Lesson 1: Who is Trainer and/or Assessor?

Objectives
Session Objectives
At the end of the session, you should be able to:

 Distinguish a trainer from an assessor

 Determine roles of trainer and/or assessor in assuring quality technical-vocational courses

Lesson 1: Who is Trainer and/or Assessor?

Introduction
Plan Training Session is one of the six competencies to be mastered in Trainers Methodology I (TM I). But before we
focus on planning, let us have an overview of the whole training program. In this lesson, you will learn the role as trainer
or assessor. As a trainer or assessor, you need to know what and how to teach, and how to work effectively with others.
We look forward to see you competent enough as you study this course.

Lesson 1: Who is Trainer and/or Assessor?

Trainee’s Entry Requirements
It is expected that you will be a Trainer and/or Assessor as you finish this course, Trainers Methodology I (TM I).

What is a TVET Trainer? 

TVET Trainer is a professional who enables a learner or a group of learners to develop competencies to performing a
particular trade or technical work. Towards this end, a TVET Trainer may assume various roles such as training
facilitator, competency assessor, training designer, developer or training supervisor 1.
What is a Trainer / Assessor? 

From the Training Regulation, a Trainer is a person who enables group of learners to develop competencies toward
performing a particular trade or technical work while an Assessor is an individual accredited and authorized to evaluate
or assess competencies of a candidate applying for certification or any one of the purpose of assessment.

Trainer/Assessor is at least NC II holder and who has achieved all the required units of competency identified in the
Trainers Methodology Level I (TM Level I) under the PTTQF. He is also a holder of National TVET Trainer Certificate
Level I (NTTC I) 2. A Trainer is an Assessor; an Assessor is a Trainer 3.
To qualify for this course, a candidate or trainee must satisfy the following requirements:

 Graduate of baccalaureate degree or equivalent in training or experience along the field of Technical Vocational
Education and Training
 Certified at the same or higher NC Level in the qualification that will be handled (for technical trainers)
 Able to communicate orally and in writing
 Physically fit and mentally healthy
 Proficient in quantitative and qualitative analysis
 Proficient in verbal reasoning
1
  TESDA Circular No. 14 Series of 20112 TESDA Circular No. 14 Series of 20113  TESDA Circular No. 13 Series of
2011

Lesson 2: Competencies of a Trainer and/or Assessor

Objective
At the end of the session, you should be able to:

 Determine the skills and knowledge that a trainer or assessor should have
  Explain required skills as a trainer and or assessor

Lesson 2: Competencies of a Trainer and/or Assessor

Introduction
As you progress through this lesson, you should keep in mind the skills and knowledge required to become a competent
trainer. Remember that awareness of your skills and capabilities will help you make informed choices.

Lesson 2: Competencies of a Trainer and/or Assessor

Basic and Core Competencies
Listed are the knowledge, skills, and attitudes required of Trainers Methodology (TM) Level I 1:
Basic Competencies (or skills and knowledge that everyone needs for work):

 Lead workplace Communication

 Apply math and science principles in technical training
 Apply environmental principles and advocate conservation
 Utilize IT applications in technical training
 Lead small teams
 Apply work ethics, values and quality principles
 Work effectively in vocational education and training
 Foster and promote a learning culture
 Ensure a healthy and safe learning environment
 Maintain and enhance professional practice
 Develop and promote appreciation for cost-benefits of technical training
 Develop and promote global understanding of labor market

Core Competencies (or specific skills and knowledge needed in TM1):

 Plan training sessions

 Facilitate learning sessions
 Supervise work-based learning
 Conduct competency assessment
 Maintain training facilities
 Utilize electronic media in facilitating training
1
  Training Regulation Framework

Lesson 3: Competency-Based Training (CBT)

Objectives
At the end of the session, you should be able to:

 Define commonly used Competency-Based Training terminologies

 Explain ten principles of Competency-Based Training
 Differentiate traditional education with Competency-Based Training

Lesson 3: Competency-Based Training (CBT)

Introduction
Getting the idea on structure and principles embedded in training is important before designing a session plan. Do you
know how to teach a Technical-Vocational Education and Training (TVET) program? That will be the focus of today’s
lesson.

The framework in teaching skill-based lesson is called Competency Based Training (or CBT). It focuses on skills
development that is why its approach differs from the traditional education.
 In traditional education, the teacher controls the environment (or called teacher-centered approach); while in CBT, the
learners control and manipulate the tools and equipments with the guide of a teacher (also known as student-centered
approach).

In addition to that, learners are not compared among each other, instead their skills are compared against the norms or
standard set by the industry. The training is also self-paced; an example of this is when the trainer allows the students
to study the materials & practice the skill on their own. Lastly, the focus of CBT is on the outcome or the end product.

Lesson 3: Competency-Based Training (CBT)

CBT Terminologies
The need to understand commonly used terminologies is important before starting this courseware. Comprehending
these terminologies will empower you to understand easily the next lessons.

 Knowledge is the cognitive representation of ideas, events, activities or tasks derived from practical or
professional experience as well as from formal instruction or study, e.g. memory, understanding, analysis 1.

 Skill refers to the acquired and practiced ability to carry out a task or job 2.

 Competency, as used in TESDA, is a) the application of knowledge, skills and attitude required to complete a
work activities to the standard expected in the workplace 3; or b) the possession and application of knowledge, skills
and attitudes to the standard of performance required in the workplace 4. 

The 4 dimensions of competency that describes aspect of work performance are 5:

I. Task Skills – undertaking a specific workplace task

II. Task Management Skills – managing a number of different tasks to complete the entire work activity

III. Contingency Management Skills – responding to problems, irregularities and breakdown in routine
when undertaking the work activity

IV. Job/Role Environment Skills – dealing with the responsibilities and expectations of the work
environment when undertaking a work activity

 Competency Standard are industry-determined specification of competencies required for effective work

performance. They are expressed as outcomes and they focus on work place activity rather than training or personal
attributes, and capture the ability to apply skills in new situations and changing work organization 6.

 Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) is the acknowledgement of an individual’s skills, knowledge and

attitudes gained from life and work experiences outside registered training programs 7.

 Qualification is cluster of units of competency that meets job roles and is significant in the workplace. It is also
a certification awarded to a person on successful completion of a course and/or in recognition of having
demonstrated competencies relevant to an industry 7. 

It has three components:

I. Basic Competency – skills and knowledge that everyone needs for work

II. Common Competency – skills and knowledge needed by people working in a particular industry

III. Core Competency – specific skills and knowledge needed in a particular area of work-industry
sector/occupation/job role

o Competency-Based Training (CBT) is a system by which the student is trained on the basis of

demonstrated ability rather than on that of elapsed time 7.
 CBT includes:
I. Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) is the specification for a course or subject (module) which
describes all the learning experience a student or learner undergoes. It specifies outcomes which are consistent
with the requirements of the workplace as agreed through industry or community consultations. 8

II. Competency-Based Learning Material (CBLM)refers to the print and non-print instructional media
used as guide in learning workplace activities.
1
  CEDEFOP 2008, Europe2 RA 7796/TESDA Law3  Procedures Manual on TR Development4  Guidelines on
Assessment and Certification under the Philippine TVET Competency Assessment and Certification System –
PTCACS5 CBT Primer6  Training Regulations Framework7  ILO8  Quality Procedures Manual – CBC Development

Lesson 3: Competency-Based Training (CBT)

Delivery of Competency-Based Training (CBT)
The flow of CBT differs from the traditional education approach. To see the big picture is important before planning a
session plan. Below is the CBT delivery framework:

1. Trainee enters the program. Trainer conducts pre-training assessment to identify learner’s training needs.
Orientation of CBT program on Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) and roles of trainer & trainee follows.

2. Trainee selects competency from the identified training needs and receives instruction from the trainer. The
trainer administers learning contract or agreement between him and his trainees, then provides CBLM materials and
introduces the use of progress and achievement chart.

3. With the selected competency, the trainee studies the module by doing the following learning activities (in any
order): review learning package, view multimedia materials, use manuals, observe demonstration, practice skills in
workshop, and receive assistance and advice.

4. While the trainee practices the skill, the trainer observes and records the performance on the Progress Chart.
Student will attempt the task until he masters the skill with the help of trainer’s immediate and constructive feedback.

5. Once the trainee determines by himself that he is competent to do the skill, he will call the attention of trainer.
The trainer will observe and rate the performance based on the Performance Criteria Checklist and will record the
result on the Achievement Chart. If the skill is satisfactorily performed, he will then select another unit of competency.
If the skill is not satisfactorily performed, the trainee will study again the module.

6. To exit the training program, trainee must satisfactorily perform the skill and must have enough units of
competencies (or has completed all the modules). If the trainee doesn’t have enough units of competencies, he will
then select another unit of competency, and repeat the comp
 etency-
based training process.

Lesson 3: Competency-Based Training (CBT)

Ten (10) Principles of CBT
Competency-Based Training delivery anchors in its principles. These ten (10) principles of CBT serves as ground rules
for trainers and trainees. Memorize, apply and promulgate the listed principles below:

 Principle One: The training is based on curriculum (CBC) developed from the competency standards (CS).

 Principle Two: Learning is competency-based or modular in structure.

 Principle Three: Training delivery is individualized and self-paced.

 Principle Four: Training is based on work that must be performed.

 Principle Five: Training materials are directly related to the competency standards and the curriculum
modules.

 Principle Six: Assessment is based on the collection of pieces of evidence of the performance of work to the
industry required standard.

 Principle Seven: Training is based both on and off the job components.

 Principle Eight: The system allows Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) and or current competencies.

 Principle Nine: Training allows multiple entries and exit in the training program.

 Principle Ten: Approved training programs are nationally accredited. Programs of each institution or training
center are registered with UTPRAS (Unified TVET Program Registration and Accreditation System).

Now it is your turn to refresh memory on how your teacher taught you and compare it to how Competency-Based
Training works. How will you teach skill-based session? Does it have any difference? Will you make that change for the
better? Get a paper and take down notes on its differences.

Lesson 1: Determining Trainee’s Characteristics

 Objectives
At the end of the session, you should be able to:

 Identify learners’ characteristics and learning styles for trainees’ profile

 Determine adult learners’ characteristics

Lesson 1: Determining Trainee’s Characteristics

Introduction
Competency-Based Training without planning and without determining trainees’ characteristics will lead to an
unsuccessful session plan.

It is a must for us teachers to know our students – their characteristics as adult learners, their educational background,
and their culture - not only because we need data for filing purposes, but for us to use these data to analyze and
determine their training needs.

Who are our learners? What are the characteristics we need to include in their profile? What type of learners are they?
Those are our some highlight questions you might encounter as you proceed in this lesson.

Lesson 1: Determining Trainee’s Characteristics

Understanding Adult Learners
Before we determine trainees’ characteristics, we first need to understand our trainees as adult learners. Our training is
learner-centered; hence, it is essential to know them first.

Our training enables adult learners attain skills for them to land a job. Teaching them requires different teaching
approaches and methodologies; thus, understanding them will surely help in preparing an effective session plan.

Understanding how adults learn will also enable the trainer to think of teaching strategies that focused on adults. This is
based on the theory called Andragogy (Knowles), also known as adult education. The study came up with the
characteristics of adult learner, and they are the following:

 Adults are autonomous & self-directed.

 Adults bring life experiences & knowledge to learning experiences.
 Adults are goal-oriented.
 Adults are relevancy-oriented.
 Adults are practical.
 Adults like to be respected.

Here is a best scenario on how to apply this theory: The trainer enters a class consisting of adult learners. They are all
different in terms of age, educational background, gender etc., but they all have one thing in common - they are all adult
learners. A trainer, on his conscious state, will then use strategies to meet the needs of adult learners.

A best example of strategy especially in developing working with teams is the use of Situated Learning
Experience (SLE). It would be a very good application of adult learning principles since they are given specific
instruction to achieve and explore solution and course of actions to attain it.

An example is the creation of a tallest tower using limited supply of materials. In this SLE, the goal is to make the
highest tower. The devising of strategies and trying it out—gives adult learners autonomy and direct their own learning,
and it also allows the students to bring in their previous experiences and knowledge. When participants are asked to
give their insights on their SLE experience, this allows learners to give respect to their classmates, as the application of
insights becomes practical and self-motivating.

Note that the methods and strategies we construct, consciously and unconsciously, should meet the needs of our adult
learners, and will surely make an effective transfer of learning.

Lesson 1: Determining Trainee’s Characteristics

Establishing Trainee’s Characteristics
n completing the trainee’s profile, we need to know the characteristics essential in individualizing the session plan.
Below are the essential trainee’s characteristics the trainer needs to gather:
 Characteristics of What does it mean to the plan?
Learners
Language, literacy and These greatly affect the training method you can use, as well as
numeracy (LLN) level activities and task suitable for each session. You should be prepared
for different LLN levels and must have different resources.
Cultural and language Be aware of different cultural background and language abilities. You
background should take into account inappropriate activities because of culture
and language.
Education and general It is used as one of the basis to gauge learner’s cognitive capacity. It
knowledge can also be of help in deciding what speaking pitch and rate of voice to
use for each session.
Gender It can influence your plan if there are activities that have
demonstration, role play and so on.
Age Age can alter the plan depending on what is being delivered, how and
at what pace.
Learning style Awareness on their learning style could aid on what training method/s
to use. You could classify them as auditory, visual, kinesthetic,
pragmatist, activist, reflector and theorist learners.

Lesson 1: Determining Trainee’s Characteristics

How Learners Learn?
A trainer is about to teach a group of students. Then he has collected data for trainee’s characteristics but the problem
is he hasn’t assessed the students learning style to complete the trainee’s profile.

What is learning style? Learning style is one’s own way of learning new information and ideas. It will give us an idea
on how a person receive and transfer information.

Suggested learning styles are VARK Learning Style Model and PART Learning Styles. Feel free to choose between the
two in determining trainees’ learning style/s.

 Visual, Auditory, Read/Write and Kinesthetic (VARK) Learning Style Model

Everyone learn differently since we all have preferred way to absorb, comprehend and retain new information.

VARK Learning styles, as proposed by Fleming and Mills (1992), is a model that describes how a person takes-in
and gives-out information while learning. These learning styles are visual (learns best by seeing graphs, charts, and
other symbols), auditory (learns best by listening), read/write (learns best by reading text-based information) and
kinesthetic (learns best by doing).

Use VARK Learning Style self-assessment questionnaire as a tool in determining your trainees’ learning style/s.
Note that a trainee can have one or more learning styles.

 PART Learning Styles

Another model is PART Learning Styles. It is developed by Honey & Mumford but the idea originated from Kolb’s
Learning Style Model. 

The four learning styles are:

 o Pragmatists ‘putting theory into practice’ or ’needs to know how to apply the information in real world’
Pragmatist tends to integrate or put together theory and practice as they perceive information abstractly and
process it actively. They always think problems and opportunities as challenges.

o Activists ‘having an experience’ or ’needs to do’ Activists put together experience and application as
they perceive information concretely and process it actively. They would likely tackle problems by brainstorming.
Activists learn by trial and error, & by self-discovery method.

o Reflectors ‘reflecting on it’ or ’needs time to think over information’ Reflectors integrate or put together
experience within oneself as they perceive information concretely and process it reflectively. They learn by
listening and sharing ideas.

o Theorists ‘drawing out own conclusion’ or ’needs to know theory behind information’ Theorists put
together observations into complex but logically sound theory as they perceive information abstractly and process
it reflectively. They learn by thinking through ideas.

Use PART Learning Styles questionnaire to find out your trainees’ approach in learning.
Download #2:

 VARK Learning Style self-assessment questionnaire

 PART Learning Styles questionnaire

Lesson 2: Pre-Training Assessment and Analysis

Objectives
At the end of the session, you should be able to:

 Describe pre-training assessment and training needs analysis

 Realize the importance of having pre-training assessment before starting the session
 Disengage current competency from the skills required to determine training gap

Lesson 2: Pre-Training Assessment and Analysis

Introduction
“In differentiated classroom, teachers begin where students are, not the front of a curriculum guide”. – Carol Ann
Tomlinson, 1999. As quoted by Tomlinson, we start our session based on our pre-assessment, not in Competency
Based Curriculum. Pre-assessment evaluates trainee’s knowledge, skills, strengths and weaknesses prior to teaching.

Lesson 2: Pre-Training Assessment and Analysis

Pre-Training Assessment
Pre-Training Assessment is conducted to recognize current competency (RCC) and recognition of prior learning (RPL).
This assessment is done before the training starts. Listed are reasons why it is needed:

 It allows us to see their mastered competencies.

 It serves as a point of reference in assessing our trainees.
 It gives student quick look at the future lesson.

Pre-Training Assessment can be done either of the following:

 Learners’ assess themselves using the self-assessment guide

 A trainer assesses learners’ previous experience through portfolio assessment
 The trainer assesses learners’ skills and knowledge through pre-test or diagnostic test

Self-Assessment Guide is a pre-assessment tool to help the candidate and assessor determine what evidence is
available, when gaps exist, including readiness for assessment 1.
 Portfolio Assessment refers to the process of determining whether an applicant is competent through evaluation of his
or her records of achievement 2.
You can confirm the authenticity of evidence of competency by:

 Calling or asking personally the signatories and confirm the information listed in the certificate of
award/employment.
 Calling or visiting the workplace where projects are done.

Pre-Test or Diagnostic Test is a type of formative assessment that involves collecting evidence to diagnose or identify
a training need or performance problem. (NVSC Handbook) Prepare the pre-test/diagnostic test according to the
guidelines written in the lesson ‘Preparing Assessment Instruments’.

An assessor can use the portfolio assessment and pre-test results as a source of evidence and a tool for verifying
learner’s current competency and prior learning. Pre-training assessment and analysis is done prior to the actual
training program.

1
  www.tesda.gov.ph2  TESDA Circular no. 23, s. 2008 – Implementing Guidelines on PTQCS

Lesson 2: Pre-Training Assessment and Analysis

Determining Training Gap
Determining Training Gap through Training Needs Analysis (TNA)

Under the CBT approach, each learner is assessed to find the gap between the skills they need (as described in the
Training Package) and the skills they already have. The difference between the two is called the training gap.

Skills Required* – Current Skills** = Training Gap = Training Needs

‘Skills Required’ refers to the competencies listed in the competency standards and specified by the industry; On the
other hand, ‘Current Skills’ referred to as validated competencies gathered in the pre-training assessment.

A training program is then developed to help the learner acquire the skill deficiency. Therefore,Self-Assessment Guide
(SAG) with Training Needs Analysis (TNA) Tool is an important tool to use in determining training gap.