Introducing Unit Specifications and
Unit Assessment Support Packs
(UASPs)
Modern Languages National 3/4/5
Jerome Lestienne
Principal Verifier (French)
Orla Herron
Senior Team Leader (French)
Key points: ML Units
 Standard remains the same
 Units have a hierarchical structure that provides
clear progression from National 3 to Higher
 Learning and assessment activities across the
Contexts society, learning, employability, culture
 Added Value Unit assessment at National 4 increases
personalisation and choice
Unit Structure
National 3
(Access 3/ Foundation)
National 4
(Int.1/ General)
National 5
(Int.2/ Credit)
Understanding
Language
Understanding
Language
Understanding
Language
Using Language
Using Language
Using Language
Added Value Unit
(Course Assessment)
Unit Assessment
 Assessments can be designed to provide evidence
across more than one Outcome or Unit – combined
assessment
 Flexible and open Evidence Requirements
 Greater range of techniques and methodologies for
assessment – encouraged through Unit assessment
support packages and Unit and Course Support
Notes (www.sqa.org.uk/sqa/47415.html)
 More opportunities to gather naturally occurring
evidence – assessment as part of learning and
teaching
Unit Specifications
Unit Specification is the core document, referencing the
following key elements:
Outcome(s)
Assessment Standards
Evidence Requirements
Unit Assessment Support
Packages (UASPs) : Purpose
UASPs can be used to:
• Assess your candidates
• Adapt for your own assessment programmes
• Help you develop your own assessments
UASPs : Key Features
 Valid from August 2013
 Designed to encourage professional judgement
 Provide broad-based tasks – assist assessors in
choosing appropriate Context(s) and forms of
evidence
 Show range of approaches to generating assessment
evidence
 Give information on the type of evidence which
could be gathered and how this is to be judged
against Assessment Standards
ML UASPs
Package 1
 Combined assessment approaches exemplified at
Nat 3/4/5
Package 2
 Unit by Unit assessment approaches exemplified at
Nat 3/4/5
Package 3
 Unit by Unit assessment approaches exemplified at
Nat 3 and combined assessment approaches
exemplified at Nat 4/5
National 4 Added Value Unit
 Makes the Course more than the sum of its parts
 Builds on current Course assessment and Group
Award approaches
 Defined as breadth, challenge and/or application
as outlined in Building the Curriculum 5
 May involve accumulation, assimilation,
integration and/or application of skills,
knowledge and understanding
 Controlled assessment –setting conducting and
marking
N4 AV Unit: Modern Languages
 Focus on challenge and application of language
skills
 Unit Specification and Unit Assessment Support
Package (UASP)
 Assesses skills in reading, listening and talking
 Internally assessed as pass or fail
N5 Internal Assessment of
Course Components
 Controlled assessment is SQA’s approach to
developing assessments (setting), the conditions
of assessment (conducting), and marking
assessments (marking).
 SQA is introducing controlled assessment for
non-question paper components of the Added
Value Unit and new National Courses at
National 5, Higher and Advanced Higher.
N5 Performance (Talking)
Controlled assessment
The Performance is:
set by centres within SQA guidelines
conducted under a high degree of supervision
and control
Evidence will be internally marked by centre staff
in line with SQA marking instructions.
Marking will be quality assured by SQA.
The performance will be recorded.
Moving on
 Workshop 1 and 2 will give you the opportunity
to look at the Unit Specifications and Unit
Assessment Support Packages in detail.