Water jetting training gets digital assessment boost
The Water Jetting Association has introduced a digital audience response system for training assessment to improve engagement and learning outcomes.
The interactive CLiKAPAD tool is also boosting training efficiency and sustainability by eliminating the use and processing of printed test papers for its City & Guilds accredited courses.
Thousands of water jetting operatives will be assessed during training courses every year from now on using CLiKAPAD, which is the WJA’s preferred assessment method.
Easy to use
WJA Training and Safety Chairman Steve Williams said: “The CLiKAPAD audience response tool provides us with many advantages over the paper question sheets it’s is replacing.
“Our WJA instructors are finding it easy to use and are getting very good feedback from course delegates, many of whom are very comfortable with using digital equipment, not least because they all have mobile phones.
“The system helps to counter concerns some delegates have about taking end-of-course written tests. It also makes learning more interactive and enjoyable, and helps WJA approved instructors support delegates with all learning abilities.”
Continuous assessent
Until now, course instructors selected one multiple choice test paper from a bank of papers prepared and approved by the WJA. This would be printed and given to each delegate to completed at the end of the course, with a pass mark of 75 per cent.
Under the new digital system, CLiKAPAD is used to assess knowledge retention throughout the course. Multiple choice questions are set in blocks after each main section of each course and displayed to delegates on a screen or projector screen.
As each question is shown, delegates press the number on a wireless handheld keypad that corresponds to what they consider to be the correct answer.
More questions
Their answers are locked into the system. However, instructors can see the responses in real time, allowing them to review learning points if necessary. Once again, the pass mark is set at 75 per cent.
In another advantage, the CliKAPAD system covers between two and three times more questions than the paper tests, depending which course is involved, so delegates are assessed on a broader range of topics.
CLiKAPAD is now the WJA’s preferred system for assessing delegates attending all courses – namely the Safety Awareness class-based course, Practical Modules, which combined class learning with practical assessments, and the Pressure Washing course.
Steve Williams said: “As well as improving the learning experience and outcomes for our training delegates, CLiKAPAD is a big sustainability boost for both the WJA and our training providers.
“Tens of thousands of sheets of paper will be saved every year, reducing our carbon footprint and saving significant sums of money. Administration of training courses will also be made more efficient and effective.
“This is part of a digitisation strategy progressed by the WJA over the last three years, with course certificates now issued as electronic PDFs and the ability for service users to confirm the training status of water jetting operatives via an online portal.”
Meeting support
CLiKAPAD is also being used to record decisions at WJA meetings. For example, it was used to record member votes at the association’s annual general meeting in July 2023, allowing votes cast remotely to be counted in the final tally.