Hello, this is a short introduction to the
redeveloped Tech Award in Child Development.
My name is Kate Elsmore and I am
the Principal Standards Manager
for the Early Years sector.
I've worked closely with the team in
the development of the Tech Award to
ensure both sector and assessment accuracy.
I'll update you briefly on each component
that makes up the qualification and what
changes have taken place to content.
and assessment from the existing tech award.
The redeveloped Tech Award
in child development that
retained the same three component
structure as the current tech award.
Components one and two are each
36 guided learning hours,
and each component is worth 30%
of the qualification grade.
They are assessed using the new Pearson Set
Assignment or PSAs marked internally by you,
the teacher, assessor,
and moderated by Pearson.
The PSAs are released in January of each
year and assessed in May June from 2023,
so you have plenty of flexibility
within your programme to prepare for,
administer and mark the assessments.
The final component three is 48
guided learning hours worth 40%
of the qualification grade and is
externally assessed by Pearson.
It is a two hour written examination
available twice a year in the January,
February,
and May June assessment series.
Each assessment in the qualification
is marked out of 60 available marks.
Component one focuses on the
understanding and investigation of
children's growth and development.
Age birth to five years.
Learners will gain an understanding
of the five areas of development
and explore the expected patterns of
development for children of different ages.
The content remains largely the
same as the current tech award.
However,
we've taken the opportunity through the
redevelopment to make minor updates
and expansions to clarify content and
enhance the delivery of various topics.
For example,
we've added helpful examples to
some content statements to better
clarify meaning and context.
We've moved and grouped together some
of the content to better support the
alignment between teaching and assessment.
But this is all existing content and
will be familiar to you if you are
teaching the current tech awards or
any child development qualification
At this level.
The specification continues to
offer optional indicative content
relating to different areas within
the child development sector,
which can be integrated into
your programme flexibly.
You'll notice that socio economic
factors is now split across social
and financial factors, for example.
Based on your feedback for component one,
we've also split the three age
groups across three learning aims.
We then used the five areas of development,
physical, cognitive communication,
and language, social and emotional to base
the content for the three age groups.
This has enabled a stronger focus on
age related skills and development.
You can transition from your current
delivery of tech awards teaching and
learning content with confidence.
And if you are delivering tech
awards for the first time,
you'll find the content clear,
practical and flexible based on
the areas of child development you
and your learners choose to focus
on. Overall the
purpose of focus of the assessment
of the current component
One has not changed in the redeveloped
qualification and is very similar to
the authorised assignment briefs we
offer for the current tech award that
many of you told us you like to use.
Likewise, the focus of assessment from
the current learning aims have been
embedded into the new mark schemes.
However, we have made some
improvements and clarifications to
the assessment in line with content
updates and feedback from teachers
of the current qualification.
The Pearson set assignment will
be released each year with a new
theme and a vocational context.
The tasks and related mark schemes remain
the same each year and only the theme
of vocational context changes each year.
There will be a different age of the
child and area of development which
the learner will need to focus on.
The assignment is broken into three
tasks which will help your learners
produce relevant evidence for assessment,
and we've given approximate timings
for each task.
The Pearson Set assignment is
released in January each year.
The assessment is approximately
6 hours and can be given to
learners anytime after its release,
providing plenty of flexibility alongside
assessments for other qualifications.
If you deliver the current tech
award in child development.
The assessment will be very much in
line with what you currently administer,
and if you deliver a First Award
or any other Child Development
qualification at this level,
you'll find the Pearson Set assignment
straight forward to administer and assess.
Component two is Learning Through Play.
In this component,
learners will develop an understanding
of how play activities can influence
childrens learning between the
ages of birth and five years old.
They will consider the different
types of play in which children
engage and how activities can support
children's learning and progress
across the five areas of development.
The content for component two also remains
largely the same as the current tech award.
However,
we've taken the opportunity through the
redevelopment to make some minor updates.
Based on your feedback,
we've added types of play and how play
can be organised to promote learning.
We've also included the role of the
adults in promoting learning through play.
As with component one,
you can transition from your delivery
of component two content with
confidence and if you are delivering
Tech Awards for the first time,
you'll find the content clear,
practical, and flexible.
Similar to component one,
the purpose of focus of the
assessment of the current component
two assessment has not changed in
the redeveloped qualification.
And is very similar to the authorised
assignment briefs we offer for the
current tech awards that many of
you have told us you like to use.
The Pearson set assignment for
component two will be released each
year with a new vocational context.
The task and related mark scheme
to remain the same each year and
only the vocational context changes.
The vocational context has been broadened
into a main purpose for the work.
This allows learners to use the
knowledge gained in component one
through growth and development to inform
them how to build learning through play.
The assignment has three tasks and each
build on each other with the learner
using the scenario to base their responses.
Task One focuses on stages of
play for a specific age.
And task two and three require
learners to design activity plans for
a specific age child with a focus on
learning opportunities and adult involvement.
The Pearson set assignment is
released in January each year.
The assessment is approximately
6 hours and can be given to
learners anytime after its release.
Providing plenty of flexibility alongside
assessments for other qualifications.
As with component one,
if you deliver the current tech
award in child development,
the assessment will be very much in
line with what you already administer.
And if you deliver a First Award
or any other child development
qualification at this level.
You'll find the Pearson Set Assignment
straight forward to administer and assess.
The externally assessed component three
is called Supporting Children to Play,
Learn and Develop. In this component,
learners will begin to understand the
connexion between growth and development
and implementing play opportunities
learned in component one and two to be
able to contextualise their knowledge.
The content remains broadly similar,
with the only changes made to take
into account the minor adaptations
in component one and component two
Content amplification for component
three include such additions as memory
issues for A1 Individual needs,
where we felt that certain content
required further information,
as with the internally assessed component.
If you deliver the current tech award
in child development, the first award.
Or any other child development qualification
at this level,
you'll find the content for
component three familiar.
And you can be confident in moving
onto the redeveloped tech award.
Like the content from this
externally assessed component,
the focus of activities and mark schemes has
remained the same as the current tech award,
but we have made some small changes.
The assessment is made up of two sections
which are carried out over 2 hours.
The paper can be set during a February
exam series or a summer exam series.
The paper is made up of multiple choice
and short and long response questions.
There are also a range of other
style questions such as completing
missing elements.
The paper uses a points and
level based mark scheme.
A Lead Examiner report will be
published after each series providing
valuable support on the responses
received from that particular series.
It is encouraged that this report
is used to support and inform
future teaching and learning.
If you deliver the current tech
award in child development,
there is minimal change,
and if you deliver a first award
or any other child development
qualification at this level,
you'll find externally assessment straight
forward to prepare for and administer.
We encourage you to look through
the draft specification,
the Pearson Set Assignments and
the Sample Assessment Materials,
which are available on the Pearson website.
And if you have any further questions
or are preparing to deliver and
need further support,
please don't hesitate to get
in touch with us.
You can contact the subject
advisor Esther Trehearn by emailing
teaching childcare at pearson.com.
You can also attend one of our
upcoming Getting Started events
early next year will be covering the
qualification and assessments in more
depth and answering further questions.
You can book by visiting the Training
from Pearson page on the Pearson website.
Thank you very much and I hope to see
you in one of our upcoming live events.