ETQA

Q: What is quality assurance within the skills development context?
A: It is an evaluation and monitoring process that ensures quality within a system of service delivery, to provide the receiver of the service the best possible result. It is essential to the achievement of the National Skills Development Strategy, as it ensures that training provision is of a consistently high standard.

Q: What role does a SETA play in this?
A:

Every sector education and training authority (SETA) is registered by the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) as an ETQA (education and training quality assurance body). In this capacity, it is able to:

• Accredit constituent education and training providers to ensure high-quality learning and assessment, and enable learners to achieve standards and qualifications registered on the national qualifications framework (NQF).
• Training providers who offer courses that do not lead to a formal qualification may also apply to have the quality of the content of their courses recognised.
• Evaluate learning programmes to ensure that learning outcomes align with the unit standards and qualifications defined by the NQF.
• Quality assure learner achievements to ensure that competent learners who receive credits against a unit standard or qualification have met the required outcomes and that assessments have been valid, fair and reliable.
• Register constituent assessors to assess whether specified primary focus NQF standards and qualifications have been achieved.
• Accredit education, training and development (ETD) practitioners, so that individuals delivering education and training in the sector are competent.
• Develop providers to promote quality and build capacity.

Q: Does the ETQA operate independently of the SETA?
A: No. SETAs are ETQAs. However, it is necessary to establish and staff a dedicated ETQA department within the SETA structure to fulfil the functions outlined above.

Q: How far do SASSETA’s ETQA powers reach?
A:

SASSETA is responsible for quality assuring primary focus unit standards and qualifications registered with SAQA. At present these are:

• For the assessment of non-primary focus unit standards in the sector, SASSETA enters into memoranda of understanding (MOUs) with the relevant ETQA, in terms of which the latter quality assures the non primary focus standards.
• For example, training of catering staff in a security business would be quality assured by the Tourism, Hospitality and Sport Education and Training Authority.

Q: What does it take for a provider to be accredited?
A:

To be accredited by SASSETA, a provider must:

• operate in SASSETA’s primary focus;
• not be accredited by another ETQA;
• be registered in terms of applicable legislation;
• have in place an acceptable quality management system (QMS);
• be able to develop, deliver and evaluate learning programmes that culminate in registered unit standards or qualifications;
• have financial, administrative and physical resources
• have policies and practices for:
• staff selection, appraisal and development;
• learner entry, guidance and development;
• management of off-site/worksite practical components of learning;
• management of assessment;
• have the necessary reporting procedures.

Note: short course providers may be exempt from one or more of the above requirements

Q: What are the requirements for an ETD practitioner to be accredited?
A:

• comply with all legal and registration requirements specific to the sector;
• possess the NQF unit standard or qualification for ETD practitioners
• have the relevant industry experience in the learning programme(s) offered;
• have a qualification at least one level higher than the qualification offered.

Q: How does one register as an assessor?
A:

An assessor must:

• have five years’ relevant occupational experience;
• possess the generic assessor standard ‘plan and conduct assessment of learning outcome’;
• have a relevant occupational qualification;
• be a competent communicator;
• be competent in the unit standards or qualification offered, at or above the NQF level involved

Q: How does one register as a moderator?
A:

• be a registered assessor for the qualification and standards in which he or she will moderate;
• possess the generic assessor standard’ moderate assessment’;
• have a relevant occupational qualification;
• be a competent communicator;
• be competent in the unit standards or qualifications offered, at or above the NQF level involved.