Taking a cost-effective approach to candidate induction
Once a candidate has signed on the dotted line (and possibly paid their money) the ITQ Centre needs to ensure that each candidate is aware of certain factors at the start of their ITQ Journey. Essentially, the candidate needs to:
* Carry out an ICT self-assessment activity
* Identify training needs
* Attend an induction session
Self-assessment and Training Needs Analysis
One way for assessors and verifiers to become familiar with ITQ and the Standards is to design initial assessment activities in order to ascertain the candidate's skills and knowledge at the start of the ITQ Journey. One purpose of this assessment is to identify gaps in knowledge and skills, which can be addressed using conventional face-to-face training, online tutorials or CD based reference materials.
Using e-skills Passport
British Computer Society ITQ Centres incorporate candidate access to e-skills passport, the online skills management system that helps candidates identify their current work-based IT and technology skills and helps to build a plan to improve them. The ITQ Internal Verifier could well have a role to support the ITQ Centre Manager to enrol ITQ candidates onto the e-skills passport and monitor subsequent access and engagement.
If you're not familiar with the e-skills passport why not take a virtual tour at http://www.e-skillspassport.com/tour/
Of course, any identified gaps or training needs should be addressed. The ITQ Internal Verifier might need to liaise with IT tutors to organise workshops or in-house training sessions to meet the training needs. Alternatively, the ITQ Internal Verifier might give support to assessors to provide just-in-time training to candidates especially during face-to-face meetings or via e-mail communication. A free online ICT self-assessment tool is also available from the Learning and Skills Network. 
How do you carry out initial assessment of each ITQ candidate? Do you cater for individual training needs in a particular way?
Induction
Induction is a key part of the initial stage of the ITQ Journey. So how does an ITQ Internal Verifier organise the induction? Is it naturally cost effective to deliver group induction? 
Bob, an ITQ IV, presents his view on how to organise an ITQ Induction event (ppt - 113kb)
North Yorkshire County Council use a Candidate Handbook similar to the one Bob describes in the slideshow. They have found it useful to provide information in a single format to enable the candidates to arrive at the initial meeting with the Assessor knowing some aspects of their involvement and the assessment procedure. 
Sharon Retson from Tekra Ltd explains about how they introduce ITQ to candidates.
Induction (PDF file 21Kb) 
Think about these tips for carrying out successful ITQ induction:
Carry out a group induction - it's much more cost effective than speaking to individuals and repeating information
Try to find out when candidates might be gathered together naturally - at meetings, lunch periods, staff training days.
Present the information in various ways - presentation and speaker notes, Candidate Handbook, online information.
Provide a visual diagram showing the ITQ Journey
Consider online support with FAQs beyond the induction event - people will always think of questions away from the session
Ask candidates to prepare a personal profile or summary - this can provide contact information but also give details about how they use ICT
Create a central email address (such as info@....co.uk) for general ITQ enquiries - you as ITQ Verifier can answer these - this will take pressure off assessor time.
Online induction
With a growing need to offer a wider opportunity for people to be able to attend events and receive training, online methods of communication and support is becoming increasingly popular. So can ITQ Induction be carried out online?
Some organisations have web sites or parts of an intranet available to their ITQ candidates, so they can get access to downloadable documents. Relevant policies and procedure documents could be made available in electronic format rather than being printed off and placed in the hands of a candidate who might not read them unless needing to address the Appeals and Complaints procedure.
Online induction might also offer an opportunity for candidates to form an online community and therefore providing a place to meet virtually and provide peer support throughout the ITQ Journey. Platforms such as Moodle can provide a safe environment that allows for forum discussions, synchronous chat sessions between groups of candidates or between assessor and candidate. This environment can also provide journal facilities to capture the learning diary of each candidate - to see how much they have grown in ICT confidence and competence.
Jackie Ling of Wirral Metropolitan College explains how she organises induction.
"We use the e-NVQ system which incorporates a basic assessment and induction, for example 'can you do?' or 'do you know how to' statements. We also use a paper-based induction method too. This includes yes/no questions based on Level 2 standards. If, during the induction, someone is unsure about a statement then we'll provide a scenario. For example, a teaching assistant was unsure about mailmerge so we suggested the type of activity - " if you have a certificate to send to a group of students in a class how can you create the document once and produce it with each individual's name on each printed certificate?"
Let's now consider how to manage and support the ITQ Assessor Team
Last modified: 18 Jul 2008
