What CDACC Assessors Actually Check: Performance Criteria Weightings, Assessment Requirements and the Mentoring Tool Explained

6 min read

Ask a trainee how their practical will be marked and you’ll usually get a shrug. Ask a trainer and you might hear “the assessor decides.” Neither answer is good enough any more.

With the 2025 modular curricula, CDACC published three documents for each course that spell out exactly what gets checked and how much each part is worth: the Assessment Requirements, the Performance Criteria (PC) Weighting, and the Mentoring Tool. They are not secret. They sit in the same Cycle 3 package as the curriculum. Yet many centres still teach without opening them.

Here is what each document does, using Electrical Worker Level 4 as the worked example.

Document 1: The PC Weighting — where the marks are

Every unit of competency is broken into elements, and every element into performance criteria. The PC Weighting gives each criterion a mark, split between theory and practical.

For the unit Install PVC Sheathed Cable System, the theory-to-practical ratio is 1:9. Look at how the marks fall:

Element	Theory marks	Practical marks
Identify cables and accessories	1	9
Make cable joints	2	18
Interpret electrical symbols	2	18
Fix electrical accessories	3	27

Three lessons jump out.

The practical carries the course. In a 1:9 unit, a trainee who knows the theory perfectly but can’t do the job well cannot pass. Most of the Level 3 and 4 weightings I checked use the same 1:9 ratio. Some higher-level units differ: Plumbing Level 5, for example, mixes 1:9 units with 30:70 and 70:30 units.

The big marks sit on the core task. Preparing cable joints to IEC standards is worth 9 practical marks on its own. Installing the final circuits is worth 13. Those are the criteria to drill.

Safety and housekeeping are scored every time. “Safety measures are applied as per OSHA and EHS standards” appears in almost every element, worth 1 or 2 marks each time. Housekeeping is scored too. A trainee who skips PPE or leaves a messy bench gives away marks across the whole unit, not just once.

Document 2: The Assessment Requirements — what evidence counts

The Assessment Requirements tell the assessor what the candidate must show. Each unit has three parts:

• Performance evidence: tasks the candidate must have completed at least once in line with workplace procedures, for example “Installed electrical single-phase intake point as per IET regulation.” Many items name specifics, such as cable sizes (1.5 and 2.5 sq mm) or accessories (consumer unit, MCB, MCCB).
• Knowledge evidence: what the candidate must know to do the task, such as IEC colour codes or IET intake regulations.
• Assessment conditions: how and where assessment happens. Skills must be shown working individually, on the job or in a simulated workplace, with listed tools, materials and resources.

This is also the checklist for the Portfolio of Evidence (PoE). CDACC states that the PoE is compiled against the Assessment Requirements. If a performance evidence item has no photo, observation checklist or product in the portfolio, it is a gap.

The conditions matter for centre managers too. They list the tools, materials and training resources an assessment needs. A centre that cannot provide them cannot properly assess the unit.

Document 3: The Mentoring Tool — how attachment is scored

Industrial attachment is no longer a logbook and a signature. The Mentoring Tool turns it into a structured assessment.

• Duration: at least three months, with at least two-thirds of the time spent in the trade area (for Electrical Worker, in electrical installation). Time in each section is recorded.
• Three assessments: one in each month. The first sets a baseline, the second checks progress, and only the third counts for the result.
• Two views: the trainee fills a self-assessment, and the mentor fills a review, marking each item “met” or “needs to improve.” Anything that needs improving gets an action plan agreed between them.
• Pass rules: each unit sets its own threshold. In one Electrical Worker unit, the trainee must meet 16 of 32 items and ten named critical items. The worker behaviour section needs 75% of items met.
• The mark: for each unit, the attachment mark is the share of evaluation items met. The final attachment mark is the average across units.

The tool also defines three roles. The mentor at the workplace assigns tasks, observes and records. The mentee completes tasks, self-assesses and keeps company information confidential. The institution’s Industrial Liaison Officer briefs both sides, collects the tools, files them in each trainee’s PoE and uploads the final mark to the CDACC portal.

What this means for trainers

1. Teach from the weighting. Put the PC Weighting next to your session plan. Spend practical time where the marks are.
2. Make safety automatic. Because it is scored in nearly every element, PPE and safe practice should be habit, not a reminder before the exam.
3. Build the portfolio as you go. Tick off each performance evidence item with a photo, checklist or product during training, not in the final week.

What this means for trainees

• Ask your trainer for the PC Weighting of each unit. It tells you exactly what earns marks.
• Treat attachment as an exam that lasts three months. The final mentor assessment is what counts.
• Keep your mentoring tool safe and complete. Without it, your attachment cannot be marked.

What this means for employers who host trainees

If you agree to mentor an attachee, you are now an assessor in all but name. Read the Mentoring Tool before the trainee arrives, assign tasks that match the listed items, and do the three reviews on time. A careless review hurts the trainee and the credibility of the system.

The bottom line

CDACC has put the marking scheme in writing. The PC Weighting shows where the marks are, the Assessment Requirements show what evidence counts, and the Mentoring Tool shows how attachment is scored. Centres that teach from these three documents will see it in their results.

Key takeaways

• Each Cycle 3 course comes with three assessment documents: Assessment Requirements, PC Weighting and Mentoring Tool.
• Most Level 3 and 4 units are weighted 1:9 theory to practical, so practical skill decides the result.
• Safety and housekeeping are scored in almost every element.
• The Portfolio of Evidence is built against the Assessment Requirements’ performance evidence list.
• Attachment lasts at least three months, with three mentor assessments; only the final one counts.
• The Industrial Liaison Officer uploads each trainee’s attachment mark to the CDACC portal.

Source: TVET CDACC Cycle 3 (2025) Assessment Requirements, Performance Criteria Weighting and Mentoring Tool for Electrical Worker Level 4, and weightings for other courses. Also read: How CDACC handles malpractice, re-marking and appeals and Electrical Installation Level 4 under CDACC.

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