Training Delivery - Assessment

Assessment Policy

The Vice President – Education has responsibility for the ongoing monitoring and maintenance of all courses conducted by the Australian Ski Patrol Association.

All assessment materials must be reviewed and updated when necessary on an annual basis by the Vice President – Education in consultation with the Medical, Education Committees and members of the Executive.

All materials are judged against the following criteria:

• Relevance

• Validity

• Currency

• Policy changes

• Legal requirements

• Workcover adherence

• Australian Resuscitation Council adherence

• Readability and accessibility

• Industry Consultation

• Accreditation Guidelines

ASPA has a set of Underlying Principles of Assessment which are used to ensure assessment meets the vocational needs.  Any changes to Assessment materials must be tabled at the next meeting of the Executive Committee and entered and accepted in the minutes prior to being used.  If a course is to proceed with the new materials prior to the next meeting of the Executive Committee they must be approved by the Vice President – Education, the Medical and Education Committee and be confirmed as adhering to the relevant regulatory requirements.

To ensure consistency and validity of assessment the following procedures must be adhered to:

• All examiners and instructors will adhere to the Course Guideline documents supplied.

• Only assessment materials and practical scenarios approved by the Executive Committee are to be used in all situations.

• Theory papers are not to be changed in any way without consultation with the Vice President – Education.

• All examiners are required to attend the pre-assessment briefing held by the Course Director on the day of assessment to ensure consistency of assessment and use of assessment materials.

• The Vice President – Education and Course Directors will regularly observe the operation of practical assessment to ensure consistency.

• The Course Director is responsible for the collection of and correlation of all Participant, Instructor and Examiner course evaluation questionnaires and reports, which are to be collated and presented at the next meeting of the Executive Committee.

This policy must be adhered to, to retain Workcover Accreditation number FA9007.

All training and assessment receives validation through the continual liaison with relevant industry groups. Working closely with the management of all Australian Ski Resorts with regard to expectations of job, staffing and resources in alignment with resort policies and procedures course content is structured for the specifics of the environment. Australian Ski Resorts require their paid ski patrollers to hold qualification issued by the Australian Ski Patrol Association prior to employment.

The Australian Ski Patrol Association works in a continuous exchange with the various state Ambulance services and medical centres in all resorts to ensure consistency of treatment resulting from correct training. Assessment Methods vary and are summarised in the Assessment Methods Handout for instructors.

Vocational Assessment Model

As competency is the key to the learning outcomes of all ASPA Training courses, ASPA encourages the use of both formal and informal vocational assessment strategies (after Lombard, Larson, & Westphal, 1993).  MAGIC is one such assessment model designed to provide the information needed to increase access and successful completion of vocational technical programs for students.  The five essential steps of the model are:

1. Make a prediction. Instructors encourage students to make tentative predictions regarding the application of vocational technical training.  They assist students in examining the relationship between their knowledge, skills and attitude compared with real applications using simulations and scenarios.
2. Assess entry level skills and learner outcomes. After appropriate skills gap analysis, identify the skills and knowledge that will be required to achieve the outcome. Developing strategies provides answers to the following questions:
   • What are the essential academic, vocational, and social skills required?
   • What are the instructional preferences of the learners?
   • What evaluation approaches can be employed by the instructor?
   • What instructional and/or curricular modifications are needed?
   • What are the learner outcomes associated with the course of study?
3. Guide Student Acquisition of Discrepant Skills. Once the gaps and outcomes have been identified, instructors conduct a discrepancy analysis to determine which skills are required within a course of study, and which skills the students already possess. The discrepant skills should then be defined as goals and a plan developed for students to acquire these skills.
4. Instruct Student on Generalisation Strategies. There is evidence that many students have difficulty transferring skills from one environment to another (Ellis, Lenz, & Sabornie, 1987). Instructors assist students in acquiring independent behaviours that promote skill generalisation. Generalization strategies that instructors can use with students include:
   • teacher modelling followed by student simulations,
   • use of verbal rehearsal techniques,
   • use of visual rehearsal techniques,
   • orientation of students to settings where newly acquired skills can transfer, and
   • application of newly acquired skills in multiple simulation and role-play settings.
5. Coordinate Regular Evaluation Following Each Intervention.  Following training in vocational techniques, instructors must monitor the student's progress toward exit level competencies.  By evaluating student performance, instructors determine if additional curriculum and/or instructional modifications are required.