ASQA | Spotlight On trainers and assessors, Chapter 4
Training and assessment under direction
Chapter 4 aims to help ensure those working under direction have opportunities to learn and develop skills as part of directional arrangements.
When recruiting trainers and assessors, sometimes RTOs find potential staff who are industry-experienced subject matter experts, but lack the required training and assessment credentials. You may still be able to employ these people to participate in delivery through a directional process.
Determining directional eligibility
Under the 2025 Standards for RTOs, a person who has vocational competence and industry currency at the level needed for the training product being delivered, and who also holds the credentials set out in the Section 1D of the Credential Policy, can be engaged in training and assessment under a directional arrangement.
Planning directional arrangements
Your RTO must have suitable processes in place to manage directional arrangements. This ensures that individuals who are under direction are supported by qualified and experienced trainers and assessors, so that students are receiving high level delivery by participating in valid training and assessment.
A fully qualified trainer and assessor must monitor and is accountable for all training and collection of assessment evidence by the individual under their direction. The systems and processes your RTO implements must ensure the trainer and assessor providing direction is ultimately responsible for the assessment judgement.
The process implemented to monitor directional arrangements should balance the requirements of the Standards with what makes the most sense to your operations and the level of training and assessment experience of the person being supervised.
Working under direction does not necessarily mean direct oversight, or one-on-one observation, of teaching at all times. Your RTO needs to consider the level of training and/or assessment skills and knowledge the person receiving direction has and put in place arrangements for appropriate oversight and guidance. The level of oversight, guidance and quality assurance needed will change as the person becomes more experienced.
A plan should be established so monitoring arrangements are based on skills and experience, allowing a new trainer and/or assessor to learn, develop and practice skills while not compromising on students receiving high quality delivery. The plan should also allow adjustments to the arrangements as the trainer and/or assessor working under direction gains skills and credentials.
Continue to document all feedback on the performance and progress of the person working under direction, to maintain effective records, to demonstrate how quality training and assessment is delivered under the arrangement, and to articulate how decisions are made when directional arrangements are varied.
Workplace supervision
When a student is undertaking on-the-job training or work placement, and is being monitored by a worker on site, that workplace supervisor is not required to hold the trainer and assessor credentials. They are not considered an individual providing direction on the delivery of training and assessment, as specified in the Credential Policy.
A workplace supervisor is not responsible for delivering training against the unit of competency and does not make any assessment decisions. A workplace supervisor can however give advice and practical support to students, advising on their progress, and could be involved in the collection of evidence for assessment.
During workplace supervision, your RTO must ensure:
- training against the unit of competency is provided
- you develop and implement assessment tools to collect evidence for assessment
- workplace supervisor materials are maintained as supplementary evidence sources for the RTO assessor. This includes log books or testimonials.
- The judgement of competence for any assessment remains the RTO assessor’s responsibility.
More Spotlight On
- ASQA | Spotlight On trainers and assessors, Chapter 3
- ASQA | Spotlight On trainers and assessors, Chapter 5