BTEC Quality Assurance 2011-2012

BTEC Foundation Level – Level 3 including Workskills

The quality assurance includes three processes:

• Lead Internal Verifier accreditation by online standardisation via OSCA

• Standards Verification• Quality Review & Development (includes NVQ/SVQs)

Who should be a Lead Internal Verifier?

• The person who usually has responsibility for verifying and signing off assessment outcomes for a Principal Subject Area

• Involved in the assessment and delivery and have an understanding of the units being assessed

• The person who usually coordinates internal verification across assessors and other internal verifiers for a Principal Subject Area

Lead Internal Verifier Accreditation

• A Lead Internal Verifier is nominated for each Principal Subject Area• Lead Internal Verifiers:

• register on OSCA• undertake induction training, available as a podcast on the

Edexcel website• complete a practice exercise • complete formal exercise – within one of the two windows• results sent one week after close of window

• There are two possible outcomes:• Accredited• Accredited, subject to Standards Verification

Lead Internal Verifier online standardisation 2011-12

• This will apply to Lead Internal Verifiers who: • did not complete online standardisation in 2010-11• were not released at first Standards Verification sample in

2010-11 • are replacing an existing Lead Internal Verifier• are registering for any new BTEC programmes being offered

• Existing Lead Internal Verifiers accredited for 1+3 years need to confirm their registration on Edexcel Online each September

Lead Internal Verifier online standardisation 2011-12

• Foundation Learning level materials only available in Window 2 • All exercises will be in two parts covering:

• 2 units with 14 questions on each unit• sections on assignment brief, standard of learner work,

assessor and internal verification activity

Lead Internal Verifier

induction

Preparation & practice

Window StandardisationNotification of results

Allocation of Standards Verifier

(if required)

September 06/10/11

One3/11/11

to 30/11/11

09/12/11 January 2012

Two19/01/12

to 15/2/12

24/02/12 March 2012

New for 2011-2012

• Some Principal Subject Areas have been merged:

• Production Arts is a new Principal Subject Area

QUALITY NOMINEE NETWORK MEETINGS AUTUMN 20118

Principal Subject Area Merged into

Building Services & Civil Engineering Construction

Customer Services & Operations Hospitality

Dance Performing Arts

Forensic Science Applied Science

Vocational Studies Personal and Social Development

Principal Subject Areas not covered by Lead Internal Verifier accreditation

A Standards Verifier will be allocated annually to:

BTEC Security BTEC Fire Services BTEC Emergency Care

Existing Lead Internal Verifiers cover:

BTEC Management BTEC Supporting Teaching and Learning

BTEC Management (Law) BTEC Travel Studies (Aviation Operations)

BTEC Maths BTEC Children & Young People (Level 2 and Level 3 only)

Where centres are running these for the first time in 2011-12 they will be allocated a Standards Verifier

BTEC Children and Young People

• We will continue to provide an annual Standards Verifier visit for Level 3 Children’s Care, Learning & Development programmes

• In 2011-12, this visit will cover all programmes within the Principal Subject Area at level 3 and below

• Where there is no Level 3 running, postal sampling will cover all programmes within the Principal Subject Area at level 2 and below

• Where only Level 1 is delivered this will be covered by Lead Internal Verifier accreditation via OSCA

Standards Verification

We allocate a Standards Verifier for two reasons:

• Confirmation sampling:

• Where you have an accredited Lead Internal Verifier

• Over the course of your accreditation period you can expect to be sampled at least once

• Accreditation sampling:

• Where a Lead Internal Verifier is “Accredited, subject to Standards Verification”

• Where online standardisation has not been attempted

• Where a Principal Subject Area is not covered by Lead Internal Verifier accreditation (e.g. Security, Fire Services)

Standards Verification

We allocate a Standards Verifier for two reasons:

• Confirmation sampling:

• Where you have an accredited Lead Internal Verifier

• Over the course of your accreditation period you can expect to be sampled at least once

• Accreditation sampling:

• Where a Lead Internal Verifier is “Accredited, subject to Standards Verification”

• Where online standardisation has not been attempted

• Where a Principal Subject Area is not covered by Lead Internal Verifier accreditation (e.g. Security, Fire Services)

1st Sampleby Standards Verifier

ReleaseLead IV accredited for current year + 3

Block2nd Sample required

Releasecertification for current year

BlockRemedial action required

2nd Sampleby Standards Verifier

Accreditation sampling

Where Lead Internal Verifier standardisation is not completed, certification can only be released for current year

RQM supportto release certification for current year

Standards Verification

1st Sampleby Standards Verifier

ReleaseLead IV accreditation retained

and certification released

Block2nd Sample required

ReleaseLead IV accreditation retained

and certification released

BlockRemedial action required

2nd Sampleby Standards Verifier

Confirmation sampling

RQM supportto release certification for current year.

Lead Internal Verifier accreditation withdrawn

Standards Verification

Standards Verification

The Standards Verifier will:

• Sample all levels within a Principal Subject Area

• Request the largest programme at each level

• Request complete mandatory unit(s)

• Select learners to be sampled

• Sample across levels of achievement

• Require all learners sampled to have been internally verified

• By this, we mean that for each learner, the assessment decisions for at least one assignment towards the unit has been internally verified

Programmes delivered Units sampled

Level 3 Diploma or Extended Diploma 2 units

Level 3 Certificate or Subsidiary Diploma 1 unit

Level 2 programmes 1 unit

Level 1 or Foundation Learning 1 unit

Number of learners sampled is linked to registrations

1-3 all learners

4 to 100 4 learners

101 to 250 8 learners

251+ 12 learners

Sampling

The Standards Verifier will contact you to request a list of anticipated learner grades for the units approximately 4 weeks before the agreed sample date and make the final selection of learners to be sampled.

Checking learner work

• All learner work should be clearly labelled (any video evidence should include clear identification of learners)

• Assessment decisions should be checked

• Internal verification should be obvious and functioning

• The feedback should be directly linked to the grading criteria

• The assessor should be providing guidance for improving the work

• Presentation of evidence should follow the order of the quality assurance process

Standards Verification Release

When:

• Assessment decisions are accurate

• Internal verification meets national standards:

• assignments are fit for purpose

• accurate verification of assessment decisions

Successful outcome means:

• The Standards Verifier concludes that the centre is assessing securely to national standards and documenting assessment and internal verification correctly

Resampling

This will be required when:

• the assignment brief is not fit for purpose

• any one of the assessment decisions is incorrect

• the assessment and internal verification are not conducted correctly

In some cases centres may be asked to produce an action plan as well as a resample (e.g. if the issue was to do with the timeliness of internal verification)

Resampling

First sample materials with actions addressed, plus additional learners

If the second sample does not meet national standards, the Regional Quality Manager will support you to release certification

Learners in first sample Additional learners

1–3 learners no increase

4 learners + 2 learners

8 or 12 learners + 4 learners

Feedback and action

• The Standards Verification report will provide feedback and action on three main categories:

• The assignment brief(s)

• Accuracy and consistency of assessment decisions

• Verification and standardisation processes

• Additional comments: general feedback, support for centres, etc.

Unit Content

• A centre is expected to deliver (i.e. ‘teach’) the unit content fully.

• All the elements of content must be covered, apart from anything preceded by ‘e.g.’ which is merely an example of what can be selected to teach

• A learner is not required to provide evidence for all the unit content, but is required to provide sufficient evidence to address the assessment and grading criteria in order to successfully achieve the unit

• Assessment guidance is given in each unit to support meeting national standards

Essential guidance for tutors

• The Essential Guidance section within the specifications gives tutors additional guidance and amplification to aid understanding and a consistent level of delivery and assessment

• This can be found immediately after the Assessment and Grading Grid within each unit of the specification

• Some of these sections are for guidance only and can be adapted to meet local needs, whereas the Assessment section provides amplification about the nature and type of evidence that learners need to produce in order to pass the unit or achieve the higher grades.

• Therefore it is extremely important that all assessors and verifiers read this section thoroughly and take it into consideration when devising assignments and making judgements about learner work.