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Section 3: Assessing

Carrying out an assessment

Providing feedback

The first question a candidate will want to ask you once they've finished the assessment event is: 'How did I go?'

Your job as the assessor is not just to tell them the outcome, but also to talk about their level of performance. This is particularly the case where you have assessed them as 'not yet competent'.

Telling a candidate that they're 'not yet competent'

Here are some hints on providing feedback when you have given a candidate a negative outcome.

  • Be precise about what they did wrong, or the areas they need to improve in.

  • Explain clearly the level of skill they need to achieve to be assessed as 'competent'.

  • Indicate whether part or all of the assessment event will need to be repeated.

  • Arrange another time for re-assessment, or advise them that you'll talk to their supervisor about arranging another time.

The appeals process

Every RTO needs to have a documented appeals process. As the assessor, you need to explain the process to the candidate before you conduct an assessment.

A simple appeals process would go something like this:

  1. The candidate lodges an appeal with the manager of the RTO.

  2. The manager talks to the assessor and the candidate, and looks at the assessment tools used and the evidence collected.

  3. The manager advises the candidate that either the assessment decision will stand, or that they will be re-assessed.

  4. The manager decides whether the assessment was fair and the assessment decision was correct.

  5. If the candidate is still unhappy, they have the right to take the matter to the RTO's registering body.

You can probably see that an appeal is only likely to arise when a candidate is assessed as 'not yet competent' and they believe they weren't given a fair go.

Are there particular competencies that you will be assessing where a high level of performance is required, and there is a significant chance that some candidates may not meet the criteria?

How would you prepare candidates in advance of an assessment event to reduce the likelihood of them being disgruntled with the result they're given?

What would you do after the event if you had just assessed a candidate as 'not yet competent'?