Celebrating Successful Students in Over 20 Countries ‘Online Horse College’ is now ‘International Horse College’

Training & Assessment Strategies Policies & Procedures

The training and assessment strategies and practices of International Horse College, including the amount of training they provide are consistent with the requirements of training packages and VET accredited courses and enable each learner to meet the requirements of each unit of competency or module in which they are enrolled.

International Horse College determines the amount of training they provide to each learner with regard to:

  1. the existing skills, knowledge and the experience of the learner
  2. the mode of delivery; and
  3. where a full qualification is not being delivered, then number of units and/or modules being delivered as a proportion of the full qualification

International Horse College has, for all of its scope of registration, and consistent with its training and assessment strategies, sufficient:

  1. trainers and assessors to deliver the training and assessment
  2. educational and support services to meet the needs of the learner cohort/s undertaking the training and assessment;
  3. learning resources to enable learners to meet the requirements for each unit of competency, and which are accessible to the learner regardless of location or mode of delivery; and
  4. facilities, whether physical or virtual, and equipment to accommodate and support the number of learners undertaking the training and assessment

Third Party Reports

To inform a judgement about whether a learner has achieved competency, International Horse College must gather a range of evidence of the learner’s competence. This evidence is gathered from a variety of sources in accordance with the Strategies for Training and Assessment.

The evidence is then assessed to determine whether an individual can perform to the standard expected in the workplace, as expressed int eh relevant endorsed unit of competency.

Assessments of evidence and judgements about competency must by undertaken by a person who meets the specific requirements for an assessor in the Standards for NVR Registered Training Organisations 2012.

In some cases, International Horse College collect third-party evidence to contribute to the pool of evidence of a learner’s competence. This policy provides information about the use and role of third-party evidence by RTOs in assessing competence.

Types of evidence

Evidence may be:

  • direct (such as observation of workplace performance by an assessor)
  • indirect (such as portfolio of evidence)
  • supplementary (such as supervisor reports)

It is important to understand that ‘there is no hierarchy of evidence’. While training packages describe the outcomes of assessment and provide advice about the scope and context for assessment, neither the Standards nor training package guidelines prescribe exactly what type of evidence. or how much evidence, must be collected.

Rather International Horse College must reach an appropriate balance and ensure that, overall, the evidence collected meets the rules of evidence:

  • validity – the evidence presented is directly related to the unit(s) of competency being assessed and reflects real workplace tasks
  • sufficiency – the quality and quantity of evidence presented reflects that all aspects of competency have been satisfied and that competency can be demonstrated repeatedly
  • currency – the evidence presented is from either the present or the very recent past, and
  • authenticity – the evidence presented for assessment is the learner’s own work

It is the quality of all evidence provided collected (including any third party evidence) that is important to making a sound judgement about competence – rather than the quantity, type and form of evidence where is was collected or who collected it.

What is third-party evidence?

Evidence is often collected by the assessor. However, other people (third parties) – such as supervisors, trainers, team members, clients or consumers – can report what they see or hear to the assessor. Evidence collected in this manner is called ‘third party evidence’

When and why might an assessor use third-party evidence?

Involving a third party in the collection of evidence allows assessors to gather authentic and valid evidence in difficult circumstances in a cost-effective way.

It is common to use a third party for evidence-gathering in cases where workplace evidence is required, but where it is not possible for the assessor to directly observe the learner at work. For example, in cases where:

  • the presence of an observer may compromise workplace safety, or
  • where work activities involve issues of patient confidentiality and privacy.

The use of this party evidence is also a valuable strategy for collecting evidence of ‘everyday performance’ rather than performance carried out as part of the formal assessment process.

What is the difference between ‘co-assessment arrangements’ and ‘third-party evidence’?

Using a third party to collect evidence that will contribute to a pool of evidence is not the same as a ‘co-assessment’ arrangement, in which an assessor and another party work together to conduct assessment.

If an agreement has been reached with a third party to collect evidence to complement other evidence gathered by the assessor, it is still the role of the assessor to make the judgement about whether competency has been achieved.
Under a ‘co-assessment’ arrangement, a person who holds the relevant vocational competencies but does not have the appropriate assessor competencies works with an assessor in the assessment process. The judgement about whether competency has been achieved is made by both parties together.
What to consider when using third-party evidence

International Horse College will first determine that it is appropriate to involve third party in the collection of evidence.

International Horse College will then ensure its assessment processes lead to the collection of quality evidence

International Horse College will provide sufficient guidance to both assessors and the third party by:

Providing assessors with comprehensive guidance about how to select the best third party: The appropriate person to observe or report on the performance of the learner is someone who is in the position to make valid comment on the learner’s performance, for example, the equestrian centre manager/ instructor.

Providing quality materials for collecting evidence: These materials must seek/ solicit/ allow for feedback that is directly related to the relevant unit(s) of competency in the learner’s performance.

Providing third parties with comprehensive information about their role in the evidence-gathering process. This includes providing clear guidance and instruction on when, how, how often and over what period of time this evidence is to be collected. The materials must explain the form in which the evidence is to be collected – for example a structured third party report or an observation checklist that clearly identifies what was observed or performed

– Obtaining confirmation that the third party understands their role in the process: This should include confirmation that the third party has agreed to participate in the evidence gathering process and that they understand when and how to collect evidence.
– ‘Interpreting’ training package information to be relevant to the third party: Training package units of competency describe work outcomes. Each of these units describes

  • specific work activity
  • the conditions under which this work activity is conducted, and
  • the evidence that may be gathered in order to determine whether the activity is being performed in a competent manner.

Training package information is written to guide assessors in making competency judgements, and the language is sometimes complex. Therefore, the behaviours and/or knowledge that the third party is being asked to collect evidence of must be ‘interpreted’

The ‘interpreted’ information should describe how a competent worker would perform the task described by the unit. This may include describing how a competent worker might meet standards in effect in the workplace (for example, standards relating to the speed or amount of work to be undertaken or other quality measures).

  • Setting requirements for assessors in confirming the authenticity and currency of evidence provided by a candidate: That is, setting requirements for assessors to confirm that evidence is the candidate’s own work

More information
Australian Skills Quality Authority