Methods of Assessment

Assessment Guidelines

• Workplace Assessment
• Knowledge Tests
• Simulation
• Criteria for Defining Realistic Working Environments

Workplace Assessment

At each qualification level the mandatory unit must be assessed using evidence arising from the workplace. All optional units may be assessed using evidence arising from the workplace. For all work place assessments:

• evidence should arise naturally from work place tasks and activities involving the use of IT;
• product outcomes – in the form of outputs (in soft or hard copy) produced using IT – should form the majority of evidence;
• ephemeral evidence – such as, of decision taking, should be cross checked by oral questioning and backed up by brief written evidence – for example in the form of annotations or storyboards;
• the assessment of workplace performance should be as natural and efficient as possible and therefore evidence of competence should, where possible, come from work colleagues acting as ‘expert witnesses’.

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Knowledge Tests

Some employers use knowledge tests, often delivered electronically, to assess an employee’s knowledge and understanding of, for example, organisational procedure. Knowledge components specified in the standards may be assessed by the use of such knowledge tests.

Where knowledge tests are used in this way, assessors and internal verifiers must ensure that:

• the knowledge being tested matches that specified in the NOS; and
• the assessment methodology used is robust and comparable to existing awarding body practices.

The use of knowledge tests should be agreed in advance with the external verifier.

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Simulation

 The term simulation refers to the simulation of work tasks and activities – not to the use of IT. Such simulation is permitted for assessing any optional units.

The optional units relate to the techniques involved in using IT and these must always be assessed at least in part through evidence gained from practical tasks or activities involving the creation of documents, spreadsheets, web pages or other products (either paper based or in digital form). In other words, all assessment of optional units must be based on the use of real IT software and hardware to carry out tasks and activities that may be simulated.

Where tasks and activities are simulated they must be undertaken in a realistic working environment.

Simulation is not permitted for the mandatory unit or any sector specific unit.

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Criteria for Defining Realistic Working Environments

A realistic working environment is defined by the following criteria:

• based on a work task, activity or scenario that is sufficiently challenging for the level of understanding and skills to be assessed;
• includes a comprehensive range of demands and constraints typical of those that would be met in a real work context;
• gives candidates access to people, equipment and materials that would be normal for the tasks or activities represented;
• places candidates under pressures of time that would be normal in the workplace for the type of tasks and activities represented; and
• is replicable, in order to allow opportunities for reassessment under comparable conditions, where necessary.

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Last modified: 16 Jun 2007