Assessment and Accreditation of Workplace Learning

1
Assessment and Accreditationof Workplace Learning

• christine.sanderson _at_e-skills.com
• www.e-skills.com
• www.uvac.ac.uk

2
An Effective Partnership to assess and accredit
both Education and Industry Standards in ICT

• Sector Skills Council for IT and
  Telecommunications e-skills UK
• and
• University Vocational Awards Council-UVAC

3
Existing Standards linking HE and WorkHorses
for Courses

• National Occupational Standards
• National Council for Work Experience Standards
• Professional Standards- BCS
• Academic Standards

4
National Occupational Standards - NOS

• Set Standards of Performance for 95 of
  workplace activities at 5 levels of
  responsibility including for
• Technical tasks
• Handling information
• Dealing with people
• Working with people
• Sizing up and solving problems
• Planning action
• Measuring progress
• Evaluating outcomes
• Co-ordinating, influencing, negotiating.

5
Workplace Learning Assessed to National
Occupational Standards

• STEP 1 WORK EXPERIENCE
• Plan and Design. A Pick and Fit System
• Which Areas of Competence align to the course
  academic content,
• e.g. designing, installing , supporting or using
  hardware and /or software?
• 2 What level is realistic? How much real world
  /real work complexity is included in the course?

6
Workplace Learning Assessed to National
Occupational Standards

• STEP 2 WORK EXPERIENCE
• Assess using the NOS.
• Customer satisfaction
• Business Goals achieved
• Responsibility taken
• Effective communication of ideas
• Information processed effectively

7
Workplace Learning Assessed to National
Occupational Standards

• GRADUATE PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME
  GPDA IN ICT
• THE SECTOR FRAMEWORK FOR ASSESSING GRADUATE
  READINESS TO WORK EFFECTIVELY IN THE IT
  ENVIRONMENT

8
Workplace Learning Assessed to National
Occupational Standards

• ASSESSMENT FRAMEWORK.
• FULL DEGREE
• NOS LEVEL 3 COMMUNICATION AND PROBLEM SOLVING
  SKILLS
• NOS LEVEL 3 COMPETENCE IN 2 TECHNICAL UNITS
  DEMONSTRATED AT WORK OR IN REALISTIC SIMULATION

9
Effective Workplace Assessment asks-

• What BUSINESS activities to assess?
• What REAL WORLD/REAL WORK rules of evidence to
  use?
• How to INCLUDE THE EMPLOYER in the Judgement of
  performance?
• What academic credit to give the assessment?

10
Accreditation of HE Workplace Assessment Systems.

• Industry and Education have come together to
  recognise the reliability and consistency of the
  assessments of workplace performance.
• The Partnership between the IT Sector and UVAC
  has established the principles of accreditation.

11
Work Standards?

• Why?

12
Next Steps

• Work with e-skills UK
• To introduce Occupational Standards to IT courses
• To agree rules of evidence for assessment
• Contact
• christine.sanderson _at_e-skills.com