for Assessors

Moderation Plan for Assessors 2012

Appendix 1

Appendix 2

for Providers

Moderation Plan for Providers 2012

Appendix 1

Completing a high-level qualification while working fulltime requires a lot of dedication, yet every year several thousand employees in industry achieve highly with little public fanfare. Companies supporting their employees through on-job training are equally dedicated, investing in lifting transferable skill levels throughout New Zealand industry.

To recognise the efforts of learners and employers, industry training organisation Competenz has published and distributed a ‘Roll of Honour’ handbook. The handbook celebrates all graduates who completed Level 4 or higher qualifications in 2011 within the engineering, baking, and food and beverage manufacturing sectors that Competenz works with.

A total of 846 graduates from 536 companies nationwide feature in the Roll of Honour. Graduates completed their national certificates in disciplines ranging from mechanical engineering, locksmithing, baking and fire protection apprenticeships, to competitive manufacturing, business first line management, quality management, rail operations and maritime qualifications.

“All of our graduates can be very proud of their achievements, knowing their skills will stand them in great stead for their career development,” says Competenz acting chief executive, Fiona Kingsford.

“Achieving a high-level, industry-based qualification requires just as much focus as anything you’d study at university or polytechnic, with the added challenge of juggling work priorities.”

It’s a small way of recognising the time and effort learners put into completing their training, and the role of employers providing employees support throughout their on-job and off-job learning.

“Companies also deserve to be recognised for their commitment to invest in training – a more highly skilled workforce with transferable skills benefits both the company and our country’s economic future.”

It’s a positive step toward meeting the skill gaps companies identified in research Competenz conducted last year on this issue. However the research also revealed companies within these sectors will need a further 3,600 skilled manufacturing workers by 2013.

“The only sustainable way for companies to gain the skilled staff they need is to upskill even more of their current employees, or take on new staff to train to your requirements,” says Mrs Kingsford.

“Training does require a big commitment, and industry training organisations like Competenz offer companies expertise in planning and training support to help meet their upskilling and business objectives.”

Competenz’s annual alumni magazine – ‘The Guild’ – has also been published to coincide with the handbook’s release. This latest edition features the inspirational stories of nine 2011 graduates, each with an interesting perspective on what drove them to complete a qualification on the job.

“These stories show that training positively impacts the lives and career prospects of people at all levels of work experience, and it’s never too late to get qualified in your field,” says Mrs Kingsford.

To request a copy of the 2011 Roll of Honour or The Guild click here or call Competenz toll-free on 0800 526 1800.

Click here to view The Guild alumni magazine >>

The review is being co-ordinated by Competenz, and includes stakeholders from the Institute of Refrigeration, Heating & Air Conditioning Engineers of New Zealand, Climate Control Companies Association, Manukau Institute of Technology, Southland Institute of Technology, Electrotechnology Industry Training Organisation, and Electrical Workers Registration Board.

The qualifications under review are:

• National Certificate in Split System Air Conditioning (Level 3), Competenz
• Certificate in Refrigeration and Air Conditioning (Level 3), Southern Institute of Technology
• MIT Certificate in Refrigeration and Air Conditioning (Level 3), Manukau Institute of Technology
• National Certificate in Refrigeration and Air Conditioning (Level 4), Competenz
• National Certificate in Heating, Ventilating, and Air Conditioning (Mechanical Services) (Level 4), Competenz
• MIT Diploma in Applied Engineering (Refrigeration & Air Conditioning) (Level 5), Manukau Institute of Technology

Draft Qualification documents will be available for feedback on the website soon.

If you have any questions about the review please contact Steve Brooks, Industry Manager, Competenz, s.brooks@competenz.org.nz Phone (06) 353 1090, or (027) 281 9828.

Ingredients
100g white biscuit crumbs (Vanilla Wines)
80ml milk
180g butter
good pinch of salt
290g soft brown sugar
400g plain flour
10g speculaas spices (see below)
10g baking soda
blanched flaked almonds

Spices:
20g cinnamon
15g mixed spice
5g ground ginger
5g ground nutmeg
5g ground cardamom

1. Place the biscuit crumbs and milk in a small bowl. Using a wooden spoon mix together to form a paste. Place aside.
2. Place the butter, salt and sugar in a mixing bowl fitted with a beater and blend on a low speed until mixed together. Do not cream the mixture.
3. Add the biscuit paste and mix through until combined.
4. Sieve the flour, speculaas spices (see recipe below) and baking soda together. Add to the butter and sugar mixture and mix on a low speed until a firm dough has been formed.
5. Place the dough in a plastic bag or wrap in plastic and then place in the refrigerator overnight. This will allow the spices to develop their flavours.
6. Remove the dough from the refrigerator at least 1 ½ hours before you require it. Work the dough by continuous moulding with your hands until soft but firm to work with.
7. Roll the dough out to a thickness of 3-4mm and, using a round, 5cm diameter biscuit cutter, cut into discs or press the dough into a special speculaas biscuit mould, then trim the edges.
8. Sprinkle a lightly greased or baking paper-lined baking tray with the flaked almonds and place the cut out biscuits on top.
9. Place directly into a preheated oven set at 170̊C and bake for 12-15 minutes until golden brown and firm to touch.
10. Remove from the baking tray once cool and repeat the baking process.
11. Once cool store in an airtight container.

Note: The almonds can be reused time after time to avoid wastage.

Speculaas Spices:
Mix all the spices together thoroughly and store in an airtight container until re

Foodstuffs’ northern training coordinator, Bhiren Prasad, is currently on a mission with his fellow regional training coordinators to take the organisation’s baking training commitment to the next level.

Bhiren and team are working with Competenz baking specialist, Peter Rood, to make the most of upskilling opportunities for their employees baking goods instore in their supermarkets nationwide.

Up to 100 of their employees are likely to be involved in industry-based baking training in 2012 – from entry level bakers through to department managers.

Recently around 30 of the company’s employees who completed baking qualifications and apprenticeships in 2011 were awarded their certificates at a graduation ceremony organised by Foodstuffs.

The event, held at Auckland’s SkyCity, was a prestigious affair for staff and managers to celebrate their collective 2011 training achievements.

Graduate Lagi Manase, 51, known affectionately by her colleagues as ‘Ma Baker’, completed her craft baking apprenticeship to achieve her Level 4 National Certificate in Baking – Craft Baking, affirming the value of learning at any stage of one’s career.

Lagi has been employed by Foodstuffs for 16 years and enjoys her role managing New World Eastridge’s instore bakery in Mission Bay, Auckland.

During her career, Lagi has earned a number of honours, including the New World Bakery Apprentice of the Year Award in 2008. But she’s quick to thank others for helping her reach her own goal.

“I felt really proud of myself that I finished my apprenticeship. But without my staff it wouldn’t have been possible,” says Lagi.

“The management team were so supportive, helping me set up a plan to finish my units on time. That worked really well, it got me through.”

Lagi also lends her years of baking expertise to help members of her team at New World to complete their Level 3 baking certificates. Like her employer, Lagi sees having a qualified team as a real benefit to customers, who demand the highest quality.

“Swapping ideas and sharing your knowledge is so important, and I really enjoy both learning and helping others gain new skills.”

Lagi values training and so does her employer. Training forms a key part of their plan to set themselves apart in this industry – with a passion for their people and their knowledge, as well as their business and customers.

Foodstuffs is a proudly Kiwi-owned grocery distributor and one of New Zealand’s largest employers, with over 30,000 staff. Their retail brands include the New World and PAK’nSAVE supermarket chains and 4 Square convenience stores.

As we come to the close of the year it is timely to look back on what has been achieved by assessors and moderators operating under the “Competenz stamp” in 2011.

We have about 1200 registered assessors who are active across nearly 1500 companies throughout New Zealand. They support approximately 9000 learners, from many different backgrounds, with varying levels of ability and motivation.

Assessors are at the heart of work based training. They are frequently volunteers or supervisors who do assessment as an “add on” to their other responsibilities. If the work place is the classroom, the assessor is very often the teacher, the mentor and the coach. Their classroom may be the machine shop, the production line or the tearoom. Training and assessment is often slipped in between other work activities such as production and troubleshooting.

Assessors have to make sense of unit standards and guide learners through a sometimes complicated evidence gathering process. Assessing requires care, initiative and judgement. Assessors are the lifeblood of the ITO system.

Supporting the assessors are 126 moderators, most of who are from an industry background and are applying their technical knowledge to the task of making sure there is some consistency in assessment across New Zealand. Moderation is not always looked forward to by assessors. It can feel like being back at school and waiting for an exam mark. We want assessors to find moderation helpful. We ask our moderators to be positive in their feedback and not to be afraid to engage directly with the assessor to discuss evidence. In 2012 we will be looking for ways to facilitate the moderation experience so it is more productive for both assessors and moderators.

The QA Team

I would like to formally introduce the Competenz Quality Assurance team. Based in Auckland, our team are happy to help with any assessor or moderation queries you may have.

Matt Allfree – Compliance Manager
m.allfree@competenz.org.nz

Corey Neal – Moderation Manager – Workplace
c.neal@competenz.org.nz

David Seth – Moderation Manager – Providers
d.seth@competenz.org.nz

Brian Lane – National Moderator – Schools
b.lane@competenz.org.nz

Iris Rae – Senior Administrator Forklifts and QA
i.rae@competenz.org.nz

Holly Claeys – Administrator
h.claeys@competenz.org.nz

Peer Moderation

During 2011 Competenz introduced a peer moderation process for a number of its qualifications. These consist of groups of assessors and moderators meeting to discuss assessments and common issues. They have proved helpful for new assessors who are able to see new approaches to assessment and gain confidence in their judgement. We hope to expand this programme in 2012.

Competenz AMAP

During 2011 Competenz reviewed its three AMAPs (now called a CMR for “Consent and Moderation Requirements”). These are the documents lodged with NZQA that lay out Competenz’ expectations for organisations assessing against its unit standards.

AMAPs 0111, 0013, 0054 will be progressively replaced with a single CMR (0013). As Standards are reviewed they will be transferred to CMR 0013. Until this has occurred, AMAPs 0111, 0013, 0054 will sit on the NZQA web site with mirrored content.

Competenz AMAP review is currently with NZQA for approval. We will let you know when the process is complete.

The Targeted Review of Qualifications

During 2011 NZQA reviewed its processes around the development of new qualifications. This is an attempt to drastically reduce the number of duplicated qualifications being used in New Zealand by ITOs and providers. Several of Competenz industries have been singled out for “Targeted Review” during 2011 and 2012. During 2011, baking has taken the lead as the first Competenz industry to be reviewed under the new NZQA rules. In 2012 manufacturing, refrigeration and air conditioning engineering will be up for review. The full list of proposed reviews can be found on the NZQA web site at: http://www.nzqa.govt.nz/studying-in-new-zealand/nzqf/reviews-of-qualifications/quals-review-schedule/

One of the biggest challenges to emerge from the new qualification environment will be to measure progress through different pathways to qualification completion if there is not the common measurement of Unit Standards. Competenz is keen to work with industry and providers to ensure unit standards continue to be a popular way of “populating” courses, as they do provide an excellent way of tracking learner progress towards their qualification.

Assessors and Moderators should keep an eye out for any reviews affecting their industry, as we want the voice of industry to be heard. Assessors and moderators know better than anyone the strengths and weaknesses of their industries’ qualifications. Competenz will be taking an active role facilitating reviews in its sectors, making sure that industry is given a strong say in the future of its qualifications. Have your say too!

If you are interested in changes affecting engineering related qualifications, please contact our Industry Leadership Manager Paul Town on: p.town@competenz.org.nz

If you are interested in changes affecting manufacturing, food, beverage, rail, maritime and baking, please contact the Industry Leadership Manager for these industries Andrew Brownlee: a.brownlee@competenz.org.nz

Feedback from Moderators

It is always helpful to review the feedback from moderators as they have a good handle on current issues with assessment.

This year it was observed that many assessors are not using the latest versions of Assessment Guides. This may be because their learners are doing an older version of a qualification, but often an old guide being used is for a current unit. We use feedback from assessors to update assessment guides regularly and are always trying to make them better for assessors to use. Generally speaking newer guides are more “user friendly” and easier to moderate. Moderators and assessors are encouraged to make suggestions for improvements in the tools Competenz makes available.

If you think you might be using an older version of an Assessment Guide you can contact our customer support team for an updated guide. These are usually free of charge to assessors.

Note: Pre moderation of Assessment Guides – if you are not using Competenz Assessment Guides don’t forget to make sure your assessment guides are pre moderated by Competenz.

Another observation from moderators is the lack of context notes by the assessor. Often just a little bit more information about the learner or the setting for the assessment can give the moderator much more encouragement to verify your decision. It gives the moderator a fuller picture of what’s going on, and just that little bit more confidence in the authenticity of the assessment process. It can make the learner and their capability more real.

Make it clear if it was the assessor or the learner that filled in answers to questions. It is usually quite acceptable for an assessor to note down learner verbal replies, particularly in manufacturing where learners may have difficulty with writing or English. If they are having trouble answering the question in the way they are written in the Question Bank, invite the learner to take you to their work station and show you what they mean. Your confidence in the merits of the evidence you see should come through loud and clear to the moderator.

Competenz will be reviewing the moderation tools in 2012 to make feedback to assessors more helpful.

Feedback from assessors to moderators – “let’s talk”

There’s no doubt that sending your stuff off for moderation can be a bit taxing. We would like to make this less so!

Unlike some other SSBs Competenz encourages its Moderators to talk directly to Assessors if they need a bit of clarification in the evidence. The assessor may be able to give a little bit more information that is just enough to make the difference between “verified” and “not verified”. If this happens it is important that the conversation is noted and dated on the Moderation sheet to secure the integrity of the process.

Credit fees 2012

Competenz will be charging a fee of $15.00 a credit for credits registered outside a Training Agreement in 2012. This is to cover the costs of administration.

What is new in assessment?

There is no doubt that a lot of thought is going on in various SSBs around innovation in assessment. Competenz has been actively looking at improvements in evidence collecting processes, particularly the use of “inference” and integrated assessment as a means of streamlining evidence collection. The following links will give you useful information on current developments:

Ensuring consistency of qualification outcomes (January 2011):

http://www.nzqa.govt.nz/assets/Studying-in-NZ/New-Zealand-Qualification-Framework/consistency-qual-outcomes.pdf

The Targeted Review of Qualifications (NZQA):

http://www.nzqa.govt.nz/assets/Studying-in-NZ/New-Zealand-Qualification-Framework/requirements-nzqf_2.pdf

2012

Competenz will be running workshops for assessors and moderators in 2012. Keep an eye open for these dates. We will also make sure you are informed.

Finally, I would like to take this opportunity wish you all a Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year!

Matt Allfree
Competenz Compliance Manager

The Ministry of Education wants to hear the opinions and experiences of businesses about staff training and the wider vocational educational system – including yours.

Employers from a range of small, medium and large businesses from all sectors of industry are encouraged to participate in the survey – questions are aimed at managers or the person within your workplace with the best overview of your company’s HR and workplace skills.

Make your views count! The Ministry would like to hear from you first-hand before Friday 16 December as part of their industry training reviews, and a report on the survey’s finding will be released in early 2012.

Click here to GO TO THE SURVEY NOW >>

As we approach the close of the year, it seems a good time to look back and evaluate how the year has gone and report back to the industry on recent activity.
Quite a few Forklift registrations fell due this year. By the end of November, 32 trainers were successfully re-registered.

The normal attrition of trainers who withdrew from the industry has been matched by new trainers seeking registration to train within their own workplace or act as an independent trainer for multiple companies. So far this year 41 trainers have sought registration, bringing the total of both public and private trainers throughout New Zealand to 175.

Times have been tough and it has been sad to see some familiar faces dropping out of the industry, although some have reappeared in other companies.

Keeping costs down

For those of you operating away from the main centres, remember to give us as much notice of suitable audit visit dates as you can. The more notice we get, the easier it is for us to manage costs of any travel and accommodation for the auditors.

Who are our auditors, and who are the rest of the team?

We have a team of five fully trained auditors throughout New Zealand who carry out registration visits and investigate any issues raised about Fork Lift training. These have enabled Competenz to have a reasonable distribution of auditors while maintaining a team small enough to manage to a consistently high standard.

I am very grateful to them for the high quality service they have provided, and the thorough way with which they have carried out the audit process. Terry, Ken and Corey are well known to many of you. Some of you will also have met our two newest auditors; David Seth and Dene Barnett.

In the Competenz office Iris still does a sterling job of ensuring all fork lift business is co-ordinated and efficient and we have acquired a new helper; Holly Claeys.

Issues raised in the industry

There have a small number of cases of non-registered trainers operating without approval that have been brought to our attention. One incident involved a provider that, while being registered with NZQA to asses fork lift unit standards, was using non registered trainers. We worked closely with this organisation to ensure they complied fully with the requirement of the ACOP.

Another incident involved an experienced trainer whose registration had lapsed some years ago. This case has also been dealt with.

Where our attention is drawn to trainers operating without compliance we will investigate these promptly.

Safety issues in the sector

Safety continues to be a primary concern for fork lift users. There are some notable clips circulating on “YouTube” that graphically illustrate how quickly things can go wrong for fork lift users. They can be a useful attention grabber in your presentations to learners.

Adding to the list of registered fork lift trainers

Competenz plans to add an extra column to the fork lift trainers list on our web site. We invite any forklift trainers to send us their web site details or e-mail address to help customers contact you.

Fork lift training resources

At the continued request of fork lift trainers, Competenz has reviewed and re-issued trainer resources based on the current ACOP. It has incorporated suggestions from your feedback and is to some extent future proofed against the draft ACOP.

Use of the resources is, of course, entirely optional. They are available for those Trainers who wish to use them; alternatively Trainers are able to use their own pre-moderated resources instead.

The resources include;

Trainer’s Pack
This comes with a professionally printed Trainer’s Guide, Assessment Guide, Workbook, and a CD with additional support materials – $180.00 + GST for your first set. (We are reissuing the Fork Lift Trainers Guide to existing users at print only cost of $60.00).

Additional packs are then $60.00 + GST each.

Candidate’s Pack
This consists of ONLY the Assessment Guide & Workbook for the candidate – $35.00 + GST per pack.
(If you are using these you need to purchase one for every candidate).

If you would like more information our new and improved Folk Lift Training material, or would like to order, please contact Iris Rae on i.rae@competenz.org.nz

2012 Pricing
We will be keeping the above prices for resources for 2012; however we have to adjust the pricing of audit visits in 2012 to take into account true costs of administration. Refined accounting systems within Competenz have revealed that Fork Lift registration was being subsidised by other ITO activity. Competenz has to ensure that managing the fork lift registration is self-sustaining.

From 1 January 2012 full audits will cost $950 + GST (plus any travel and accommodation). Re-audits will cost $750 + GST (plus any travel and accommodation).

While there were requests for Competenz to absorb travel and accommodation into the general fee, upon reflection we considered it better to apply the same charging principles as currently being applied by NZQA in its accreditation of providers.

However, we are happy to negotiate with providers on an individual basis to see if we can contain travel and accommodation costs for you by combining audits with other business.

In June this year it was publicly announced that Goodtime Foods had won the exclusive contract to supply pies and other specially baked goods to Z service station outlets nationwide.

Goodtime’s product and purchasing manager, Paul Barber, played a key role in securing the company’s contract with Z, foregoing a summer break with his family to work hard on the company’s tender submission. And it paid off.

“The Z contract presented a huge opportunity to grow our business, and we were determined to beat out the competition from both New Zealand and Australia,” says Paul.

“We knew we had the quality of product and the people with the skills to deliver on the contract, and to be awarded it was a major boost for us and for this region.”

In preparation for the increased production workload, Goodtime has already added 12 new staff to form their now 51-strong team in Napier, with plans to employ and train up to 12 more staff within the next quarter to meet their commitments for the North Island Z stores as they come online.

Goodtime also has a valued partnership with Goodtime Foods SI Ltd, who will produce and supply the Goodtime pie range to Z service stations throughout the South Island.

Currently there are eleven Z sites open for business around the country, with another nine due to open by Christmas. Within the next year Goodtime will be producing enough mouth-watering pies and other tasty treats to stock 216 Z stores nationwide all day, every day.

“Thankfully the Z stores are being rebranded and opened gradually over the next nine months, so we’ll be able to plan and stagger the growth of our manufacturing team and production schedules accordingly,” says Paul.

“Upskilling our people to nationally-recognised standards is an important part of our plan, and we’re pleased to be working with Competenz to help meet our business objectives.”

Training is certainly not new to Goodtime Foods. The company use a series of in-house ‘units’ developed over a number of years to induct their staff, deliver necessary health and safety training, and make sure key skills and knowledge for the correct preparation and handling of food products are imparted to staff.

Back in late 2010, Competenz and Goodtime Foods began looking at their in-house training to see how it might translate to an NZQA-approved national certificate for staff to achieve, certifying their skills to a national standard for the food manufacturing industry.

Competenz mapped Goodtime’s training to all the competencies needed to achieve the Level 2 National Certificate in Food and Related Products Processing qualification endorsed by industry.

“Having Competenz’s support to get started is great – and our team now has the chance to achieve a qualification that supports their careers well beyond Goodtime Foods,” says Paul.

“We see engaging staff in industry training as an integral part of our business growth and improvement strategies.”

Initially 30 Goodtime employees will be signed into training agreements for Level 2 FRPP by the end of this year, with plans to ensure all new staff sign up upon employment.

Goodtime’s managing director, Phil Pollett, knows from experience that staff training is a ‘must’ for any company to lift productivity.

“We want it to be the norm for our entire workforce to be fully-trained, confident, and competent in the skills they need to do their jobs well, and to enjoy their work,” says Phil.

“We already have a low staff turnover rate, and upskilling our whole team will help us to grow productivity, staff innovation, and job satisfaction even further.”

Speaking with their employees, it’s clear they have significant skills, knowledge, and enthusiasm for learning that will all work in Goodtime’s favour for continued business success. It’s a positive start to the team’s industry training journey.

“Making our teams’ skills transferable through the achievement of a nationally-recognised qualification is good for industry as a whole, and it gives us a head-start on preparation for future business opportunities,” says Paul.

“Currently we supply to the NZ market only, with other big contracts including the Pams Frozen Pie range for Foodstuffs, and our ‘Heart Tick’ approved Metro pie range to supply schools and hospitals around the country.

“We’ve also been doing some fact-finding to see if overseas business opportunities could be part of our future.”

If you’re on the road with your family or friends this summer break and happen to pull into a Z service station to refuel, grab a pie or two to enjoy – and think of the team at Goodtime Foods putting their passion and skills into every last bite.

The Ministry of Education wants to hear the opinions and experiences of businesses about staff training and the wider vocational educational system – including yours.

Employers from a range of small, medium and large businesses from all sectors of industry are encouraged to participate in the survey – questions are aimed at managers or the person within your workplace with the best overview of your company’s HR and workplace skills.

Make your views count! The Ministry would like to hear from you first-hand before Friday 16 December as part of their industry training reviews, and a report on the survey’s finding will be released in early 2012.

Click here to GO TO THE SURVEY NOW >>