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National Open College Network (NOCN)
Organisational issues
It is essential to consult the handbook and follow procedures laid down by the local OCN but the following may be helpful.
Summary of organisational procedures
- At the outset it must be decided which Units to are to be run and the Centre Manager or Examinations Officer should be informed. They will need to know the language, level and name of the unit(s). This information will be passed on to the OCN who will send the NPR/Learner Registration forms. These should be competed and returned to the Centre Manager or Examinations Officer.
- The Tutor Assessment Planning Sheet should be completed for the units chosen to ensure that all the learning outcomes have been covered and that a variety of assessment methods are being used. Individual Learner Record for Unit Achievement sheets will be needed for each candidate and a Group Progress Record for your own records.
- It is then possible to teach and assess the course. It is important to ensure that learners know which tasks are part of the assessment and that these are kept together in a ‘portfolio’.
- The NPR forms generate the Recommendation for the Award of Credits (RAC) forms. On arrival at the Centre, they should be checked by the tutor (names spelt correctly, level, unit etc.) as this is the information that will appear on the final certificate. They should then be kept in a safe place until the External Moderator visit.
- The college will then be contacted by an Internal Moderator who will arrange for a visit or ask for a number of learners’ files to be sent. Verbal feedback will be given and a copy of the internal moderator’s report will be sent. Notes should be made of any action points and these should be implemented as soon as possible.
- At the end of the course, it is necessary to collect a sample of one learner’s work from each level taught, and complete the RAC forms. These should be given to the Centre Manager or Examinations Officer for the meeting with the External Moderator.
- As soon as the RACs have been signed by the External Moderator they will be sent to the OCN, which will generate the arrival of the certificates shortly afterwards.
Administrative procedures
With the NOCN course there is more paperwork than with a conventional GCSE course and it is important that assessment is kept up to date throughout the course. It is important to have a clear overview of what is required for assessment and ensure that the learner keeps an organised portfolio of work as this will be the evidence for awarding the certificate or award.
In a school situation the teacher might decide to collate the evidence and keep it. In other situations it must be made clear from the outset that the onus is on the learner to keep clear records, with evidence dated and linked to the units. It is a good idea for learners to get into the habit of transferring ‘evidence’ to a separate folder which will be the ‘portfolio’ and completing their record sheet at the same time. Thus it needs to be made clear to them which tasks are for assessment and kept as evidence. It also needs to be clear to the learner that the assessment is an integral part of the course and not optional.
The teacher needs to keep an individual record and a group record of achievements. Time can be saved if the same multi-skill task is used as evidence for more than one skill. A reading or listening task could be used to stimulate an oral or written task. This reinforces the vocabulary and cuts down on the number of tasks used for assessment. The disadvantage of this method of assessment is the cross-referencing required in the recording of achievement, and some teachers might find it simpler to teach using multi-skill tasks but assess discretely.
Assessment can be by tutor or peers and is on a pass/fail basis. Evidence should be kept in a portfolio and recorded on a sheet. A good example of this is to be found in the handbook, showing tasks assessed for more than one skill and by different methods. Each student should be recorded at least once and the tape retained as evidence. Assessment will be internally assessed and moderated, and externally moderated and standardised. The normal procedures for continuous assessment should be in place. The process should be seen as a normal part of the course rather than a ‘threatening’ formal experience
The following assessment methods are referred to in the document:
- Observation – of participation in a set task (eg role-play, pair-work) observed in class and authenticated by tutor (sign task, role-play prompts etc)
- Written tasks/ questions – the learner's own written work signed by the learner and marked by the tutor, multiple-choice answers to written questions or written answers as evidence of listening/ reading comprehension activities
- Audio evidence – oral work recorded on tape
- Oral questioning – Q and A by tutor/ learner, or peers, assessed in class, task sheet signed by tutor
- Witness statement – from tutor/ support worker/ peers to say that learner took part in an activity (eg game, dialogue) which covers specific assessment criteria
- Personal statement – written statement from the learner to say what they have achieved (eg self assessment report)
- Learning log/ diary – written account of work covered (eg a record of topics covered like numbers, alphabet, date, weather, holidays)
Entry Level Summary
Achievement of Unit 1 or Unit 2 only = Entry Award.
Achievement of both units = Entry Certificate.
Unit 1 3 listening tasks and a range of speaking tasks assessed through oral or written question and answer and role-play to match the assessment grid.
Unit 2 a range of reading and writing tasks assessed through oral or written question and answer and role-play to match the assessment grid.
Level 1 Summary
Achievement of 2 skills = Level 1 Award.
Achievement of 4 skills = Level 1 Certificate.
For each skill the minimum number of tasks is shown.
Speaking 6 conversations or role-play tasks
Listening 6 tasks
Reading 6 tasks
Writing 5 tasks of about 30 words each.
Level 2 Summary
Achievement of 2 skills = Level 1 Award.
Achievement of 4 skills = Level 1 Certificate.
For each skill the minimum number of tasks is shown.
Speaking 6 conversation or role play tasks which can include a monologue or group discussion.
Listening 5 tasks
Reading 6 tasks
Writing 6 tasks of about 100 words each.
Level 3 Summary
Achievement of 2 skills = Level 1 Award.
Achievement of 4 skills = Level 1 Certificate.
For each skill the minimum number of tasks is shown.
Speaking monologue and dialogue
Listening 4 tasks
Reading 4 tasks
Writing 3 pieces of writing
Resits
As assessment is continuous it is possible for students to achieve a skill later in the course, with a different task or within a different topic area. If a bank of assessment tasks are available this will not cause difficulties. It is important to note that in order to qualify for the full certificate it is essential for candidates to have been assessed in all units.
