Guest posting to voced-coord email list. Item 12 of 15:

Date: Fri, 20 Feb 1998 13:21:49 +1100
To: voced-coord@owl.qut.edu.au
Subj:Using the Quality Achievement Matrix

Sample go at using the Matrix to start developing an Action Plan:
Now that you've accessed or obtained a copy of the Getting There kit, how do you use the Quality Achievement Matrix?

Let's have a look through Focus Area 5 as a familiarisation exercise.

Step 1: Start at the bottom (where it says 'Start Here'!)

Step 2: Choose a 'Focus Area'

Step 3: Work UP the column for the Focus Area

For example, for 'Focus Area' 5 - Customer Focus, start at the Foundation 'Level', Criterion 5.1.

Criterion 5.1 Program reflects industry and local community requirements.

Do you consider that the initiatives you are involved in (ie. 'school-workplace learning programs') "reflect industry and local community requirements" (see Criterion 5.1).

Consider what evidence would suggest that your initiatives DO meet this Criterion

See the Evidence Guide, for Criterion 5.1 (page 12 for Focus Area 5)
The course/s reflect locally relevant employment, education and training requirements and opportunities;
The local community and industry has the capacity to provide structured workplace learning.

You may wish to answer "yes" or "not yet", OR you may wish to use a scale to measure achievements to date and identify challenges ahead

For example - have you and your Management Committee considered the local (or relevant) employment, education and training requirements and opportunities?

Are decisions regarding "which VET in Schools programs", or "which school-workplace learning programs" based on an understanding of where young people may best be able to use their achievements and experiences to access employment, or further education and training?

Alternatively, are decisions primarily 'student interest driven'?
Will such programs provide the best local (or relevant) employment, education and training opportunities for young school leavers?

For each Criterion, the following scale may be applied:
4 points - criteria thoroughly applied with consistently outstanding results;
3 points - criteria systematically applied with positive results;
2 points - criteria being applied and starting to have results;
1 point - commenced planning and developing strategies;
0 points - haven't considered this at all yet

Remember that this is a self-assessment tool to support and facilitate continuous quality improvement of local initiatives. There is no pass/fail.

[In many instances, a 3-4 score reflects the fact that schools and industry have been collaboratively implementing school-workplace
learning programs over a period of many years (ie. consistent application requires time).]

WHAT NEXT?
Once you've considered whether the initiatives are met or not (ie. by scoring), you can identify strategies to progress your initiatives. For example, if you scored 0-1, you may wish to include (in your ACTION PLAN), strategies to meet this criteria.

ie. Investigate local (or relevant) industry and community requirements
to:
ensure that the course/s reflect locally relevant employment, education and training requirements and opportunities; and
ensure that the local community and industry has the capacity to provide the required workplace learning opportunities.

[you will also need to identify 'milestones' to enable you to evaluate progress with this component of your ACTION PLAN]

Keep going up -

'Focus Area' 5 - Customer Focus - Foundation 'Level', Criterion 5.2 says "there is awareness that students, parents, industry, community and the school are 'customers' who have a range of expectations".

What evidence would suggest that your initiatives DO meet this Criteria?

See the Evidence Guide, in relation to 5.2 (on page 12)
People involved in managing the program express the need to provide efficient service and satisfy needs;
Student need and progress is monitored on an individual basis;
Industry need and expectation is assessed on an individual basis.

For example, how does your program monitor individual student progress? (If you are not responsible for this, who is? Are there consistent approaches / mechanisms to ensure that all students' needs and progress are continually evaluated?)

How do you assess participating enterprises needs and expectations? Is it first come first served, or have you established other processes? etc. etc

Has your Management Committee identified the needs of your customers - what students, parents, industry, community and the school(s)?

Once again, you may wish to answer "yes" or "not yet", OR you may wish to use a scale. As you progressively move up the columns to consider the various 'Criteria' and accompanying 'Evidence Guide', use the same scale of 0 - 4 for all Criteria.

Where the initiatives which you are involved with do not meet this criteria, or could be developed further, identify a range of strategies (for inclusion in your ACTION PLAN).

These strategies would seek to ensure that
People involved in managing the program express the need
to provide efficient service and satisfy needs;
Student need and progress is monitored on an individual basis;
Industry need and expectation is assessed on an individual basis.

AND THEN?
Keep on going through, and objectively considering:
Q Where are the initiatives you are involved with now?
Q Where would you like to be?
Q How would you like the program to develop further?
Q Is the continuous improvement process of assistance to you, and the Management Committee you are involved with?

Remember that the ASTF requires that assessments be conducted collaboratively with industry partners, and relevant community organisations. HOW? - see pages 6-7 of the "Getting There" kit, or the full sized poster in the kit.

See the matrix for more examples to go through ...

Regards

Brigid Freeman
Australian Student Traineeship Foundation
Level 9, 76-80 Clarence Street
SYDNEY NSW 2000
Phone: 1800 626 839 (toll free) / 02 9299 5899

To view all of the interaction with the online guest browse the voced-coord archives from February 11 - 20, 1998.
[back to list of guest postings][next guest posting]

First published March 16, 1998.

VECO - a Project of ECEF (formerly ASTF) in partnership with Aussie SchoolHouse Copyright © ECEF & ASH 1997-2001 All Rights Reserved maintained by: VECO Coordinator first designed by: Bruce Young design revisions by: ozline.com database development: Datawise Consulting  The NetRide