Senior Verifier Update Robert Laird VG 363 and 389 February 2015

Feedback on External Verification AY2013/14 Limited activity, in line with SQA’s sampling plan Visiting Verification only Prior Verification of Centre-devised Instruments of Assessment Development Visits

Feedback on External Verification AY2013/14 Centres make good use of Assessment Exemplar Packs Evidence of Centre-devised alternative assessments Excellent representation at the HN Quality Network in 2014 Centres have a clear understanding of the Evidence Requirements for the Units sampled Good use of electronic marking and anti-plagiarism software

Feedback on External Verification AY2013/14 Feedback to candidates, from assessors, is generally improving but is still variable in quality and quantity Very positive feedback on the quality of teaching and assessment (and the value of the AIT group award) from students interviewed The quality of Graded Unit projects is very good – some excellent projects, professionally presented.

Feedback on External Verification AY2013/14 Positive feedback on the quality of teaching and assessment (and the value of courses) from students interviewed The quality of Graded Unit projects is very good – some excellent projects, professionally presented. No “Not Accepted” decisions for Graded Unit projects or examination.

Feedback on External Verification AY2013/14 Areas of good practice Integration of Unit delivery and Unit assessment to reduce the candidate assessment burden Detailed assessment planning, communicated and updated through virtual learning environments – this ensured that candidates were fully engaged in the assessment process

Feedback on External Verification AY2013/14 Areas of good practice Excellent record-keeping in the Graded Unit projects provided good evidence of support to candidates (and provided evidence that candidates were not able use remediation to “grade boost”)

Feedback on External Verification AY2013/14 Areas for Improvement Evidence generation in F79 34 - Office Technologies was a challenge for some Centres