Essential Skills Start Up Guidance

Transcription

1 Essential Skills Start Up Guidance Administration Issues Background In order for your centre to order Desk Top Tasks, enter learners and upload outcomes, it is necessary for the Examinations Officer within the centre to apply for access to the Central Login Application. This is a user friendly application that allows the centre to complete all aspects of the Essential Skills Administrative process. All centres must use this application. If any issues arise regarding this application please contact centre support on centresupport@ccea.org.uk Register For Access To The CCEA Central Login System (Learner Registrations and/or Outcomes) All centres must use the CCEA Central Login system (Essential Skills Outcomes module) to upload their assessed levels to CCEA. However, entering learners for specific Essential Skills qualifications is achieved in 1 of 2 ways. For all schools use the A2C process, whilst Training Organisations must use the Essential Skills Entries module within the CCEA Central Login Application system. To gain access, centres should login instead and click the Request New Online Applications link so you can add the appropriate module(s). If centres do not currently have access to the Central Login, you will need to complete the name, phone and boxes. How to get on our Mailing List, receive updates and be kept informed - Register Your Centre For Essential Skills With CCEA If you have not already done so, you should download, print and complete the Essential Skills centre registration form available from the Essential Skills microsite ( ). Link to the site then select Admin Documents either one of the 2 quick links Centre Registration Form. The form covers registration for all Essential Skills subjects (both Entry Level and Levels 1&2) Please fax the completed form to the Assessment Administration Team (see contact details). By completing this form, centres will be kept on all of CCEA s mailing lists for information/reminders and events. If your centre does not currently have a centre number leave this box blank and one will be allocated to you, otherwise you should complete this box with your existing centre number. This will ensure you are on the CCEA list of registered Essential Skills centres and will therefore be automatically invited to relevant training events and receive documents relating to the Essential Skills qualifications. Please note that by registering your centre this does not mean that your learners have been entered for Essential Skills. Your centre must still enter your learners via A2C/Spreadsheet Process on the Central Login Application. 1

2 Ordering Desk Top Task Materials Desktop Tasks (all levels) used for final assessment of learners must be ordered through CCEA using the Essential Skills Task Ordering module via the Central Login Application. You should allow up to three working weeks for your order to arrive, allowing plenty of time for ordering, assessment, marking and uploading of outcomes onto the Central Login Application. Please note that paper order forms will not be accepted. If the centre is ordering Desk Top Task Materials for the first time it will be necessary to request access for this application. Log onto the Central Login Application on the Exams Officer Homepage, select the Request new Online Applications tab and tick Essential Skills Material Ordering. Once selected, Centre Support will approve and the application will be live within 1 working day of this request. Once the application has appeared on the home screen, it is possible for the centre to order online requested materials, selecting required syllabus and level. Please see screen cap below for guidance. Portfolio building materials (Assessment Based Activity at Levels 1 & 2) must be printed from the Essential Skills microsite. Link to the Essential Skills microsite then select Levels 1-2/Entry Level, then the appropriate subject. 2

3 How to enter learners? CCEA advise their centres to wait until all learners have been assessed and achieved their level, prior to entering and uploading outcomes for their candidates. There are two distinct ways to enter learners for Essential Skills 1. Via A2C (utilised by ALL schools) and 2. Via the Essential Skills Spreadsheet Application (utilised by Training Organisations). 1. How to enter using A2C? When entering candidates using A2C, centres must download the specific Essential Skills Basedata. This process is similar to the entry system for GCSE/A Level examinations. However, as Essential Skills is a continuous registration qualification, which is a series in its own right, it sits outside of all other examinations series (1X) and has its own Basedata. Once the centres make their entries via A2C, that information is batched by the Entries, Results and Certifications Team and is used to populate the Central Login Application. Once populated, centres will be able to upload their learners outcomes. Please see the link below for downloading Essential Skills Basedata; 2. How to enter using the Essential Skills Spreadsheet Application? For centres who do not have A2C, it is necessary to use the Spread Sheet Based Application, located in the Central Login Application to enter learners. Please note that it may be necessary to initially download the application (simply select new request application to activate this) Login to Central Login Application Essential Skills Entries for Training Organisations Only Select Upload Entries tab Step 1 - Select Year eg 2012 Step 2 - Select Syllabus eg Application of Number Level 2, please note that when registering for modular subjects, eg AON and Communication, it is possible to register for both components at the same time. Step 3 Click on Spreadsheet Template. Please note that once opened, centres must save the document to their desktop. By opening and beginning to input data, no changes can be made and information keyed will not be saved. Centres are advised to save the document, re-open and input the relevant data. Please see below screen cap for an example: 3

4 Input information into spreadsheet - please note that by placing the computer mouse over the red arrows, guidance is provided on how to correctly complete the spreadsheet. If this guidance is ignored, the candidates will fail to upload to CCEA. If the candidates do not have an existing UCI or Candidate Number, please leave blank. Once uploaded CCEA will automatically assign a unique UCI and candidate number. Please make a note of these and use when entering candidates in future, as this will prevent duplicate entries and results at a later date. Once completed, save the spreadsheet for reference. Under Step 3 Browse and attach the completed spreadsheet and upload. The centre will be prompted to upload candidates - click submit entries to CCEA. If any errors have occurred the centre will be alerted by an! mark. In this case, ensure that the centre has followed the spreadsheet examples and re-upload. Please note that CCEA invoice centres on entry of the Essential Skills Qualifications. Uploading of confirmed learners outcomes Regardless of whether your centre has A2C, candidate outcomes must be inputted via the Central Login Application. Guidance is provided below. Please note that CCEA are unable to accept A2C results files for Essential Skills, only by the Central Login Application. Login to Central Login Application Select Essential Skills Outcomes Step 1 - Select Year eg 2012 Step 2 - Select Syllabus eg Application of Number Level 2. Please note that when entering results for modular qualifications, such as Communication and Application of Number, both components must be marked, otherwise the entry will remain unmarked. For example for AON L1 mark BA11 AND BA12 Once selected, unmarked candidates will appear under the Select Tac1 Tab Select the required candidate and tick the L1/L2 mark. Select Submit Marks and confirm Select the second component part eg BA12 and repeat the process Select the Cash in Tab and confirm this will prompt the certificate/moderation record to be created To confirm that both components of the qualification have been marked, check the View Outcomes and Check Certificates Tab. If you Centre has Direct Claims, you will 4

5 see the candidates name appear in the Check Certificates Tab, it will appear as Awaiting Print, alternatively if your centre has not yet achieved Direct Claims, the marked candidates name will appear under the View Outcomes. Once moderation has been completed and successful, the name will appear under the Check Certificates tab as printed Please ensure that both components for each qualification are marked, otherwise no certificate or moderation record will be generated. Please note that when entering outcomes for ICT there is only one component to mark and no cash in. When marking and uploading Entry Level Qualifications the process is slightly different. Select Step 1 - Select Year eg 2012 Step 2 - Select Syllabus eg Entry Level 1/2/3 Literacy or Entry Level 1/2/3 Numeracy. Click on the candidates name and this will display the Spiky Profile for the qualification. Tick the desired level and then submit the levels to CCEA. (for modular subjects, such as AON and Communication ensure that both components ie. Desk top task and portfolios are marked partial submissions will result in no certificates/no moderation being asked for. Again it is necessary to check that the candidate is appearing in the View Outcomes tab, to ensure they have been marked correctly. Notes to centres Please note that the level entered must match the level achieved. Centres who do not have Direct Claims status are tied into pre-determined moderation deadlines. It is necessary that the candidates are entered and marked (in all components where necessary) for a moderation record to be produced partial submission on outcomes are not sufficient The timescale for certification in Essential Skills is determined by whether or not a centre has direct claims for a specific qualification and level. Where a centre does not have direct claims for specific qualifications and levels, then the centre must submit portfolios/tasks for external moderation before the issue of results and the final awarded level may be subject to adjustment. External moderation takes place during specific moderation periods which have specific cut off dates for the upload of outcomes to CCEA. Details of these dates are available within the administration handbook. 5

6 Non Direct Claims Centres that do not have Direct Claims are tied into pre-determined moderation periods. Once the moderation deadline has passed, a random sample list will be created and dispatched to centres who will then be asked to send in their Portfolios and Desktop Tasks. These materials undergo moderation and once completed and agreed; certificates are generated, printed and dispatched to a pre-determined date located in the Administration Hand Book. These dates are also contained with reminders dispatched to centres throughout the year. Please see link below for Administration Handbook; Direct Claims Direct Claims is the quality assurance system used by CCEA. Direct Claims Status is based on criteria relating to quality assurance in the management, delivery and assessment of Essential Skills qualifications. All centres offering Essential Skills are required to gain Direct Claims Status for each of the Essential Skills qualifications and levels offered in the centre. When Direct Claims Status is awarded, the centre will be able to claim certificates for individual qualifications and levels without having to submit portfolios for external moderation before the issue of results. Direct Claims information and further details can be found within the direct claims section of the Essential Skills microsite. Where a centre has direct claims, certificates are issued within 4 weeks of the outcomes being uploaded to CCEA. Quality assurance moderation takes place annually after the issue of results. How to achieve Direct Claims Status for your centre Complete Direct Claims Annual Form (annually) Go through 2 unadjusted moderation periods How to maintain Direct Claims Status for your centre Complete Direct Claims Annual Form (annually) ** It is necessary that Centres satisfy all these requirements as Direct Claims status will be revoked. 6

7 CEA Essential Skills Contacts (From 1 September 2010) Queries Contact Tel Fax Assessment Administration Team (Administrative - All Subjects) Lindsey Hamilton Jim Chambers (direct line) (direct) ext 2394 Educational (Literacy/Communication) Deborah McGuffin (direct line) Educational (Numeracy/Application of Number) Educational (ICT) (N.B. Essential Skills ICT Is Not Currently Available To Schools) Eleanore Thomas Crea McCormick ext ext (main CCEA number) Direct Claims Queries Elaine Horner (direct line) 7