Part 3- How compliance and quality assurance are two separate but intertwined concepts

Category: ASQA

Part 3- How compliance and quality assurance are two separate but intertwined concepts

Posted on by Sukh Sandhu

In this third and final part of our “compliance and quality assurance,” articles, we are continuing to discuss compliance and quality assurance requirements, standards, expectations and the differences between them.

How does quality assurance differ from compliance?

It can be overwhelming trying to keep track of all your organisation’s compliance obligations. That’s why many businesses put programs in place to ensure they can meet their obligations and identify any potential breaches of law, regulations or standards. These programs are often called quality assurance or quality control.

Quality assurance may include documenting your RTO processes and practices, having a specific organisational structure, or putting in place policy framework that guides how your registered training organisation operates. These give your RTO a systematic approach to meeting its professional and legal obligations.

While every business is different, there are some general standards that businesses can be certified in, as developed by the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO). Although not always essential, following these ISO processes can bring trust and confidence to your staff and clients.

Therefore, when differentiating between quality assurance and compliance, you can consider meeting VQF requirements to meet compliance needs and ISO to meet the quality needs of your organisation.

Putting in place quality assurance measures can benefit your business by:

  • Ensuring you identify potential compliance issues and resolve them quickly
  • Reducing your risk of missing any compliance obligations
  • Improving how your RTO is run and giving your employees more certainty over how to do their job
  • Reducing your risk if your RTO is subject to any legal issues or claims
  • Increasing the efficiency of your RTO because you will be spending less time working out how to do things or fixing mistakes.

Quality assurance is part of running a well-managed registered training organisation.

Do I need to do both compliance and quality assurance?

Compliance is not something you can choose to do; it’s legally required by bodies like ASIC. While quality assurance is not demanded by law, it is good business practice to put programs in place to help you meet your compliance obligations and run your business. Sometimes, Industry stakeholders may even ask your RTO to have quality assurance programs in place.

Part 2- How compliance and quality assurance are two separate but intertwined concepts

Posted on by Sukh Sandhu

When we look at the current Standards for Registered Training Organisations 2015, the clauses relevant to Registered Training Organisations’ regulatory compliance, the reporting and governance practice, they all clearly underpin good management practices and effective compliance control procedures—and, as a result, the effective functioning and sustainability of RTOs.

These Standards support RTOs to provide high-quality student experiences and learning outcomes.

Under the Standards, RTOs are responsible for:

  • Ensuring authorised Executive Officers and High Managerial Agents meet the Fit and Proper Person requirements and are vested with sufficient authority to ensure the RTO complies with the RTO Standards at all times (clause 7.1)
  • Satisfying financial viability risk assessment: Your RTO is required to present an acceptable level of financial viability risk at all times (this includes any parent entities). ASQA assesses each RTO’s financial viability risk to evaluate the likelihood of business continuity and the RTO’s capacity to achieve quality outcomes, as outlined in the Financial Viability Risk Assessment Requirements 2011. ASQA considers this against the potential for adverse consequences if your entity collapses or becomes unviable and makes a judgement about whether the level of risk is acceptable, unacceptable, or requires additional controls. To enable a preliminary financial viability risk assessment, the initial registration application requires the applicant to provide:
    • a range of financial sustainability information
    • independent certification.

ASQA may also require your RTO to undergo a financial viability risk assessment at any other time. (clause 7.2)

  • Compliance and reporting: The RTO must make sure it complies with the SRTO’s 2015, other Commonwealth, State and Territory legislation and regulatory requirements relevant to its operations, at all times, including where services are being delivered on its behalf. The RTO is required to provide an annual declaration on compliance to confirm whether it:
    1. currently meets the requirements of the Standards across all its scope of registration and has met the requirements of the Standards for all AQF [Australian Qualifications Framework] certification documentation it has issued in the previous 12 months.
    2. has training and assessment strategies and practices in place that ensure that all current and prospective learners will be trained and assessed in accordance with the requirements of the Standards.

RTOs are also required to make sure its staff and clients are informed of any changes to legislative and regulatory requirements that affect the services delivered. (clauses 2.1 and 8.4 to 8.6)

  • Recording, monitoring and reporting third-party arrangements: All third-party arrangements must have a written agreement, the RTO must have sufficient strategies and resources to systematically monitor any services delivered on its behalf, and notifies the Regulator:
  1. of any written agreement entered into under clause 2.3 for the delivery of services on its behalf within 30 calendar days of that agreement being entered into or prior to the obligations under the agreement taking effect, whichever occurs first, and
  2. within 30 calendar days of the agreement coming to an end.  (clauses 2.3, 2.4 and 8.3)
  • Holding public liability insurance: RTOs are responsible for ensuring they hold public liability insurance throughout their registration period. Your RTO must hold public liability insurance to cover all training and/or assessment activities it provides as an RTO. (clause 7.4)
  • Meeting Data Provision Requirements:

RTOs are responsible for providing accurate information about their performance and governance in accordance with clause 7.5.
The Data Provision Requirements outline information that your RTO is required to submit. Apart from information required with applications, this falls generally into two categories:
Australian Vocational Education and Training Management Information Statistical Standard (AVETMISS) data

Quality Indicator Data.

Data such as national training activity is very important—this informs decision-making about policies and funding for the national VET system and allows measurement of the system’s performance.

The quality indicator data provides information for RTOs about their students’ experiences of their services and can be used to continuously improve the quality of the training for students and employers. (clause 7.5)

Providing requested information to ASQA:

RTOs are responsible for:

  • Cooperating with ASQA
  • Ensuring any third party delivering services on the RTO’s behalf is required to cooperate with ASQA.

Your RTO and any third parties delivering services on your behalf must cooperate with ASQA in responding to requests for information, undergoing audits and managing records. The information you and third parties provide to ASQA must be accurate, truthful and authentic. Any documentation provided at audit must be an accurate representation of your RTO’s practices.

You must notify ASQA within 90 days of the following:

  • Changes to executive officers or high managerial agents
  • Changes to financial administration status (e.g. liquidators being appointed)
  • Changes to legal name or type of legal entity
  • Changes to ownership, directorship or control (including changes to parent entities)
  • Significant mergers or associations with other RTOs
  • Registration (or application) with other education regulators (e.g. higher education provider with the Tertiary Education Quality Standards Agency)
  • Anything that may affect the fit and proper person status of an influential representative of the RTO
  • Changes to any fundamental funding/revenue source (e.g. access to or loss of government funding contract allocation)
  • Changes to the RTO’s business strategy (e.g. more to online delivery, assessment-only delivery, offshore delivery)
  • Delivery to apprentices or trainees employed under a training contract
  • Any other significant event.

(clauses 8.1 and 8.2).

In the next post we will look into the “quality assurance” requirements and obligations for your RTO.

To be continued…

Part 1- How compliance and quality assurance are two separate but intertwined concepts

Posted on by Sukh Sandhu

When you plan to run a registered training organisation (RTO), you may find it difficult to know:

  • the complete regulatory framework and environment
  • your legal obligations and
  • everything else required to run a successful, compliant Registered Training Organisation.

Take compliance and quality assurance, for example, you may have heard about them, but do you know what they mean?

What is compliance?

Numerous legislation, regulations and guidelines in Australia regulate the way we run an RTO such as:

  • Australian Consumer Law (ACL),
  • the Racial Discrimination Act 1975,
  • the Sex Discrimination Act 1984,
  • the Disability Discrimination Act 1992,
  • the Age Discrimination Act 2004,
  • the Child Protection Act 1999,
  • the Work Health and Safety Act 2011,
  • the Australian Human Rights Commission Act 1986,
  • the Privacy Act 1988 and
  • the National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Act 2011.

This is not an exhaustive list. These legislation, regulations and guidelines specify the framework and the obligations to operate an RTO.

A number of these obligations are applicable on all business entities that operates within Australia and are overseen by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).

The law does not allow you to be an officeholder or manage a company (without court consent) if:

  • you are currently bankrupt
  • you are still subject to a personal insolvency agreement or composition under the Bankruptcy Act 1966, or
  • have been convicted of offences like fraud or breaching your duties as an officeholder.

If you are member of ACPET or other industry bodies, they may also have codes of conduct and specific guidelines that you must follow to continue to be a member. These requirements and obligations come under “compliance”. Failing to meet all state and federal guidelines for compliance can result in serious consequences for your registered training organisation (RTO). Along with altering your company’s legal status, which may leave you vulnerable to lawsuits, government agencies may conduct audits, enact fines or even dissolve your business entirely.

What is quality assurance?

Standard 2 of the SRTOs 2015 (Standards for Registered Training Organisations, 2015) states that the operations of the RTO must be quality assured. Quality assurance refers to “meeting and delivering intended performance according to certain benchmarking standards”.

Let’s look at Standard 2:  Clause 2.1 – 2.4

2.1 The RTO ensures it complies with these Standards at all times, including where services are being delivered on its behalf. This applies to all operations of and RTO within its scope of registration.
2.2 The RTO:

    • Systematically monitors the RTO’s training and assessment strategies and practices to ensure ongoing compliance with Standard 1; and
    • Systematically evaluates and uses outcomes of the evaluation to continually improve the RTO’s training and assessment strategies and practices. Evaluation information includes but is not limited to quality/performance indicator data collected under Clause 7.5, validation outcomes, client, trainer and assessor feedback and complaints and appeals.

2.3 The RTO ensures that where services are provided on its behalf by a third party the provision of those services is the subject of a written agreement.
2.4 The RTO has sufficient strategies and resources to systematically monitor any services delivered on its behalf, and uses these to ensure that the services delivered comply with these Standards at all times

While Standard 2 of SRTOs 2015 addresses the key client criteria of quality training and assessment strategies and practices there are many other quality considerations that make up a quality-assured RTO business.

Every RTO must have a system (often referred to as a ‘business or quality management system’) to manage its operations. The system should provide the basis for quality assuring a business.

Quality assurance is maintained by ensuring that:
  • The organisation understands the relationship and differences between Quality Management systems, Quality standards and Regulatory standards.
  • Understand how a properly implemented business (quality) management system can help improve fundamental business performance well beyond just meeting compliance/regulatory requirements
  • Use quality assurance techniques to help review their existing system and processes
  • Revitalise their existing quality management system
  • Organisation participate in professional networking with colleagues across RTOs and wider industry.

To be continued…

Obligations of Registered Training Organizations in Terms of Reporting

Posted on by Sukh Sandhu

Under the Standards for Registered Training Organisations 2015, all RTOs are obliged to provide accurate and complete data.

All ASQA-registered training organisations RTO must meet mandatory annual data submission requirements, including:

  • Submitting the annual declaration on compliance to ASQA
  • Submitting total VET activity (TVA) data, including the reporting of unique student identifier (USI) data.

There is a limited number of exemptions for some short courses and eligible RTOs, however, if you are delivering training under a funding agreement you are required to report all of your contracted delivery to the relevant Department.

Organisations are, therefore, responsible for a number of reporting requirements under the Standards for Registered Training Organisations 2015. The reporting requirements include:

The annual declaration on compliance

The Standards require each RTO to provide ASQA with an annual declaration on their RTO’s compliance.
The annual declaration must be signed by the principal executive officer/chief executive officer registered with ASQA as listed on training.gov.au.

If you are the RTO CEO or PEO, ASQA will notify you by email of your obligation to complete the declaration and provide you with a link to the online form. You can check your details on training.gov.au to ensure that ASQA has access to your current email address to ensure you receive this invitation.

When you submit the declaration, you are confirming to ASQA that you:

  • Systematically monitor your RTO’s compliance
  • Implement preventive and corrective actions where considered necessary.

The declaration also asks you to confirm that records pertaining to your RTO, as reflected on training.gov.au, are accurate and up to date.

Reporting requirement: Total VET Activity (AVETMISS and USI) 

The Australian Vocational Education Training Management Information Statistical Standard (AVETMISS) for VET Providers is a national data standard that ensures the consistent and accurate capture of VET information about students, their courses, units of activity, and qualifications completed. It provides the mechanism for national reporting of VET activity.

Provides information through NCVER to Industry stakeholders about:

  • Statistical information captured for national reporting
  • Unique Student Identifier and all award issuance activity conducted in the previous year

Reporting requirement: Quality Indicators 

These include learner and employer survey data to collect evidence-based and outcome-focussed continuous quality improvement, and assist the VET Regulator to assess the risk of an RTO’s operations:

Other information you must submit:

You must collect AVETMISS-compliant records for all students, and for all competency enrolments and outcomes achieved, throughout the calendar year.

Early in the following year, you must report this data to the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) unless you have previously done so through existing contractual arrangements.

RTOs should refer to NCVER’s publications AVETMISS 7.0 VET Provider Collection Specifications and AVETMISS data element definitions which describe the AVETMISS data to be collected.

There are a number of student management systems that can record and produce AVETMISS data files for reporting. A register of data entry tools and student management systems is available on the NCVER website.

NCVER has developed a free AVETMISS data entry tool for RTOs with less than 100 students and an AVETMISS validation software for RTOs to validate their data before submission. Both tools are available on the NCVER website.

For further information, and a range of fact sheets, about Total VET Activity data, please see the:

Visit ASQA website for more information  https://www.asqa.gov.au/vet-registration/meet-data-provision-requirements

Annual declaration on compliance

Posted on by Sukh Sandhu

Are you confident that your RTO meets current compliance requirements with RTO standards? Or do you need help?

All Australian Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) are required to submit an annual declaration on compliance with the RTO standards applicable to their organisation on or before 31st March 2018.

The CEO Declaration

The declaration is a legal document and the CEO must be truthful and completely open and transparent in making the declaration. The CEO is making the declaration to ensure that the RTO complies with all requirements of the VET Quality Framework as relevant to the training products on the RTO’s scope. There are a number of penalties under the National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Act 2011 that all CEOs should be aware of.

https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/C2017C00245

Failure to submit this annual declaration is a breach of conditions of registration as an RTO.

Annual declaration requirements

An annual declaration confirms the CEO has systematically monitored the RTO’s compliance with the Standards and whether any issues identified they have been rectified or otherwise appropriately risk-managed. The declaration must be signed by the RTO’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), who is responsible for the RTO’s operations.

The declaration requires the CEO to testify that:
all information about the RTO on training.gov.au is accurate (or, if it is inaccurate, that ASQA has been notified of necessary changes
to the best of the CEO’s knowledge, all owners and high managerial agents meet the Fit and Proper Person Requirements.

Demonstrating compliance includes, but is not limited to, showing how the RTO complies with (if applicable):

  • the NVR Act and the legislative instruments it enables
  • the VET Quality Framework
  • legislation, regulations and standards related to delivery of training to overseas students
  • VET Student Loans legislation and rules
  • workplace health and safety legislation and regulation
  • santi-discrimination legislation and regulations

consumer protection requirements

The CEO needs to ensure that the RTO currently complies with each national standard and if not, what actions are being taken to remedy non-compliance, especially but not limited to, the following compliance areas:

1. Training and assessment strategies

The RTO has a compliant Training and Assessment Strategy (TAS) for each course delivery type (such as online, classroom, workplace, distance, blended) and cohort of student (domestic, International).

2. Industry consultation

The RTO has conducted a ‘range of Industry consultations’ and systematically used the outcome of the Industry engagement to ensure the Industry relevance of the training and assessment strategies, practices and resources and current industry skills of the trainers and assessors.

3. Trainers and assessors

The RTO has sufficient trainers to deliver each training product on the scope. The trainers/assessors have demonstrated their vocational competency and Industry currency at each unit level and meet VET knowledge and currency requirements. The trainer and assessor files contain signed copies of their annually updated resumes, certified qualifications and skills matrixes.

4. Pre-enrolment information

Information, whether disseminated directly by the RTO or on its behalf, is both accurate and factual and provides students with sufficient information to make an informed decision to enrol in the course with your RTO.

5. Validation schedule

The RTO has implemented a plan for ongoing systematic validation of assessment practices and judgements for each training product on the RTO’s scope of registration including;
when assessment validation will occur;
which training products will be the focus of the validation;
who will lead and participate in validation activities;
how the outcomes of these activities will be documented and acted upon.
As per ASQA’s Standards for RTOs 2015, the RTO’s validation plan must ensure that:
All training product on the RTO’s scope of registration undergoes validation at least once every five years.
The RTO must validate at least 50 per cent of the training products in the first three years of the cycle.
You may need to validate certain training products more often where specific risks have been identified, for example, if your RTO’s industry consultation identifies areas of particular risk. ASQA may from time to time determine specific training products that must have particular attention paid to them and this advice is published to www.asqa.gov.au.
You can read more about validation schedule and conducting validation at https://www.caqa.com.au/validation-and-moderation-services.

6. Training and assessment materials

The RTO has sufficient, industry-relevant, compliant resources and materials to train and assess all training products on your RTO’s scope. The training and assessment materials meet the training package requirements and Industry expectations.

7. Language, literacy and numeracy and support requirements

The RTO can demonstrate how it identifies language, literacy, numeracy and learning requirements for each and every student in every course and how the RTO will provide adequate support for them.

8. Transition planning

The RTO has prepared a compliant transition plan to demonstrate that:
the commencement of a new learner in a training product which is no longer current (i.e. the training product has been superseded, removed or deleted from the National Register); and
the time-frame in which an RTO must complete the training, assessment and AQF certification documentation issuance for learners enrolled in a training product which is, or becomes, no longer current.

9. RTO Policies and Procedures, Forms and Manuals, Records management system and Practices

The RTO has compliant policies, procedures, forms, manuals, records management systems for effective retrieval, retention and protection of records, complaints management, regulatory compliance, minimising litigation risks, safeguarding important information, better management decision making, version control and RTO practices to ensure the organisation follow a compliant framework to maintain its registration with the regulatory bodies.

10. AVETMISS compliant database

The RTO has collected and reported ‘Total VET Activity’ data. This includes full Australian Vocational Education and Training Management Information Statistical Standard (AVETMISS) data, in accordance with the National VET Provider Collection Data Requirements Policy.

11. Compliant testamurs, statement of attainment and record of results

The RTO must ensure it is issuing compliant testamurs, statement of attainment and record of results to all eligible students

12. Collection and reporting of Quality Indicators and Total VET activity data

The Data Provision Requirements 2012 requires all registered training organisations (RTOs) registered with ASQA to provide an annual summary report of their performance against the learner engagement and employer satisfaction quality indicators to ASQA. You must also make sure, your organisation has recording and reporting Total VET activity data according to the requirements of NCVER and regulatory bodies. Your RTO is required to meet these data provision requirements as a condition of registration. Regulatory body may impose regulatory penalties if your RTO does not meet these data provision requirements.

Understanding the National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Amendment Bill 2019

Posted on by Sukh Sandhu

In 2017, the Hon Karen Andrews MP, the Assistant Minister for Vocational Education and Skills, commissioned a review of the National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Act 2011 (NVETR Act) and its associated legislative framework. The review was part of the Australian Government’s commitment to ensure the quality of the national vocational education and training (VET) sector into the future.

Professor Valerie Braithwaite from Australian National University conducted the review to determine the legislative capacity of the Australian Skills Quality Authority (ASQA) to efficiently and effectively regulate the sector, evaluate if ASQA’s functions and powers are consistent with best regulatory practice and assess the ability of the system to meet industry and student needs. Professor Braithwaite was also asked to investigate reforms that could improve outcomes for students.

The review report is available here.

Another expert review of Australia’s vocational education and training sector was conducted by  the Honourable Steven Joyce.

The review report is available here.

The National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Amendment Bill 2019, suggested by the minister and VET stakeholders, is the result of the recommendations of Professor Valerie Braithwaite and Steven Joyce. We did our research and have identified that this bill is highly influenced by the Australian Skills Quality Authority’s submission to the Review of the National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Act 2011. The copy of the ASQA’s submission is available via the following link here: 

This bill was introduced and read for the first time in the senate on 4th Dec 2019. The second reading debate occurred on the 5th February 2020. No proposed amendments have been suggested and/or made in the Amendment bill in the first or second debate. The bill is now almost ready to be introduced to the second house and the final text of the bill will be passed with or without any amendments by both the House of Representatives and the Senate which is presented to the Governor-General for assent. 

It is important to understand this bill as it will be bringing a number of substantial changes to ASQA’s regulation of the vocational education and training sector. 

It remains unclear how the proposed amendments will help the Australian Government and training and education sector to have a more transparent and balanced regulator that builds quality and capacity in the VET sector.

The suggested amendments are in relation to: 

Training organisation’s registration requirements, 

It appears under the amendment act the entry into the training market will be stringent. The total number of RTOs are already reasonably stable in recent years but these new changes will significantly reduce the number of organisations applying to become a registered training organisation (RTO). The proposed reform numbers one and two of ASQA’s submission are considered in full to make this change. 

The organisations will be required to demonstrate a genuine purpose of a commitment to providing high-quality VET and capability to do so to be a training organisation. The training organisation will also be responsible to demonstrate the establishment of a sustainable business model, with a focus on ensuring adequate resources are readily available for the proposed scope of registration. 

Conditions and decision timings relating to National VET Regulator (NVR) registered training organisations (NVR RTOs); 

The amendment bill includes information about the period for which the condition will be imposed and how organisations should be notified. 

Notification requirements for NVR RTOs in relation to changes to the operation of an NVR RTO or events likely to significantly affect an NVR RTO’s ability to comply with the VET Quality Framework; 

The stringent notification requirements are suggested to be made mandatory. The legislation enforces a policy of continuous disclosure on an RTO, notifying ASQA when there are likely to be significant changes to an RTO or when an event occurs that is likely to significantly affect an organisation’s ability to be compliant.    

Reviewable decisions made by the delegate of the NVR; 

Section 203 includes information about the reviewable decisions made by the delegate of the NVR. 

Compliance standards and conditions for accredited courses; 

There are a number of compliance standards and conditions suggested for accredited courses. Such as section 47: 

A person in respect of whom a VET accredited course is accredited must: 

  • comply with the conditions set out in sections 47A, 47B and 47C; and 
  • comply with any conditions imposed on the accreditation of the VET accredited course under subsection 48(1).

 

Preparation and publication of audit reports by the NVR; 

ASQA will be required to publish audit reports to its own website. The format and timings of publication of these reports are not clear yet. The amendment bill states the following after section 17A: 

17A Requirements for audits conducted in relation to applications for registration

        1. The National VET Regulator must prepare a report of an audit conducted under subsection 17(3) in relation to an application for registration.

        2. The report must: 

          • (a)  be in a form (if any) approved by the Minister; and

          • (b)  comply with the requirements (if any) prescribed by the audit report rules for the purposes of this paragraph.

        3. The report must not include personal information , unless the personal information is the name of: 

          • (a)  the applicant; or 

          • (b)  an N VR registered training organisation.

        4. The National VET Regulator must comply with the requirements (if any) prescribed by the audit report rules relating to the publication of the report.

 

Electronic sharing and publication of information authorised by the NVR; 

The proposed changes suggest that no personal information should be made available through publication of the audit reports or electronic sharing. This change is to meet the requirements of the Privacy Act 1988 (Privacy Act) and the Australian Privacy Principles (or APPs). For more information, please refer here.

The other changes include the following: 

  • information that the NVR is required to enter on the National Register; 
  • the NVR’s powers to request documents in electronic form, use of enforceable undertakings and to allow for regulatory decisions to be stayed while under reconsideration; 
  • cancellation of VET qualifications and statements of attainment; 
  • the minister’s powers to issue directions to, and determine certain fees charged by, the NVR; 
  • certain offence provisions relating to the delivery of a VET course; 
  • processes for the appointment of acting Commissioners, the Deputy Chief Commissioner and the Chief Commissioner of the NVR; and the NVR’s annual operational and corporate plans; and to make a number of technical amendments; and National Vocational Education and Training Regulator (Transitional Provisions) Act 2011 to provide for transitional arrangements.

 

For more information regarding the changes and how they will affect you, contact us at info@caqa.com.au.

The pillars of Quality Assurance – Part 1 of Part 3

Posted on by Sukh Sandhu

Quality Assurance (QA) is a way of preventing mistakes and defects in manufactured products and avoiding problems when delivering products or services to customers; which ISO 9000 defines as “part of quality management focused on providing confidence that quality requirements will be fulfilled”. QA is, therefore, the process of quality planning plus quality control.  

The quality assurance process in education and training 

Quality assurance involves the systematic review of educational provisions to maintain and improve quality, equity and efficiency. It encompasses organisational self-evaluation (internal audits), external evaluation (including inspection), the evaluation of staff (trainers, support staff and management), and evaluation of learner training and assessments. Developing and implementing a strong quality assurance systems is crucial to building and supporting high-quality, inclusive education and training. 

The difference between QA and QC 

Quality Assurance and Quality Control are two terms that are often used interchangeably. Although similar, there are distinct differences between the two concepts. 

Quality Assurance

Quality assurance can be defined as “part of quality management focused on providing confidence that quality requirements will be fulfilled.” The confidence provided by quality assurance is twofold—internally to management and externally to customers, government agencies, regulators, certifiers, and third parties. An alternate definition is “all the planned and systematic activities implemented within the quality system that can be demonstrated to provide confidence that a product or service will fulfill requirements for quality.”

Quality Control

Quality control can be defined as “part of quality management focused on fulfilling quality requirements.” While quality assurance relates to how a process is performed or how a product is made, quality control is more the inspection aspect of quality management. An alternate definition is “the operational techniques and activities used to fulfill requirements for quality.”

Conceptualising quality in education and training

Harvey and Green (1993) explore the nature and usage of quality in relation to higher education and point out that quality is a relative concept. Harvey (2004–12) provides definitions that are summarised below. 

  • The exceptional view sees quality as something special.
  • Quality as perfection sees quality as a consistent or flawless outcome.
  • Quality as fitness for purpose sees quality in terms of fulfilling a customer’s requirements,needs or desires.
  • Quality as value for money sees quality in terms of return on investment.
  • Quality as transformation is a classic notion of quality that sees it in terms of change from one state to another. In educational terms, transformation refers to the enhancement and empowerment of students or the development of new knowledge. 

 

Another perspective on the concept is offered by Cheng (2001), who states that the worldwide education reforms have experienced three waves since the 1970s. He proceeds to identify three paradigm shifts in quality improvement in education: 

  • internal quality assurance,which ‘makes an effort to improve internal school performance,particularly the methods and processes of teaching and learning’;
  • interface quality assurance, which emphasises ‘organisational effectiveness, stakeholders satisfaction and market competitiveness and makes an effort to ensure satisfaction and accountability to the internal and external stakeholder’;
  • future quality assurance,which is defined ‘in terms of relevance to the new school functions in the new century as well as relevance to the new paradigm of education concerning contextualised multiple intelligences, globalisation, localisation and individualisation’. 

 

Quality assurance in a training organisation 

In a training organisation, quality assurance is part of almost everything from industry engagement, development of  training and assessment strategies, advertisements and marketing, student enrolment and admission, identifying and categorising individual student needs, provision of assistance and support, developing and delivering quality training and assessment, recording and awarding of certification to data archival processes. 

We will focus on the main pillars of Quality Assurance in our coming series of articles and include the following three pillars: 

  • Responsibility and accountability 
  • Documents and records control 
  • Continuous improvement

Coronavirus travel ban sees Chinese students miss start of university, Australia’s tertiary…

Posted on by Sukh Sandhu

More than 100,000 Chinese students will not be able to start their university and TAFE classes in Australia because of the travel ban put in place to curb the spread of coronavirus. On Saturday, the Federal Government banned anyone arriving from, or transiting through, mainland China from coming to Australia. With most university classes due to start next week, the ban has thrown Australia’s higher education sector into chaos. For more Information, please visit here.

The new ASQA website

Posted on by Sukh Sandhu

If you’ve visited asqa.gov.au before, you will probably notice that the page layout looks a little different. Here are some changes to be aware of: Simplified main menu labelling and added  ‘Students’ tab. Relocated information about making a complaint under the ‘About’ heading. Both the Users’ guide to the Standards for RTOs 2015 and Users’ guide to the Standards for VET Accredited Courses can be accessed from any page on the site, via links in the top left of the page header. In addition, the Users’ guide to the Standards for RTOs 2015 can now be browsed by either subject chapter or standard—whichever you prefer. The FAQs are now grouped by popular topics. You can now also browse FAQs alphabetically by topic. Search results can now be filtered by content type. An Upcoming events page, it’s now easier to find out details of the next webinar or presentation. Edited website content to be easier to read and reorganised information to follow logical user pathways. For more Information, please visit here.

I want to voice my opinion – Your letters and emails to us

Posted on by Sukh Sandhu

In this newsletter, we are selecting this email that we received from one of our subscribers genuinely questioning the current regulatory environment on the Registered Training Organisations:
Thank you for your ongoing support of the VET Sector and in particular your reporting on the actions of ASQA.  I have worked in the VET industry for 33 years in a variety of roles including NSW VETAB auditor and owner of two RTOs.  I can attest to the declining quality in the auditing of RTOs and the educative nature of the auditing process. In times past you could at least speak to an auditor and received meaningful information not just the clause quoted from the Standards. I have recently been assisting an RTO with scope additions and have found the regulator to be inflexible, uncooperative and far too keen to wield its big stick over small RTOs.  In particular:

  • An extension of two working days was denied meaning we could not submit all the evidence requested on time and hence deemed non-compliant on resubmission.  We had had many staff off with illness at the time including flu and those remaining were under the pump to complete the evidence on time.
  • We requested to remove a qualification as we had no enrolled students.  ASQA still required full sets of assessment tools for this qualification even though we would never use them as we would be removing the qualification. We were deemed non-compliant as a result.
  • TAS and assessment tools submitted months earlier by another RTO had been passed by an ASQA auditor at the time but rejected in this audit by our auditor.  No consistency.

As a result the full scope was suspended and the Board chose to close the RTO as the cost of compliance was too high. All training staff were retrenched and this was an RTO that four months earlier had been given a 7 year re-registration.
ASQA needs to be reviewed in its practice of granting up to 7 years registration for an RTO on renewal only to suspend their registration months later when the apply for an addition to scope.  All RTOs upon reregistration should have to supply a suite of assessment tools.
THE VET industry also needs to challenge the addition of the unit TAEASS502 to the Certificate IV in Training and Assessment.  The addition of this unit has forced many good industry assessors to leave training as assessment at Diploma level is time consuming and difficult.  The design and development of assessment tools is a completely different skills set from training and assessing. Having this unit will not make for a better assessor.  Mentoring and ongoing professional development will gain higher skilled trainers and assessors.
The names and details have been removed to protect the confidentiality of the person/s involved. 
Do you have views or thoughts about something? 
Why not write to us and discuss how we all as VET stakeholders can voice our opinions and views and help to create a better vocational education and training system?

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