The Chartered Institute of Legal Executives (CILEx) faces a fine of up to £50,000 after 73 apprentices were affected by “technical issues” during their final online assessments.
During the end-point assessments (EPAs) for the level 3 paralegal apprenticeship carried out in June 2018, problems experienced by the apprentices included “receiving error messages, experiencing delays and difficulties accessing the assessment, and being unable to upload their work onto the e-platform”.
Four of the learners lost entire assessments, while the majority of the apprentices were unable to complete the video interview component of the EPA via Skype for Business as required, due to “difficulties establishing a connection between the assessor and the apprentice, poor connectivity and poor sound quality”, according to a notice published today by Ofqual.
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‘Disruption and anxiety’
Ofqual said that “complaints were received regarding the disruption and anxiety” caused by the problems.
In some cases, invigilators were employed by the learners’ employers and “therefore had an interest in the learners performing well in the assessment, giving rise to a conflict of interest”, the report says.
“All 73 learners were given special consideration by offering them a free resit opportunity which would not cap the outcome at a pass,” the report adds.
‘Inadequacy of support’
A technical investigation conducted by CILEx identified two root causes of the delivery failure: “insufficient in-house technical expertise in relation to the e-platform” and “inadequacy of support and guidance from the e-platform supplier”.
The investigation also found a “lack of in-house experience of delivering assessment using video conferencing products”, as well as unanticipated “reliability and performance issues with Skype”.
Ofqual concluded that there were “a series of breaches resulting from significant failings in CILEx’s resourcing, planning and contingency arrangements”, resulting in “delivery failings which had a significant impact on learners”
CILEx fine could be reduced
CILEx will be fined £50,000, unless it confirms that recommendations from the technical investigation have been carried out and that the EPA due to take place in June this year has been successfully delivered to the current cohort of apprentices. If these two requirements are met by 30 September, the penalty could be reduced to as little as £1,000.
Linda Ford, chief executive of CILEx, said: “As soon as issues arose with the EPA for the level 3 paralegal apprenticeship, we reported these to Ofqual. Since then we have carried out a thorough internal investigation, submitting the findings to Ofqual voluntarily, together with a comprehensive action plan which has been fully implemented.
“We have apologised for the inconvenience caused to the students last year and provided free resits to a small number of students where needed. I would like to personally reassure this year’s cohort that we are ready and fully confident in our ability to deliver the EPA successfully.”
The news comes a day after Pearson, the owner of the Edexcel exam board, announced that police have made progress in their investigation into the leak of A-level maths papers in 2017 and 2018. In 2017, a leaked paper was being illegally offered for sale on the morning of the exam. Pearson notified exams watchdog Ofqual and the police, who began an investigation and later made arrests.
