A Unit of Competency is a complex thing. It has many parts. If we can understand these components individually, then we are better able to understand how to use the Unit of Competency to plan, deliver and assess training.
It does not matter which Training Package it might come from, every Unit of Competency will have some common sections. It is important that we understand all sections, because no single section is more or less important than any other section.
PARTS OF A UNIT OF COMPETENCY
Each Unit of Competency will have, as a minimum, the following parts, whose purpose is shown in the table below.
Part of Unit What it tells us
Description tells me in general terms what the unit intends to do: what it covers, and what skills and knowledge it involves
Performance Criteria
made of two parts: Elements, which tell me what I should be able to do if I am competent in the Unit; and, PerformanceCriteria, which tell me how I can show that I am competent in the Element
Key Competencies
this is an often overlooked section, although it is just as important as every other part. It tells us about the generic work skills that are included in the Unit, with a number (often 1 to 3) telling us the level of performance of this skill that is expected for each of these generic skills
Range Statement
gives me more information to understand the performance criteria, by telling me some situations that could be included. In many Units, there are boldor italic words/phrases in the Performance Criteria, which tells me that there is more information about them in the Range Statement
Evidence Guide
tells me the evidence that I need to show in order to demonstrate that I am competent. It can give me a list of required knowledge and skills, and sometimes gives suggestions for how to assess the Unit
PartofUnit Whatittellsme Holistic
Assessment of Units
this is sometimes called Integrated/Interdependent Competency Assessment. This section tells us how we can assess this particular Unit of Competency in conjunction with other Units within the same
Training Package Resources
Required not surprisingly, this tells us the main resources that we will need to be able to effectively assess competence in the Unit.
THEORY INTO PRACTICE
See if you can find each of the above parts of the Unit of Competency for AHCCCF416A ‐ Present ProposedCoursesofActiontoMeeting,which you will find at the following location:
http://training.gov.au/Training/Details/AHCCCF416A
MATCHING COMPETENCY STANDARDS TO CLIENT NEEDS
To make sure that we make informed decisions about the Units of Competency to deliver for our clients, we must collect as much information as we can. Ways that we can collect this information include:
talking with individuals/groups in person or via the telephone
examining past, current and future trends (eg, what skills were, are and will be required) surveying employees
testing (informally or formally ‐ always get permission first) employees to discover their needs and existing knowledge/skills
observe workers doing their jobs
look at employment records, CVs, position descriptions
compare your client organisation's skills levels with those of similar organisations or industry benchmarks
talking with line managers to discover gaps in skills/knowledge among workers
Another way to work out if a Unit of Competency matches our client's needs is to have a look at the Dimensions of Competency. There are four dimensions:
Dimension What the Participant must Demonstrate Task skills The specific skills needed to do the task as described in the unit of competency Task management
skills
Effective management of a number of interrelated tasks, all of which make up the job outcome being assessed
Contingency
management skills The ability to cope with irregularities or breakdowns in routine Job or role
environment skills
Dealing effectively with the expectations of their work environment, working well with others and under instruction as required
By now, we will have looked at all the information in the Unit of Competency from the point of view of how it might meet our client's needs. With this understanding, we can determine the impact that it might have on our planned training/assessment, and decide whether to go ahead.
LOOKING FOR LINKS
It is rare that we will be looking at delivering just a single Unit of Competency. In most cases, we will be delivering/assessing a number of Units. For this reason, it makes sense to see if we can find links to connect the Units. Not only does this make the training more time and cost effective, it also makes the training more relevant to people's ways of learning. You see, people learn a whole lot better if they cannot just see butalsoexperience links between one thing and another.
An example of this is this course. By placing all of the content for all 10 Units together, and linking between them, we are able to avoid duplication of material. You, the learner, are able to experience how each part of information is linked to all other parts. This makes it easier for you to create a mental filing system that creates understanding and memory. It also makes it a whole lot quicker for you to do the course!
Let's look at this example in more detail using the section entitled UnderstandingtheStructureofa UnitofCompetency.
TAEASS401A includes the following Performance Criterion:
2.2Wherecompetencystandardsareusedasbenchmarks,allcomponentpartsofthe
competencystandardsareaddressedindefininganddocumentingtheevidencetobecollected.
Clearly, this requires that the learner understands the structure of a Unit of Competency. There are a few others through the TAE40110 course that also require this understanding. So, instead of having a separate section for each time it is required, we create a single section that addresses all of the understanding required.
This concept also relates to Contextualisation, which we will visit at another point.
CONSIDER LANGUAGE, LITERACY & NUMERACY
Not all Units have the same requirements for background knowledge or skill. This is especially so when it comes to language, literacy and numeracy requirements of a Unit.
For this reason, even though a Unit or Units may seem to be highly relevant for our client, we must also consider whether the levels of language, literacy and numeracy of our participants are
sufficient to allow them to do the Units.
Some simple things to think about when looking at using a Unit of Competency are:
if it requires that a learner explain something, then the learner must first have the English language skills to do this
if it requires that a learner follows written instructions, then the learner must first be able to read
if it requires that a learner to measure or calculate something, then the learner must first be numerate
Mind you, just because a learner may not possess these things is not sufficient reason to abandon your training. Instead, it is a good opportunity to speak with your client about how the learners can be supported to still let them do the training that they require. When it comes to assessment, this is called Reasonable Adjustment.
DOCUMENTING OUR DECISIONS Remember, we do not work in isolation.
What we do is linked to national standards. To make sure that what we decide can be easily understood by other people, it is important that we record the following:
how we interpreted the parts of the Unit in terms of how they might meet the client's needs how the range of variables applies to the planned training
our initial plan for meeting the requirements of the evidence guide
We should do this for each individual Unit of Competency. Then, by comparing these records, we can identify areas of overlap ‐ such as in shared learning activities, assessment tasks, work tasks ‐ which tells us about whether we could assess holistically, ie assessment across more than one Unit at a time.
SO, HOW DOES A UNIT OF COMPETENCY HELP TO DELIVER INDUSTRY STANDARDS? Units of Competency do not exist in isolation. Instead, they are part of a Training Package which has been developed by an industry or group of industries to provide a guide for the skills they require. If we want to be very simple, then we can say that the Description, Elements and Performance Criteria tell us what industry wants.
The rest of the parts of the Unit tells us how we can train and assess others to ensure that they can do what industry wants them to do.
THEORY INTO PRACTICE