Career Information & Advice/Career Guidance & Development: Centre guidance on adaptations for 2021/22

We have updated this guidance document following the publication of the outcomes of the Department for Education and Ofqual’s joint consultation on the arrangements for assessment and awarding of VTQs in 2021/22.

The Government’s policy position is that for all VTQs, assessment should go ahead.  All content should be taught, as far as is feasible, so that candidates are as well-prepared as possible for progression to the next stage of their education, training or employment. Given the disruption to candidates’ education that will be carried over into 2021 to 2022, to support education recovery it may be necessary and appropriate for adaptations to be made to assessments to free up time to focus on catch up and teaching the remaining qualification content. Where the assessment is unable to proceed, in their normal or adapted form, some candidates may be delayed in receiving a result.

The regulatory framework put in place by Ofqual through the VCRF is flexible and allows, but does not require, assessments to be adapted.

Our Career Guidance qualifications assess occupational/professional competency. We hope that you and your candidates are able to progress with assessment as usual this year but we are keeping in place the adaptations set out below in case ongoing disruption caused by the pandemic means you need to use them.  This centre guidance is to support you and your candidates to complete assessment, while following public health guidance.

Throughout this guidance we use the term ‘learner’ to mean the individual who is being assessed for or receiving support/specialist teaching. ‘Candidate’ refers to the person taking the OCR qualification.

OCR quality assurance processes in 2021/22

For verified qualifications, the ‘normal’ EQA visits will not be possible under the current circumstances, so EQAs will conduct their processes remotely with you.

We will take a slightly different approach to sampling, for example identifying the sample up-front and only requesting those portfolios needed but then requesting more if needed. Our aim is to ensure our processes continue to maintain standards while remaining accessible for as many centres and candidates as possible.

It is important for all internal assessments that robust monitoring processes are implemented by your centre.  These monitoring processes should include effective dialogue with candidates where needed to ensure the evidence being generated is both individual and authentic.

These adaptations are in place for the 2021/22 academic year.  We encourage you to complete the assessment and submission process at the earliest opportunity.

Equalities and Objectivity

It is important that any adaptations to assessment consider the ability of some groups of candidates to access them and, as far as possible, ensure that any adaptations do not advantage or disadvantage any candidate.

For candidates with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), centres will be best placed to accommodate this when making adapted assessments available for their candidates. Reasonable adjustments and access arrangements must be made available and recognised wherever possible.

If you require any guidance or support about making reasonable adjustments for your candidates, please contact the OCR Special Requirements Team on srteam@ocr.org.uk.

Professional discussions and witness testimonies must be fair and evidence-based to reflect what the candidate has achieved.  When leading conversations, writing testimonies or reviewing evidence you should continue to be aware of the potential effects of candidates’ characteristics (including protected characteristics) on assessment judgements and ensure that they are not affecting your judgements. Protected characteristics are legally defined and include a candidates’ sex, race, religion/belief, disability, gender reassignment or sexual orientation.

Guidance on the importance of objectivity and avoiding unconscious bias can be taken from the section in Ofqual’s publication for schools and colleges who are providing teacher assessed grades for candidates taking GCSEs, A levels and other performance tables qualifications. The section ‘Being aware of unconscious effects on objectivity’ is applicable to centre assessment in general.  

Permitted adaptations

The rationale for the types of adaptations is to mitigate the impact of disruption already caused to teaching and learning and to respond to any ongoing or future public health measures so that candidates are able to complete their qualification and progress.  Disruption may prevent candidates from completing the qualification in the normal way. 

These adaptations are for anybody taking qualifications from the Career Information/Guidance suite, whether they are starting to work towards the qualification this year or continuing on programme and intending to finish this year or later.  The adaptations are in place only for the academic year 2021/22.  

Normally, direct (face-to-face) observation of practical activities carried out in a real work setting is used to evidence competency.  Simulated activities are not permitted to demonstrate competency.  Evidence of knowledge requirements is normally produced from written work supported with real work examples/activity as a context and centres use sufficient levels of supervision to authenticate the work of the candidate. 

Candidates who have been unable to complete their assessment due to the disruption caused by the pandemic are permitted to:

• use audio or video evidence of a real work activity taking place in place of direct (face-to-face) observation
• use professional discussion in place of direct observation of practical demonstration as evidence of competency
• use professional discussion and/or witness testimonies as an alternative to gathering further written evidence from candidates
• use a simulated activity to demonstrate competency but only as a last resort if any of the above adaptations are not possible. Please refer to the guidance below on the process you must follow to use a simulated activity.

If for any reason you cannot adapt the assessments in the ways described below whilst ensuring the required level of supervision and checks to authenticate the evidence that is being produced, the assessments will have to be rescheduled for a time when it is possible to continue with them as normal.

Permissible adaptations - Knowledge requirements

It should be possible to generate knowledge-based evidence in the normal way. If it is not possible alternative methods should be considered, such as:

• professional discussion and/or witness testimonies as an alternative to gathering further written evidence from candidates
• cross-referencing to previous achievement in other units. Depending on what the candidate has left to complete there might be suitable evidence of knowledge and understanding from units or assessment criteria that require the application of skills (typically through an explanation or description).  Also, there might be evidence of knowledge and understanding from skills-based units or assessment criteria.

Alternative forms of evidence must meet the assessment requirements and criteria and this needs to be clearly referenced.

Permissible adaptations - Competence requirements

Valid and reliable evidence of competence is required for competence-based assessment criteria and where possible assessor observation should continue to be the primary source of evidence to determine if the requirements of the units have been met. 

Measures for social/physical distancing could make completion of units which require working alongside other people and using certain types of equipment more challenging.

Where practical activities and direct observation cannot be carried out in the normal setting and manner, suitable alternatives are:

• audio or video evidence of a real or simulated* work activity taking place
• professional discussion
• witness testimony
• authenticated reflective accounts, candidate-produced reports or candidate statements
• outputs from the candidate’s work or work products (with supporting documentation from a work activity).

Alternative forms of evidence must meet the assessment criteria and this needs to be clearly reference.  Other requirements can be adapted in line with this guidance.

Centres and candidates must give consideration to Safeguarding and the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) when using video or audio-only technology to support any part of the assessment process.  Secure technologies must be used. 

Guidance on methods and forms of evidence

Audio or video evidence of a real work activity (or simulated activity, where permitted*) taking place

• The assessor could observe the OCR candidate carry out practical work activity remotely in real time using a secure digital meeting platform.
• A candidate could record themselves and upload the recorded audio or audiovisual evidence to be assessed at a later time.

Professional discussion and witness testimony

• When used as an alternative to an observed practical activity, it should be backed up, where possible, with authenticated candidate-generated work outputs/products that clearly indicate what the candidate is able to do to meet the achievement of competence-based assessment criteria.
• When used as an alternative to gathering further written evidence from candidates, they can refer back to an event or activity retrospectively as long as the event took place during the candidate’s registration period.
• Witness testimonies must be individual, cannot be generic statements used for two or more candidates and must reflect what was actually observed.
• Professional discussion can be used to confirm product evidence and skills-based evidence to test the candidate’s competence/understanding. Where written evidence is weak then a professional discussion can be used to try and draw out further evidence from the candidate. 
• Witness testimonies and discussions with candidates to capture evidence of their knowledge/understanding can be digitally recorded. (Audio-only recordings are suitable).

 Authenticated reflective accounts, authenticated candidate-produced reports

• Authenticated candidate-produced reports are acceptable if the authentication is confirmed by a trained and knowledgeable individual who has no relationship with the candidate (that includes family members even if they provide work experience).
• Gaps in evidence can be filled by cross-referencing to previous relevant achievement in other units. It must be clear that the candidate still meets the assessment requirements of the unit.
• These have to be signed by a responsible, objective individual and would benefit from being backed up with other evidence such as questions and answers.
• If evidence has to include photographs, the candidate must be identified. Photographs are used as evidence to accompany stronger types of evidence. The scene should be of a genuine activity and not be posed. Note: photographs are not reliable as a primary source of evidence of a practical task as they are unlikely to show that the candidate is meeting the criteria when carrying out a task.

*Simulated work-based activity

• This is to be used as a last resort if all other adaptations are not possible.
• The decision to use simulation has to be discussed with and agreed between the centre and the EQA. The EQA will keep the Chief Verifier updated and consult on any issues.
• If a centre wishes to appeal against the decision made then it would come to the Chief Verifier for consideration and a final decision.  The appeal must be made within 5 working days.
• The simulated activity must relate to a careers related need or topic.
• The activity cannot reply on scripts, it must be a realistic discussion between the OCR candidate and the actor-client.
• The scenario for the actor-client is not to be shared with the OCR candidate in advance of the careers guidance discussion and a specific scenario can only be used once with the same OCR candidate.
• The OCR candidate must be visible to the assessor throughout
• The actor-client must not be known to the OCR candidate.
• The simulated activity must be completed in one sitting.

Any alternative forms of evidence must still meet the assessment criteria and requirements.

Centres and candidates must give consideration to Safeguarding and the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) when using video or audio-only technology to support any part of the assessment process.  Secure technologies must be used.

Ultimately, IQAs must take into consideration if any adaptions used ensure the validity, authenticity, currency, reliability and sufficiency of evidence overall.