Once you're satisfied that you've got a reasonable understanding of the group's benchmark LLN levels, you can compare them to the LLN levels assigned to the competency. This will let you see where the gaps are and how wide the discrepancy is.

The easiest way to do this is to simply put the two sets of numbers side by side and make a comparison. But if you want to show the levels graphically you can compile a spiky profile.

When you plot the LLN levels of the learners on the graph, the individuals you're most interested in are the ones who will need the most LLN support to complete the training. So these are the ones who should be represented on the graph.

In instances where one person or a small minority are performing signficantly lower in particular LLN skills than the rest of the group, you need to decide whether you're equipped to handle their special needs, and whether this can be done within the limitations imposed on you as a trainer.

Note that these limitations include not just your available time during normal training sessions and after hours, but also your responsibility to maintain a reasonable pace of progress with the rest of the group.

If you end up deciding that you can't provide adequate support to these 'outlying' individuals within your own resources, their results should be removed from the ACSF levels you are plotting, so that your line provides a more representative picture of the lower end of the group's LLN levels. The 'special needs' learners should then be handled under a program that is designed in consultation with their employer and an LLN specialist.

Above is the spiky profile for our MSAENV272A example. You'll see that the line plots the learners at the lower end of the ACSF performance range. Where learners have been assessed as needing some assistance at a particular level, the line shows their performance at the level below, where no assistance is required.

This line represents the level you should be pitching your training at, because that's where the lower-performing learners are able to fully engage with the subject matter, without the classroom exercises or content material going over their heads. Your challenge as a trainer is to keep everyone in the group fully engaged and working at their optimal level, balancing the competing needs of the different learners. We'll talk more about this in the next chapter.