OCN Northern Ireland
Quality Assurance
Learner Registration & Certification
QCF for Providers & Learners
Since September 2006, QCA has been piloting a new framework for qualifications through a range of tests and trials across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. These pilots finished in August 2008.
In July 2008, QCA confirmed the extension of this suite of qualifications until 31st December 2010.
The QCF is an organising structure based on credit-based units that are written to a common format (unit title, level, credit value, learning outcomes and assessment criteria) and submitted by Awarding Bodies to a shared unit bank held at QCA. Awarding Bodies then select and combine together units from this unit bank into qualifications, using QCA defined rules of combination. This new organising structure is intended to simplify and rationalise the way qualifications are structured, and to offer the flexibility for learners to accumulate and transfer credits towards qualifications over time.
The QCF was originally tested with learners in different settings, including colleges, prisons/probation, the workplace and voluntary/community settings. This was essential to ensure that it was flexible and inclusive enough to accommodate all forms of achievement, and that it benefited all those involved in education and training.
For providers, it is anticipated that this framework will enable more innovative approaches to learning. It will help providers to:
- design more flexible programmes, suitable to the needs of individual learners;
- improve retention and progression rates by recognising smaller steps of achievement more frequently;
- track all learners’ achievements through the use of a Unique Learner Number (ULN) and an individual’s electronic achievement record (LAR);
- describe achievements to employers and learners in a language that is easy to understand (i.e. credit) and which enables comparison and equivalence to be established between qualifications.
For learners, it is anticipated that the framework will offer more freedom, choice and flexibility. It will help them to:
- choose between smaller, bite-sized chunks of learning (units) or whole qualifications;
- build up achievements (credits) at their own pace and in different learning contexts;
- combine learning in a way that will help them achieve their goals;
- transfer achievements (credits) between qualifications to avoid duplicating learning;
- have all their achievements recorded centrally on an electronic record that will remain with them throughout their learning life.
Our Vision Statement
To be recognised and respected as the leading credit based learning and development body in Ireland, promoting social inclusion, wider participation and community transformation.
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