NVQ Web

This is one of a series of articles available at www.nvqweb.com that aim to develop understanding of NVQs and their assessment.

When planning assessment it is good to use observation as a starting point. Especially for routine, every day, tasks that are easy to plan for and to observe.

Observation works best by planning for the assessor to observe a complete activity or part of a working shift. This then allows many different parts of the job to be observed thus covering several NVQ units. It also allows the assessor to watch the candidate carrying out their whole job, which is a more realistic way of working.

Although sometimes necessary, this planning should avoid arranging numberous, small observations for specific tasks or part of tasks. This can make assessment fragmented and may not be not a true reflection of how the candidate works.

Whilst planning is important it is not always required. For example the use of direct observation for less predictable events or where the assessor and candidate are working together.

This is one of a series of articles available at www.nvqweb.com that aim to develop understanding of NVQs and their assessment.

Direct observation involves the candidate being watched by an NVQ assessor carrying out their actual job.

When assessing performance (doing the job), the use of observation is normally considered much more accurate and realistic than other methods of assessment. For this reason many NVQ units will have a requirement for observation.

Using observation it is also possible to cover large parts of an NVQ award in a relatively short time. This is especially true for criteria that involve regular and predictable work activities.

There is a risk that being observed may not be an accurate reflection of how a candidate works. The presence of an assessor may be off-putting; a candidate might work differently when being watched. This is one of the reasons why other methods are used in addition to assessment.

It is also possible to use observation to make some judgements on knowledge, especially in how it is applied to practice. For example it may be apparent from their actions that a person is aware of and following the company policy. Some additional verbal questions may be used to confirm this.

This is one of a series of articles available at www.nvqweb.com that aim to develop understanding of NVQs and their assessment.

‘Product of work’, or ‘work product’, is where the assessor looks at items the candidate has produced in their actual work.

Copyright TMS NVQ Support Services 2008. All materials published within www.nvqweb.com, unless stated otherwise, are protected by international trademark and copyright laws and must only be used for personal, non-commercial purposes only. NVQweb PLUS Coordinator and Corporate members have permission to use and edit NVQweb materials for use within their own organisation.

This is one of a series of articles available at www.nvqweb.com that aim to develop understanding of NVQs and their assessment.

Step 1: What is the assessor looking for?

Getting the right information from the assessor means that it is easier to know what they are looking for and therefore know what to write about. An assessor might give you the information you need but, if they do not, make sure you ask.

For example if they ask you to write an account about communicating - this is a large topic and could include lots of things. it would be easy to write several pages about this and still not cover what was needed. Therefore, make sure that the topic set for an account is focused. Another way of making things clear is to agree the actual incident to write about.

One way of knowing exactly what the assessor wants covered is to ask them to identify the specific criteria within the NVQ standards that they hope to cover. This not only helps to know what to write but you can also check that the finished account covers the required criteria.

Step 2: What to write?

Remember, a reflective account is about something you have done at work. Therefore you are writing about something that happened and what you did in that situation.

One point to bear in mind when writing an account is that the assessor is assessing what you did in your job - not your grammer, spelling or presentation.

You may have been given a form to use, or you might use a blank sheet of paper. Whichever you use it should include the following information:

• Assessment method: reflective account
• Title: For example  dealing with an difficult customer
• Date: when did the event you are writing about take place.
• Location: where the event took place.
• A description of the situation and your actions written ("I did this..." and I did that..."). This can be written longhand or by using a bulleted list.
• Date and signature of candidate and assessor.

That’s all that is needed for a simple candidate account and may be all you need. If you want to get more from your candidate account then consider adding the following:

• Show application and understanding of knowledge by linking what you did to any relevant policy, theory and regulation ("the reason I did this was…")
• To show the thinking behind your actions add why you did what you did ("I decided to do this because…").
• Get it validated. This may be optional or required. Getting a witness to confirm what you did will add to the strength of this evidence. See guidance on witness testimony.
• Link to records. This may be optional or required. If you mention that a record was made then show the original record to the assessor. Again this will prove your account and will also provide very useful additional evidence for assessment. See guidance on product of work.Date and sign.

Step 3: Practice makes perfect

In my experience the biggest barrier to writing candidate accounts is the fear of getting it wrong. Rather than let this slow things down, do not delay in writing your first account and getting it to your assessor. Once they see what you have done they will then be able to give you feedback and encouragement. Most likely this will be positive. If not they will be able to let you know what it is they do want.

If there are small gaps it is often easy to discuss the account with your assessor and to add this discussion to the original account - the assessor might do this for you by asking questions.

As you finish each reflective account the next one will be easier and easier. You will soon be an expert.

Copyright: TMS NVQ Support Services 2008. All materials published within www.nvqweb.com, unless stated otherwise, are protected by international trademark and copyright laws and must only be used for personal, non-commercial purposes only. NVQweb PLUS Coordinator and Corporate members have permission to use and edit NVQweb materials for use within their own organisation.

This is one of a series of articles available at www.nvqweb.com that aim to develop understanding of NVQs and their assessment.

When agreeing an assessment plan with an assessor, the following are useful occasions where a candidate account can be useful.

Whilst candidate accounts are useful, using too many is to be avoided. To much writing and work. As a measure of performance they have weaknesses – some people do not always do what they write. Recollection of performance may not be accurate. Unless validated there is no witness to what happened.

Copyright: TMS NVQ Support Services 2008. All materials published within www.nvqweb.com, unless stated otherwise, are protected by international trademark and copyright laws and must only be used for personal, non-commercial purposes only. NVQweb PLUS Coordinator and Corporate members have permission to use and edit NVQweb materials for use within their own organisation.