Notification of new qualifications policy

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Myron Howard
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1 For internal and external use August 2016 Version 3.1 Pearson Qualifications Services

2 Contents Scope of policy 3 Policy statement 3 Information sharing 3 Roles and responsibilities 4 Regulatory references 5 Policy review date 5 Useful contacts 5 References to third-party material made in this document are made in good faith. Pearson does not endorse, approve or accept responsibility for the content of materials, which may be subject to change, or any opinions expressed therein. (Material may include textbooks, journals, magazines and other publications and websites.) All the m Page 2 of 5

3 The key role of Pearson Education Ltd (Pearson) is to secure standards for those qualifications we certificate. As part of our commitment to quality assuring standards and therefore protecting learners, Pearson provides guidance and support to help centres and their learners achieve their learning and development goals. Pearson also ensures that any regulatory requirements our regulators impose on us are met, and that we support centres to meet those requirements. Pearson regulatory policies are integral to our approach and articulate in a consistent way how we meet our regulatory requirements. They are reviewed annually to ensure that they remain fit for purpose. These regulatory policies apply to Pearson business units where UK regulated qualifications are developed, implemented or delivered. This policy provides information on how publishers are informed about new qualifications. This document replaces the previous policy, Scope of policy Pearson endorses resources which are appropriate to support teaching and learning in relation to its qualifications. It is essential that publishers have timely access to information about the new qualifications Pearson approves for development. The policy refers equally to all publishers who wish to have resources endorsed for use with Pearson qualifications, whether they are part of Pearson or external to the organisation ( third party ). Policy statement The purpose of this policy is to outline the approach Pearson will take to give fair access to all publishers to information about new qualifications approved for development. This policy: identifies the information which will be shared and the points in the process when this will happen sets out the roles and responsibilities of Pearson staff in different parts of the organisation in relation to the process. Information sharing Any publisher can ask to be added to the circulation list for information on new qualifications. New qualifications are approved for development at regular Service and Product Approval Process (SPAP) Delivery Group meetings. Following each meeting Pearson will inform all publishers on the circulation list about new qualifications approved for development. This information will normally be circulated within one week of the meeting. When a new suite of national qualifications is being developed (for example A levels, BTEC Nationals) Pearson will organise a briefing meeting for all interested Pearson and third party publishers to find out more about the plans. This meeting will normally be scheduled to happen within two weeks of the SPAP Delivery Group meeting. Publishers can register interest in any of these new qualifications with the Publisher Page 3 of 5

4 Relations Manager, and the publishers who express interest will be forwarded further information at the following points in development: Following Qualification Design approval [Typical information available at this stage is unit titles and form of assessment for each] Following qualification approval [This will be the version being submitted to Ofqual or SQA Accreditation for accreditation] Publishers who have expressed interest may request updates on progress and content between these two stages, but should be aware that plans remain fluid until the final scrutiny. Senior examiners may not write materials for the qualification for which they set examination questions for Pearson or external publishers. The names of those in the senior examining team for each qualification will be shared once finalised. For some qualifications there may be information which is commercially sensitive (e.g. the use of onscreen assessment). This information should be withheld until such time as it is agreed that it can be shared equally with all publishers, both third party and Pearson. If it is not possible to withhold this information from Pearson publishers, they may not act upon it until it has been shared with all publishers who have registered their interest. Roles and responsibilities The Publisher Relations Manager has overall responsibility for the operation and maintenance of this policy. The Publisher Relations team monitors the exchange of information between all publishers and Product Managers through the endorsement mailbox. The Product Manager is responsible for passing the relevant materials to all publishers at each of the information sharing points listed above. They should include any relevant accompanying information, for example to indicate if any parts of the development are particularly uncertain. The Product Manager is also responsible for identifying significant changes that need to be communicated to all publishers. The Senior Product Manager for the development is responsible for deciding whether any information cannot be shared at a particular stage, in which case it will not be shared with third party publishers or acted on by Pearson publishers. Product Managers can get stage 1 approval for a publishing proposal and contract authors (including with a letter of intent as opposed to an author contract) whenever they want, provided that news of the impending curriculum change that the project supports is in the public domain. Product Managers can only brief authors about the final assessment model at the point at which third party publishers receive this information, typically after 1st scrutiny. Page 4 of 5

5 Product Managers can only brief authors about significant changes throughout the development once this information has been shared with third party publishers. If Product Managers are in any doubt about what ought to be shared, they should refer this matter to one of the Product Management Director, General Qualifications. Regulatory references UK regulators require all awarding organisations to establish and maintain their compliance with regulatory conditions and criteria. As part of this process, policies that relate to Pearson s status as an awarding organisation will reference any particular conditions and criteria that they address. This policy addresses the following regulatory criteria and conditions: Ofqual/CCEA Accreditation/Qualifications Wales General Conditions of Recognition September 2015 Conflicts of interest Arrangements with publishers Maintaining confidentiality of assessment materials, including the conduct of specified training events A4.7 C3 G4 SQA Accreditation Regulatory Principles (2014) The awarding body shall have clearly defined business planning processes which show evidence of management commitment, decision making and ongoing review Principle 3 Policy review date August 2017 Useful contacts For more information on Pearson qualifications and services please visit the website: Page 5 of 5

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