Welcome to the latest edition of the Tips of the

Month Flyer… This month, as promised, we’ve put

together a selection of hints and tips for those who

engage in both INTERNAL and EXTERNAL

VERIFICATION processes… short and sweet, we

hope these tips help!

ASP Tips of the Month... Issue 8

���� Send your tips to: simon.cohl@oaklands.ac.uk ����

When IV’ing an assignment, ensure that you are using the most up-to-date “assessment criteria”, and not just the grading criteria.

The assessment criteria delves deeper into the specifics that need to be covered by the assignment.

Using the assessment criteria will also enable the assignment writer to tailor the assignment so that there is no ambiguity on what the [grading] criteria is actually asking for… Hope this makes sense, Paul.

In Performing Arts, we try not to put any assignments or hand out any

assignments to the learners until they have been IV’d. It helps to

familiarise yourself with the college paperwork early on in the year -

my team arrange a time in August to sit down and IV the assignment

briefs between us.

For External Verification, our tip is to check whose responsibility it is to

contact the EV, and then ensure as a team that they have arranged the

visit and chosen the units for the EV process. Look at previous years

sampling to ensure that you don’t submit the same unit as the previous

year even if the teacher or assignment is different. Victoria...

A good idea is

to put

together your

own agenda

for the visit

with things

you want

them to see/

experience.

Try and get anyone who

is starting assessor or

verifier awards to bring

there portfolio to the

EV for counter signing -

makes it much quicker

and less to debate for

the IV signing off the

training.

A very good idea is to survey the staff in

your area for 'things they need to know'

from the particular awarding body.

Have a laptop with

access to the relevant

systems so that learner

information can be

accessed quickly - the

quicker they get what

they want the happier

they are and the easier

the visit - they get to go

home and have tea with

family (same as us!)

Always put

together a list of

issues or difficulties

in the various

qualifications as

well as the

questions - this can

be used to get the

most out of the

visit - don't forget

they are there to

help, not to hinder!

They find it very

helpful and

comforting if the

visit has been well

thought through

and planned for.

Remember that EV's are under as much stress as us - more so in some cases - make the visit as

easy as possible for them, look before hand at what they

want to see, try and get all the relevant

people in the building or near so

you can call on them if required.

If you have any issues when the visit

planner or EV first contact occurs,

make sure you have a conversation

with them asking for clarification -

don't ignore until the last minute - act

straight away, it only takes 5 mins to

look at what they have sent.

Engineering’s Top Tips!

Have you got any similar ideas that you want to share?

Send your tips to the SASP Team, and we’ll include them in

the next issue. Best Tip each month wins a prize!!!

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If you can arrange an

assessment visit (using the

correct assessment paper

work) then it's a really

good idea to do so!

Make sure you have a copy

of the last visit’s actions

and report with completed

strategies for each point.

If you can also arrange for

either the assessor or the

IV to be trainees then

that’s great too, as they get

closer to the award.

Write an assessment and

verification outline for your

qualifications - EV can (at a

push) give you advice as to

what you should try and

achieve.

Have standardisation

minutes from meetings -

it’s a good idea to have

them pre-planned for the

year even if it's just an out-

line (Also remember that

conversations in a corridor

or phone count as

standardisation - so minute

them also and put it in your

IV files)...

Remember an EV is

genuinely there to help and

they don't expect it to be

perfect so if you think you

have made a mistake or

you are not sure about

something, ask their

advice - that's their job.

All the best, the Engineering Team...