Planning for Delivery (VET)

Training Packages and Units of Competency

Introduction to training packages

A training package is a set of nationally endorsed industry / enterprise specific standards and qualifications, which describe the skills and knowledge needed to perform effectively in the workplace.

A training package contains nationally endorsed qualifications, competency standards and assessment guidelines that provide for:

• Nationally-recognised qualifications
• National consistency in training outcomes
• Transportability of qualifications
• Career pathways

Training packages are developed by industry to meet industry training needs and are overseen by ten national Industry Skills Councils. Each training package is regularly reviewed with extensive consultation to ensure it meets industry’s changing needs. To check the review status of training packages visit the Training Packages @ Work website.

Units of competency

Units of competency, or competency standards, are the building blocks of a qualification. These standards describe discrete work tasks, and the knowledge, technical skills and employability skills a person needs to perform the task effectively in the workplace.

Training packages and competency standards do not, however, describe how an individual should be trained. Rather, trainers use competency standards to develop learning and assessment strategies based on the needs and circumstances of the industry/enterprise and the learner.

The topic 'Working with Units of Competency' provides information and resources to help you:

• ‘Unpack’ units of competency
• Understand and address language literacy and numeracy requirements
• Determine and address dimensions of competency
• Determine and address employability skills and key competencies
• Cluster units of competency

The section on Assessment provides information and resources to assist you develop appropriate strategies and tools to assess units of competency.

Scope of Registration

For CDU to advertise, deliver and assess qualifications and/or units of competency, these must be included on CDU’s Scope of Registration. To include a new qualification on CDU’s Scope requires approval from the Northern Territory Department of Employment, Education and Training (DEET). At CDU, the Academic Quality, Planning and VET Group managed Extension to Scope of Registration.

 

Developing learning and assessment strategies

A learning and assessment strategy is developed by a course team to guide and structure the delivery and assessment arrangements of a VET qualification. The strategy should identify proposed target group/s, learning and assessment methods, teaching staff and resources, assessment validation processes and pathways and it must be developed in consultation with industry.

In addition to documenting an initial strategy when applying for Scope of Registration, delivery teams will need to review and modify learning and assessment strategies for each client group, and for each delivery period. TLQG recommends that learning and assessment strategies are reviewed and updated at least annually, and in conjunction with assessment moderation and Course Advisory Group activities.

Activities to be undertaken in the development of a learning and assessment strategy include:

• Determine industry requirements
• Select qualification/units of competency
• Determine target group needs
• Determine delivery and assessment schedule
• Determine evidence gathering/assessment method
• Validate assessment strategies

More detail about each of these activities is provided below.

When developing a learning and assessment strategy, consider how the learning activities and assessment tasks for individual units complement each other and build on earlier learning to provide for a rich learning experience. Consider how the learning and assessment strategies are building employability skills and contributing to the development of individuals who are job-ready and who are inspired to undertake further learning.

 

Determine industry requirements

Developing a learning and assessment strategy requires an understanding of your client and their needs. This means nurturing meaningful relationships with employers and/or industry associations and a consideration of learner characteristics and needs of the target group.  It is also important to have a thorough working knowledge of the relevant Training Package/s and be able to interpret and apply units of competency.

Strategies for gaining industry input include:

• Course Advisory Groups (CAGs)
• Attendance at industry meetings
• Surveys
• Training needs audit for an enterprise

 

Select qualification / units of competency

Registered Training Organisation's (RTOs) can customise training programs to meet the specific needs of their clients, including industry sectors, enterprises and individual learners. A qualification is customised by adding, substituting or modifying units of competency. This must be done in accordance with the qualification packaging rules for the relevant training package.

All staff engaged in training and assessment will require access to the relevant Training Package.

 

Determine target group needs

To determine the needs of learners within a target group you should consider the following, and document your approaches to meeting students’ needs:

• Are they workers, school leavers, mature learners or other?
• Do they have existing skills and knowledge?
• What is their current language, literacy and numeracy (LLN) level?
• Will they require additional support for LLN?
  
• Do they have special needs e.g. physical or intellectual disability?
• Where will delivery and assessment take place?

The Academic Quality, Planning & VET Group information fliers Flyer 13:Language, Literacy & Numeracy provides information about RTO and trainer obligations for LLN.

CDU supports learners through the following initiatives:

Support and Equity Services http://www.cdu.edu.au/ses/index.html

Indigenous Academic Support Team http://www.cdu.edu.au/study/indigacadsupport.html

Information Literacy and Researching Skills Training http://www.cdu.edu.au/library/infolit/tutorials.html

Academic English Support Program (AESP) http://www.cdu.edu.au/ehs/caesl/aesp.htm

Determine delivery and assessment schedule

Consulting with industry to determine how training will be delivered and documenting this plan in a delivery schedule is an AQTF requirement. Delivery may include on-the-job, off-the-job, block delivery, clustering of units, on-line delivery – or any combination of learning and assessment activities.

There may be a range of factors which influence the delivery schedule including:

• The needs of the clients/learners (i.e. physical location, access and equity, disabilities, literacy and numeracy)
• The requirements and work practices of enterprises
• Any specifications for delivery or assessment in the relevant training package
• Availability and location of resources
• Capacity of workplaces to provide learning and assessment opportunities
• Opportunities to group or cluster units of competency
• Any legislative regulations and requirements of the industry
  

Determine evidence gathering / assessment method

The purpose of competency based assessment is to confirm that an individual can perform to the standard expected in the workplace, as expressed in the relevant endorsed industry or enterprise competency standards. Assessment strategies and evidence gathering tools should therefore provide for a range of meaningful assessment activities within a context of work performance.

Assessment in itself should be considered a valuable learning activity that encourages reflection by the student on the task and their performance, acknowledges a learner's achievements and identifies pathways for further learning.

The evidence gathering methods selected for a course should complement each other, rather than require unnecessary duplication of work by the candidate. Where learning has occurred in the workplace, consider what evidence is available to demonstrate competence, in preference to applying additional assessment tasks.

Detailed information on different forms of evidence gathering methods, assessment and templates to develop a range of assessment tools can be found in the Assessment section.

Validate assessment strategies

• Assessment strategies must be developed in consultation with enterprises/industry, and
• The RTO must validate its assessment strategies by reviewing, comparing and evaluating the assessment processes, tools and evidence contributing to judgements made by a range of assessors against the same competency standards, at least annually

Working with units of competency

Effective workplace performance requires both the skills to function effectively in the workplace and the knowledge and attitudes to apply those skills in routine and non-routine situations.

'In other words, being competent to do a job requires a number of observable and non-observable skills; it is more than just the technical know-how – the visible task skills.
Source: Guide 4, Training Package Assessment Materials Project, ANTA, 2001

By looking at different aspects of a unit of competency, a complete picture of required performance is generated, which informs the design of learning and assessment activities. This is often called ‘unpacking’ the unit of competency.

Unpacking a unit of competency

‘Unpacking’ a unit of competency has also called ‘building a picture of competency.’ This means breaking down the competency standard to to gain answers to the following questions:

• What is the work activity?
• What does the work activity involve?
• What skills are needed to perform the work activity?
• What level of skill is needed?
• What evidence is needed to prove that a person is competent?
• what knowledge and skills are needed to perform this work activity?
• What generic work skills are needed?
• Where should evidence be gathered?
• What resources are required to gather the evidence?

 

Addressing language literacy and numeracy requirements

Assessment of language, literacy and numeracy skills needs to be consistent with the workplace demands specified in the relevant units of competency, and that these skills are developed in learners.

Many trainers screen students prior to commencement of training in order to identify the level of language, literacy and numeracy skills held by individual students.

By comparing the language, literacy and numeracy requirements of units of competency/work tasks with the current skills of students, training can be structured and designed to build these skills, and also ensures that  additional support needs are identified.

Undertaking an 'unpacking' activity (see Resources in the box above) should identify the language, literacy & numeracy requirements of the unit of competency and help you design teaching and assessment strategies to develop and assess required language, literacy and numeracy skills of learners.

 

Incorporating and assessing dimensions of competency

Effective workplace performance requires not only isolated technical skills, but the knowledge and attitudes to apply those skills in routine and non-routine situations. People are considered to be competent when they are able to apply their knowledge and skills to successfully complete work activities in a range of situations and environments.

The Dimensions of competency are:

Task skills	Undertaking the specific task/s required to complete a work activity to the required standard. This means being able to perform the individual actions as well as the whole task.
Task management skills	Managing a number of different tasks to complete a whole work activity. This means working efficiently to meet deadlines, handle a sequence of interrelated tasks, and progress smoothly between tasks.
Contingency management skills	Responding to problems and irregularities when undertaking a work activity, such as:   ·  breakdowns   ·  changes in routine   ·  unexpected or atypical results or outcomes   ·  difficult or dissatisfied clients
Job/role environment skills	Dealing with the responsibilities and expectations of the work environment when undertaking a work activity, such as:   ·  working with others   ·  interacting with clients and suppliers   ·  complying with standard operating procedures   ·  observing enterprise policy and procedures

 

A fifth dimension that is often addressed – but not mandated - is ‘Transfer skills’ which means having the capacity to transfer skills and knowledge to other contexts.

The dimensions that apply to a work task may be found in the different parts of a Unit of Competency, that is, in the Elements, the Performance Criteria, the Range of Variables Statement or Evidence Guide. Not every Unit of Competency will necessarily contain all four dimensions, however, in a group of units they should be covered effectively.

Dimensions of competency must be taken into account when an assessor is gathering evidence of a candidate’s competency for a unit, and assessment should be designed to address these accordingly.

Case studies, questions, simulated work events, and “what if” scenarios are useful strategies for trainers to use to assist learners to acquire and demonstrate these capabilities.

Working with the dimensions of competency highlights some critical points for
assessors:

• it’s important to know what’s inside a unit of competency – more than just the performance  criteria.

• Having a good understanding of what the work involves also helps an assessor interpret the unit of competency.
  

• Watching a person use their skills is not enough. It’s critical for assessors to ask questions that explore the candidate’s knowledge of the job and their ability to problem-solve.
  

• An assessment (including RPL) that doesn’t explore Dimensions of Competency is not a valid assessment.
  

• Assessment of these skills also needs to be recorded so that the assessment is AQTF compliant.

 

Incorporating and assessing key competencies / employability skills

Employers today need employees who have more than technical skills. They seek individuals who can demonstrate a variety of social and personal attributes as well as the ability to learn new skills.  These skills are also the key for  career advancement and satisfaction.

Key competencies refer to generic skills that apply to most jobs. The Mayer Key Competencies were developed by the Mayer Committee in the early 1990s, but from July 2006, these are being progressively replaced by Employability Skills. The Mayer Key Competencies are:

1.	Collecting, organising and analysing information
2.	Communicating ideas and information
3.	Planning and organising activities
4.	Working with others and in teams
5.	Using mathematical ideas and techniques
6.	Solving problems
7.	Using technology

 

Key Competencies for each unit of competency can be found at the end of each Unit of Competency.  They are assigned a level of 1, 2 or 3:

Level 1 – perform

Level 2 – administer and manage

Level 3 – design and evaluate

In delivering and assessing training it is essential to integrate the Key Competencies. 

Key Competencies may be incorporated by having students work as part of a team in the planning, preparing and presenting of a project. Key Competencies emphasised through this activity will be Planning and organising activities and Working with others and in teams.

Employability Skills are based on the Meyer Key Competencies, but have an expanded emphasis in training and assessment.

A recent report commissioned by DEST (see resources section below) has identified the following employability skills:

• communication skills that contribute to productive and harmonious relations between employees and customers;
• teamwork skills that contribute to productive working relationships and outcomes;
• problem-solving skills that contribute to productive outcomes;
• initiative and enterprise skills that contribute to innovative outcomes;
• planning and organising skills that contribute to long-term and short-term strategic planning;
• self-management skills that contribute to employee satisfaction and growth;
• learning skills that contribute to ongoing improvement and expansion in employee and company operations and outcomes; and
• Technology skills that contribute to effective execution of tasks.

DEST has funded Industry Skills Councils to review all Training Packages, and to make modifications to competency standards to accurately reflect industry requirements.  From 2006, these modifications will be progressively released in reviewed Training Packages and will replace the current Key Competency Framework.

Employability skills represent an opportunity to improve learning and assessment approaches and VET practitioners will have flexibility in how competency standards are used to meet the employability skills needs of industry and learners.

Document a unit delivery schedule

The CDU VET Unit Information Templates for internal and external delivery contain a Delivery Schedule Template, which outlines to learners how and when the unit or cluster of units will be delivered to address all Elements and Performance Criteria, and what resources students will require to participate in the learning and assessment activities.

Clustering units of competency

A number of units of competency may be grouped together to address training and assessment for a complete job function. When this is done well it provides for holistic, efficient and meaningful learning and demonstration of competency.

A good approach to grouping is to look at units with similar or complementary knowledge and skills. For example, the following three units could be grouped to provide a structured and meaningful learning and assessment program.

BSBCMN203A Communicate in the workplace
BSBCMN204A Work effectively with others
BSBCMN202A Organise and complete daily work activities

It is important however, when units are grouped, that all elements of competency and performance criteria are addressed and that the delivery schedule and assessment plan documents how each is addressed.

It is advisable to develop a delivery schedule for each cluster of units which identifies:

• Learning activities
• Delivery sequence, identifying Units, Elements and Performance Criteria
• Assessment methods
• Assessment tasks, identifying Units, Elements and Performance Criteria along with dimensions of competency and key competencies or employability skills
• Resources required

 

Source or develop learning and assessment resources

While it is frequently necessary to develop learning and assessment tools and resources, a large range of resources have already been developed for a number of training packages. Some are free to use but others are available for purchase. A large proportion of resources developed for and by the Australian vocational training sector can be customised to your specific needs – however, be aware of and adhere to any copyright conditions of use. You may also be able to source materials through RTO practitioner networks and communities of practice.

The Hive Content Management System will soon be implemented at CDU and will provide a multi-purpose repository for teaching and assessment resources.

 

• Overview
• Facilitating Learning
• Course & Unit Design (HE)
• Planning for Delivery (VET)
• Assessment HE
• Assessment VET
• Evaluation & Review
• Resources & Links

Authorised by: Director, TLQG