What is TAQA?

When it comes to Assessor qualifications, there are a lot of them! From A1, D32/33 to CAVA. But have you heard someone refer to it as the Assessors Award or the TAQA? You would mainly see this when you’re looking through jobs, as some (or all) employers call it the TAQA qualification. If you’ve heard and seen it used and have no idea what it even is, then we’re your industry helpers. When it comes to assessing we know tonnes. So let’s answer some of your questions.

What is TAQA

TAQA is an umbrella term for a host of qualifications. This is an acronym which stands for Training, Assessment and Quality Assurance. TAQA is not a course in itself though. This isn’t a qualification, it is just a suite of different qualifications.

If you see a job advert asking for the TAQA, you need to figure out which one of these qualifications you need. So keep that in mind!

So you know what the acronym stands for, but what is actually within the letters?

T- Training

Within T you have the Education and Training qualifications. Now training qualifications are for people who want to start to teach or train adults in their area of expertise. Within the Education and Training qualifications, you have 3.

Level 3 Award in Education and Training (AET)

The AET was previously known as the PTLLS qualification. This enables you to teach in your subject industry, for example, you can teach in colleges. The qualification can be considered to be a foot in the door, as you don’t necessarily need to be in a teaching role.

Level 4 Certificate in Education and Training (CET)

However, the CET. This one does require you to already be in a further education role. Previously known as the CTLLS qualification. The specification requires you to be observed delivering real-life teaching to your learners.

The Level 5 Diploma in Education and Training (DET)

Previously known as the DTLLS qualification, it provides you with a wide range of skills and knowledge and will qualify you to apply for the Qualified Teacher Learning and Skills status (QTLS). This is the most advanced qualification available. 

A- Assessment

This A in TAQA stands for assessment, this is where you have all your Assessor related qualifications. These are CAVA, ACWE, AVRA and UPPA. Don’t worry, we know that’s a lot of random letters! But we’re going to go through what each one means. So why all the different qualifications? Well, to answer your question it’s because they all hold a different purpose. There are 3 units and they all have a different combination of them. The three units are:

• Unit 1: Understanding the Principles and Practices of Assessment
• Unit 2: Assess Occupational Competence in the Work Environment
• And, Unit 3: Assess Vocational Skills, Knowledge and Understanding

Taking all three units together is the only way you can be a fully qualified Assessor in your area of occupational competence. We’re going to take you through each qualification now.

UPPA- Level 3 Award in Understanding the Principles and Practices of Assessment (Unit 1 only)

This unit is theory only. It doesn’t qualify you to practice as an assessor. However, it’s a really great piece of CPD, to refresh your knowledge if you’re already a qualified Assessor. Or if you hold any previous qualifications such as the A1 Assessor qualification or the D23/33. The UPPA brings you up to speed and teaches you about the roles and responsibilities of an Assessor.

AVRA- Level 3 Award in Assessing Vocationally Related Achievement (Units 1 and 3 only)

This qualification is one which you can be qualified to assess in one particular setting. It allows you to Assess in a Learning environment, such as a classroom, workshop or virtual learning setting. However, it doesn’t qualify you to assess in the workplace. This is a great one to have if you’re assessing in a college environment. 

ACWE- Level 3 Award in Assessing Competence in the Work Environment (Units 1 and 2 only)

However, if you only want to assess people in their work environment, then this is great for you. But this is the only thing you can assess in, you can’t assess in the learning environment. 

CAVA – Level 3 Certificate in Assessing Vocational Achievement (Units 1, 2 and 3!)

If assessing in the learning and workplace environment sounds like something you want to do, or you need to assess in both, then the CAVA qualification is for you. Comprised of all 3 units, this fully qualifies you to become an Assessor. Being extremely sought after in the TAQA suite, this qualifies you to become an NVQ Assessor, End-Point Assessor (EPA) and On-Programm Assessor. This is what most employers are referring to when they ask for the TAQA qualification. 

QA- Quality Assurance

Under this section of the TAQA suite, we have the Internal Quality Assurance qualifications. In this section, we have three different qualifications and we’ll get to that in just a moment. But why are they Level 4? With the IQA qualifications being a Level 4, they represent a higher level of learning than the Level 3 Assessor course. This is because being in an IQA role is a step up from being an Assessor. 

Similar to the Assessor qualifications the three IQA qualifications are made up of a combination of three Units. Those Units are:

• Unit 1: Understanding the Principles and Practices of Internally Assuring the Quality of Assessment
• Unit 2: Internally Assure the Quality of Assessment
• Unit 3: Plan, Allocate and Monitor Work in Own Area of Responsibility

Level 4 Award in Understanding the Internal Quality Assurance of Assessment Processes and Practice (Unit 1 only)

Like the UPPA course, this is a theory-based qualification and does not qualify you to become an IQA. It’s another good piece of CPD for you to complete if you’re already in the industry. It can also be really good for managers.

Level 4 Award in The Internal Quality Assurance of Assessment Processes and Practice (Units 1 and 2 only)

This course qualifies you to become an Internal Quality Assurer, this is the closest qualification to the old Internal Verifier. As an IQA you will be quality-assuring assessments and assessment decisions. However, it doesn’t fully qualify you to manage the entire quality assurance process.

Level 4 Certificate in Leading the Internal Quality Assurance of Assessment Processes and Practice (Units 1, 2 and 3!)

Now if you want to manage the entire IQA process this is the qualification for you. Comprised of all three units, it qualifies you to quality assure the assessments and the decisions, but also manage the internal quality procedures and staff. It also allows you to coordinate with External Quality Assurers (EQAs). 

If any of these courses take your fancy, then you can pop on over to our friends at Brooks and Kirk, who specialise in TAQA training and are industry specialists! We highly recommend them!