An advisory visit is strongly recommended if you want specialist help or advice. There is a charge for this, but if you are a new centre, are delivering a new qualification in your centre, or have new members of staff, it might be useful to ensure that your learners are going to produce the evidence required to meet the standards set in the units you are delivering and that your IQA process will provide the checks on consistency within your centre. These visits can be tailored to your specific needs. If in any doubt, just contact us at ABC Awards Delivering and Assessing ABC Qualifications V6 Feb 2014 Page 17 of 19 ABC Awards

Robins Wood House, Robins Wood Road, Aspley, Nottingham, NG8 3NH t: 0115 854 1616 e: businessdevelopment@abcawards.co.uk w: www.abcawards.co.uk Delivering and Assessing ABC Qualifications V6 Feb 2014 Page 18 of 19 ABC Awards