ICS BTEC International Level 3 - Appeals Policy
ICS BTEC International Level 3 - Appeals Policy
The ICS BTEC International Level 3 Appeals policy provides clarification about the process of managing appeals related to the all aspects relating to the assessment of BTEC International Level 3 programmes at ICS Addis Ababa. The purpose of this policy is to ensure:
That there are clear procedures for learners to enable them to enquire about, question or appeal an assessment decision.
That any appeal is recorded and documentation is retained for 18 months following the resolution of the appeal.
That the Head of Centre facilitates the learner’s ultimate right of appeal to Pearson, once the centre’s appeal procedure is exhausted.
Appeal: a request from a learner to revisit an assessment decision which s/he considers to disadvantage him/her
Appeals procedure: a standard, time limited, sequenced and documented process for the centre and learner to follow when an appeal is made.
Learner: responsible for initiating the appeals procedure, in the required format, within a defined time frame, when s/he has reason to question an assessment decision
Assessor: responsible for providing clear achievement feedback to learners. If assessment decisions are questioned, the Assessor is responsible for processing the learner’s appeal within the agreed time.
Internal Verifier/Lead Internal Verifier/Senior Management: responsible for judging whether assessment decisions are valid, fair and unbiased.
Head of Centre: responsible for submitting an appeal in writing, to Pearson if the learner remains dissatisfied with the outcome of the centre’s internal appeals procedures.
The ICS BTEC International Level 3 Appeals policy aims to:
Enable the learner to enquire, question or appeal against an assessment decision
Attempt to reach agreement between the learner and the Assessor at the earliest opportunity
Standardise and record any appeal to ensure openness and fairness
Facilitate a learner’s ultimate right of appeal to Pearson, where appropriate
Protect the interests of all learners and the integrity of the qualification.
Learner induction: As part of the course orientation at the commencement of a student's enrollment in BTEC programmes at ICS Addis Ababa, the assessor is responsible for ensuring that learners are aware of the appeals procedure and that they know where to locate it in the BTEC International Level 3 Handbook.
Learner appeals procedure: The Learner Appeals Procedure for BTEC International Level 3 courses at ICS is a staged procedure to determine whether the assessor:
used procedures that are consistent with Pearson’s requirements
applied the procedures properly and fairly when arriving at judgements
made a correct judgement about the learner’s work
Learner consults with Assessor within 5 school days of receiving the assessment decision, to discuss an assessment decision. If unresolved, then the issues are documented by both the learner and the assessor in order to enable the process to move to stage 2. Learners who do not feel comfortable managing this conversation independently are encouraged to bring a trusted teacher or parent to the meeting as a support person.
The Learner is responsible for clearly outlining the reasons why they are seeking to appeal the assessment decision.
These should be documented in writing and clearly identify:
the BTEC Course, Unit, Assessment and Assessor,
the justification for the appeal:
If the appeal is procedural, the alleged breaches of procedure must be clearly articulated.
If the appeal is related to the accuracy of the assessment judgement, the justification for this must be clearly stated.
The written request must confirm that the learner has made an effort to consult with the assessor, and that they remain dissatisfied with the outcome of this consultation.
The Assessor is responsible for:
reviewing their assessment decision when requested by learners.
addressing the student's concerns with regards to alleged procedural breaches or inconsistencies in assessment decisions. This may take the form of clarifying the procedural requirements and assessment procedures. At this stage, the assessor may request an internal verifier to review the assessment decision if the assessment was included in the original verification sample.
advising the High School Curriculum Coordinator and relevant Department Head if the appeal is unable to be resolved at this stage.
ensuring that documentary evidence relating to the conduct of the assessment, including relevant internal verification documentation is made available to the relevant department head or High School Curriculum Coordinator.
On receipt of a written request to appeal an assessment decision related to a BTEC International Level 3 qualification, the High School Curriculum Coordinator is responsible for appointing an appropriately qualified and experienced teacher to review the assessment decision. This appointment needs to be made in writing and needs to specify:
The assessment task, student and assessor who are subject to this appeal,
Copies of the following documentation:
The written request to appeal
Supporting documentation/evidence provided by the learner
Access to the relevant documents and evidence relating to the assessment as stored in the Curriculum Drive
The deadline for reaching a decision on the appeal.
The appointed appeal reviewer is responsible for conducting a review in a timely manner and in accordance with the direction from the High School Curriculum Coordinator. They are responsible for:
Independently reviewing all documentation / evidence related to the appeal,
Seeking further information from the student / assessor as required. Any additional evidence that is gathered by the appeal reviewer must be documented and stored in the relevant appeal file.
Arriving at a decision on the validity of the appeal based on the documented evidence.
Informing the learner, assessor and High School Curriculum Coordinator, in writing of the outcome of the review (agree / disagree). The outcome of the review must respond to all of the aspects of the appeal outlined in the written appeal documentation.
At this stage, if the learner remains unsatisfied with the outcome of the appeal, it moves to stage 3.
This is the final stage of the process that is independently managed by ICS Addis Ababa. The appeal hearing will be organised and managed by the High School Curriculum Coordinator (unless they conducted the internal review at the previous stage). The Appeal Hearing will be chaired by the High School Principal in their role as the Head of Centre.
The High School Curriculum Coordinator or another designated person is responsible for ensuring that the the Appeal Hearing is conducted in accordance with the ICS Addis Ababa Appeals policy and the relevant BTEC International Course specification and that it affords procedural fairness to all parties. They are also responsible for ensuring that all documentation relating to the conduct of the appeals hearing, including all evidence and documentation is securely stored in the appeals folder.
The High School Principal in their role as the Head of Centre and Chair of the Appeal is responsible for ensuring that the appeal hearing is able to gather sufficient evidence to enble them to reach a valid, justifiable decision. At the conclusion of the Appeal Hearing, the High School Principal is responsible for ensuring that they inform all parties to the appeal hearing in writing of the outcome of the review (agree / disagree). This written justification must respond to all of the aspects of the appeal outlined in the written appeal documentation and must be received by the learner within 14 days of the appeal hearing.
If the learner remains unsatisfied at the conclusion of Stage 3, they are able to lodge an external appeal directly with Pearson.
If a learner or their delegate elects to submit an external appeal, they are responsible for meeting the external appeals fee.
The High School Curriculum Coordinator is responsible for ensuring that the external appeals fee, grounds for appeal and any supporting documentationis submitted to Pearson within 14 days of the completion of Stage 3.
Each stage of the appeals process, and the supporting documentation, should be recorded, dated and show either agreement or disagreement with decisions. The documentation of stage 1 of the process is included in the written appeal lodged by the learner.
The appeal file is to be created by the appeal reviewer as part of their investigation and securely stored in the High School Google Drive. Documentation related to appeals must be kept for a minimum of 18 months.
High School Senior Management is responsible for monitoring the effectiveness of the appeals process to inform development and quality improvement.
This policy will be reviewed every 2 years by The Office Of Learning