A partnership between schools and the QCAA underpins the quality management system. The quality management system describes the principles and processes required for quality assurance related to the QCIA principles of quality assurance.
The QCAA quality assurance processes support schools to develop curriculum and assessment and ensure consistency of judgments about student achievement. The processes support the continuous improvement of practices in schools.
Quality assurance processes incorporate the following principles:
- There is alignment between teaching, learning, and assessment.
- Teachers implement students’ individual curriculum plans and develop teaching, learning and assessment for students in their local context.
- Teachers make judgments about student achievement using evidence in student work.
- Quality assurance processes, including feedback and professional conversations, promote continuous improvement and help teachers improve teaching and inform assessment practices.
3.4.1 Internal quality assurance
Internal quality assurance for the QCIA involves professional conversations among teachers at the school, or other learning provider as appropriate, who are involved in the student’s learning, to gain a shared understanding of the student’s achievement and participation.
QCIA leaders
Within each school the role of QCIA leader is undertaken by the principal’s delegate or their delegate. Schools develop internal quality assurance processes to ensure they:
- incorporate the principles of quality assurance into school quality assurance processes
- communicate and manage roles and responsibilities
- gather and store evidence as required
- are ready for QCAA quality assurance processes, including QCIA verification, state review and pre-production checks
- report information accurately to the QCAA
- approve curriculum plans
QCIA coordinators
Within each school, QCIA coordinators (e.g. heads of curriculum or special education) typically:
- record students’ individual curriculum plans that satisfy QCAA requirements
- oversee implementation of students’ individual curriculum plans
- prepare the required information for QCAA quality assurance processes, including identifying eligible students and applying internal quality assurance
- implement the recommendations from the QCAA quality assurance processes
- maintain records and evidence as required by the QCAA and the school.
Teachers
Teachers of QCIA students typically:
- develop and deliver learning experiences and assessment opportunities for students using their individual curriculum plans
- gather evidence of student achievement toward the learning goals in each student’s individual curriculum plan
- maintain records and evidence as required by the QCAA and the school.
For support, schools are encouraged to email qcia@qcaa.qld.edu.au.
3.4.2 QCIA advisers
QCIA advisers implement the quality assurance processes of the QCIA. In this role they may be required to:
- engage in various quality assurance processes to support the QCIA, including the QCIA verification and state review
- support schools to
- participate in QCIA verification
- act on feedback from QCIA verification.
QCIA advisers are responsible for maintaining deep knowledge and understanding of:
3.4.3 QCIA verification
QCIA verification uses a peer quality assurance process that ensures the validity and reliability of QCIA information. Reviews are completed during a scheduled meeting by QCIA advisers and facilitated by QCAA officers. All schools with students expected to receive a QCIA at the end of the year are required to upload draft certificates and folio/s of evidence for QCIA verification.
Feedback from QCIA verification is provided to schools about the quality of draft QCIA information and substantiating evidence. Timelines for activities related to QCIA verification are published in the SEP calendar.
Preparing for QCIA verification
Schools prepare the following for QCIA verification:
- draft certificate information for all exiting students, including Statements of Achievement and Statements of Participation (see Section 3.3.4: Recording Statements of Achievement and Statements of Participation)
- Draft certificate information is prepared in the Student Management application
- folio/s of evidence used to make judgments (a single folio if fewer than 10 students are exiting, or folios for two students if 10 or more students are exiting)
- Select types of evidence for the folio as explained in the GIL
- Folios must provide annotated evidence for every Statement of Achievement, organised within curriculum organisers, and for every Statement of Participation
- evidence that certificate information for all exiting students has been provided
- Schools must enter all exiting students’ certificate information in the Student Management application, print and save the draft certificate information from the software application program for every student exiting, and prepare these drafts for QCIA verification.
See QCIA Quality Assurance for additional information about preparing for QCIA verification.
Responding to QCIA verification feedback
After QCIA verification, the QCAA provides written feedback to schools about the quality of the QCIA information, in two official documents:
- QCIA Draft certificate feedback
- QCIA Evidence of achievement feedback.
Schools must act upon feedback and advice recorded on the feedback forms within two weeks of receiving the forms. Information on how to act on the feedback received will be provided to schools when the feedback is sent to the school. It is not appropriate for schools to rewrite Statements of Achievement as the new information would not have been through the required quality assurance processes. Schools will need to alter certificate information or provide further evidence of student achievement as required.
Written advice is provided about:
- the quality of the Statement of Achievement and Statement of Participation that follow the QCIA guidelines provided in this handbook
- the match between the draft certificate information and the evidence provided in the sample folio
- any duplication issues with the Statement of Achievement and Statement of Participation.
3.4.4 QCIA state review
The QCIA state review process occurs early in Term 4 in the final year of senior schooling, when QCIA advisers and QCAA officers review the provisional certificate information for all schools.
Before the state review
Schools are required to:
- act upon feedback received from QCIA verification (see Section 3.4.3: QCIA verification)
- submit final certification information for exiting students in the Student Management application by the date published in the SEP calendar
- confirm exiting students have been identified in the exit cohort of the Student Management application
- check that the QCIA does not duplicate any QCE-contributing studies
- ensure the accuracy and quality of the certificate data.
Responding to state review feedback
Feedback is provided to schools about students’ provisional certificate information after the state review. QCAA officers may discuss issues about provisional certificate information with schools and provide feedback about:
- the quality of the certificate
- duplication issues with achievements in QCE-contributing studies to the school.
Schools must act upon and update certificate information according to feedback and advice by the date published in the SEP calendar.
3.4.5 Pre-production checks
QCAA officers check all QCIA data to ensure schools have met legislative requirements and that the information for the Statement of Achievement and Statement of Participation fits on the certificate. If required, schools are contacted to make corrections. Requested changes are urgent — it is important that changes are made within the time specified by the QCAA officer.
3.4.6 Issue of a QCIA
For eligible students who meet the criteria for a QCIA by the completion of their senior secondary schooling, the QCAA issues the QCIA in December of the student’s final year. A QCIA is only issued at the completion of the academic year after quality assurance processes have been completed. A QCIA is not issued if a student withdraws or ceases enrolment in the extension year (see Section 3.2.2: Curriculum plans).
