Have you ever contemplated what actually binds a quality assurance system? There is no mere policy or meetings, but evidence. Even the most seasoned IQA will not be able to demonstrate that the assessments are fair, consistent, and meet standards without proper documentation of internal quality assurance. The question is then: do you collect the right evidence, or are you going through the motions?

The Reason why Evidence is the basis of Internal Quality Assurance

The only evidence of good internal quality assurance is its own strength. The purpose of an IQA is to observe and review the assessment practice throughout a programme, and that is impossible to do without a traceable record of what assessors are doing and how learners are progressing.

There is evidence that makes the IQA have something tangible to look at. It enables making decisions to be justified, patterns to be identified, and improvements to be made. In its absence, quality assurance turns into guesswork.

The Level 4 Award in Understanding the Internal Quality Assurance of Assessment Processes and Practices is a good place to begin, should you be new to the IQA role and wish to know the full extent of the responsibilities before delving into the evidence collection process.

Developing a strong IQA Sampling Strategy

Sampling is one of the most important quality assurance measures in assessment. It is impossible to examine all the work of learners in an IQA, and thus, a systematic sampling approach is necessary.

You should indicate in your IQA sampling strategy that:

• A documented sampling plan of the assessors, qualifications and learners who are selected.
• Records of both scheduled and unplanned sampling activities.
• Record keeping of a combination of sampling types – interim, summative, across units.
• The sampling of new and experienced assessors has been at different rates.
• Written results of every sampling activity, with explicit feedback being provided to assessors.

The sampling plan should be stored in itself and updated frequently. This is what external quality assurers will seek when visiting to carry out an audit and therefore should be comprehensive and well kept.

Student Evaluation Records that all IQA should maintain

The assessment records of learners are at the centre of the evidence requirements of IQA. These records indicate that every learner has been fairly assessed and that the assessor has made valid and consistent judgements.

The IQA ought to be amassing and examining finished assessment plans, observation notes, assignment briefs with assessor comments, and documentation of any appeals or complaints connected with assessment choices. In the case learners have been provided with more time or adjustments, this too should be recorded and checked during the IQA monitoring and evaluation process.

To qualify as a full IQA, the depth of understanding of how to assess these records is detailed by the Level 4 Certificate in Leading the Internal Quality Assurance of Assessment Processes and Practices.

The four major areas of IQA monitoring and evaluation

A good IQA is not simply a collection of evidence; they interpret it. The monitoring and evaluation process of the IQA should always consider four areas:

Assessor Consistency

It should be evidenced that the programme assessors are using the same standards. This will consist of documents of standardisation meetings and any measures taken in case of inconsistency.

Feedback Quality

The IQA must record the fact that assessors give feedback that is specific, developmental and related to the qualification criteria. One of the quality risks is poor feedback.

Assessment Planning

There should be evidence on the ways assessors arrange and communicate with learners before assessments. This forms an important component of quality assurance audit evidence.

Continuing Professional Development

The assessment of the assessor CPD, such as what training has been undertaken and what new skills have been acquired, is part of the broader evidence base that demonstrates the team is remaining up to date and competent.

What Quality Audit Evidence Appears Like in Practice

An external quality assurer will desire to have a complete picture of the IQA system when he/she visits. The evidence of quality assurance audits usually constitutes IQA observation records, written feedback to standardisation event assessors, meeting minutes, an action plan, completion dates, and evidence of actual follow-up of action plans.

One should not just have a policy document that states what should be done. The audit trail should indicate what actually occurred, when it occurred and what was modified.

Persons who are about to undergo such scrutiny can consider visiting the Level 4 Award in Internal Quality Assurance of Assessment Processes and Practice to help hone their practical skills before an external visit.

Maintaining Records in order and auditable form

It is one thing when it comes to gathering evidence and another when it comes to organising evidence. An IQA must have a central tracking system, which indicates in one look the assessors that have been sampled, learners that have been reviewed and the pending. Digital records are becoming more of a common thing, but whatever the system in place, it should be secure, accessible to the appropriate individuals and be regularly backed up. All entries must be signed and dated.
To get a better idea of how the assessment records will contribute to the greater context of vocational education, the blog on Everything You Need to Know about the Level 3 CAVA Qualification provides valuable background on the assessor side of the equation. To practitioners based in schools or assisting learners in learning institutions, how teaching assistants aid in the assessment process can also inform how IQAs can adopt their role of monitoring in such learning institutions.