Skills for Work: Using IT in the Workplace
Using IT in the Workplace is an Open Awards Skills for Work unit offered at five levels, each worth 2 credits and 20 guided learning hours. Learners find and judge information, create and edit work documents, communicate by email and other digital tools, and use devices safely and securely, building from saving a file and recognising a padlock symbol at Entry Level 1 to designing a filing system and explaining GDPR at Level 2. Assessment is through centre-designed tasks with portfolio evidence, and every criterion must be met. Digital demand is high because every learning outcome and nearly every criterion is a digital skill carried out on a device.
- Awarding body
- Open Awards
- Level
- Entry Level 1 to Level 2
- Guided learning hours
- 20
- First taught
- September 2027
- Amount of digital work
- High
- Specification
- Open the specification
How this unit is assessed
- Entry Level 1 (CBM241): Eight assessment criteria across four learning outcomes: identify a digital source and state information found, use a device to enter information and save a file, identify a method of digital communication and take part in sending a message, recognise a way to stay safe online and a way to keep devices secure. Suggested tasks include matching, supported demonstration, sorting safe and unsafe behaviours and basic participation. Provider-designed tasks, portfolio evidence, 2 credits, 20 guided learning hours.
- Entry Level 2 (CBM242): Eight assessment criteria: use a search engine and collect information from 2 digital sources, create a simple work-related document and edit text, state the purpose of 2 communication tools, create and send a work-related email, identify 2 common digital risks and give 2 ways to protect personal information. Provider-designed tasks, portfolio evidence, 2 credits, 20 guided learning hours.
- Entry Level 3 (CBM243): Nine assessment criteria: use keywords to find work-related information, organise files and folders, combine text and images and use formatting tools, reply to a message, select appropriate language and send an email with relevant information, state the importance of data protection and log out of systems correctly. The suggested task table for Entry Level 3 repeats the Entry Level 2 table. Provider-designed tasks, portfolio evidence, 2 credits, 20 guided learning hours.
- Level 1 (CBM244): Nine assessment criteria: outline the reliability of digital sources and organise information for a work task, produce a document that meets a work brief and use editing tools for accuracy, communicate on a digital platform with appropriate language and send an email with an attachment, describe the impact of a security breach and share information securely. Provider-designed tasks, portfolio evidence, 2 credits, 20 guided learning hours.
- Level 2 (CBM245): Eight assessment criteria: describe the suitability of digital information and develop a structured filing system, create multi-page content with consistent formatting and modify it after feedback, select digital tools for different audiences and plan communication with appropriate tone and structure, explain policies and legal requirements such as an Acceptable Use Policy and GDPR, and assess the risks of sharing data. Provider-designed tasks, portfolio evidence, 2 credits, 20 guided learning hours.
Skills that use Communication
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Communicating by email and choosing the right digital tool
Entry Level 1 learners identify an email icon or video call button and help send a message. Entry Level 2 learners state the purpose of 2 tools and send a work email with a recipient and subject line, Entry Level 3 learners reply to a message and include relevant information, and Level 1 learners communicate on a platform such as email or video conferencing and send an email with an attachment. Level 2 learners choose between email, a collaborative board such as Padlet or Trello and a presentation tool for different audiences, and plan messages with a clear subject line and signature. This is required by the LO3 assessment criteria at every level.
DCF: Communication
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils send their teacher an email with a clear subject line, a polite greeting and a saved worksheet attached.
- Year 8
- Pupils sort five workplace messages into email, chat or video call and write one reason for each choice.
- Year 9
- Pupils plan a message to a client and a message to colleagues about the same event, choosing a different tool and tone for each.
Show the specification wording and the DCF statements
Where it is in the specification: Entry Level 1 AC 3.1 to 3.2 (page 12); Entry Level 2 AC 3.1 to 3.2 (page 15); Entry Level 3 AC 3.1 to 3.3 (page 18); Level 1 AC 3.1 to 3.3 (page 21); Level 2 AC 3.1 to 3.2 (page 24)
“attaching a digital document to an email, such as a completed worksheet, photograph or simple report”
Progression step 3
I can exchange online communications, making use of a growing range of available features, e.g. add attachments or hyperlinks, change formatting.
I can show an understanding of the advantages and disadvantages of different forms of communication and when it is appropriate to use each, e.g. explain when video conferencing may be more appropriate than e-mail, and vice versa; explain the pros and cons of using instant messaging in social contexts; talk about purpose and audience.
Progression step 4
I can select and use different online communication tools for specific purposes with higher levels of competence, e.g. set up and manage an address book, organise contacts, use advanced features of e-mail provider (signature, auto reply, read receipt, widgets).
Good to know
- Each level is a separate unit with its own code (CBM241, CBM242, CBM243, CBM244, CBM245). Every level carries the same size: "Credit Value: Two (2)" and "Guided Learning Hours: 20" (Unit Content tables, pages 11 to 23), so the Level 2 unit is no bigger than the Entry Level 1 unit.
- Only one level counts in a qualification: "with the exception of British Sign Language (BSL), units with the same title at different levels are barred for completion within the same qualification" (Level 1 Qualification Guide, Qualification Units, page 17). It sits in the Skills for Work group, and qualifications need 60 (Award), 120 (Certificate) or 240 (Diploma) guided learning hours (Rules of Combination, page 15).
- Units from Pearson, WJEC or Agored Cymru with the same title cannot be swapped in: "Units certificated by other Awarding Organisations, or units taken from other Open Awards qualifications, cannot contribute to the achievement of this qualification." (Units from Other Awarding Organisations, page 3).
- The centre writes the tasks: the unit is "designed to be assessed through assessment tasks and activities designed by the provider", with pre-course verification of the tasks (Assessment Approach, page 7), and "providers must have an approved Delivery and Assessment Plan" before delivery (Delivery Requirements, page 5).
- There is no partial credit: "All assessment criteria must be met in full for the learner to be awarded a 'pass'." Results are internally quality assured by the centre and externally quality assured by Open Awards (Assessment Approach, page 7).
- Evidence goes in a portfolio, paper or digital: "Learners are required to collate evidence in a portfolio of evidence." and "Wherever possible, e-portfolios are encouraged." (Assessment Approach, page 7).
- The unit specification says nothing about AI tools, plagiarism or referencing. It "must be read and applied alongside the relevant Qualification Guide (level-specific) and the Open Awards Provider Handbook" (Qualification Documentation, page 3), so those documents set the rules.
- No prior learning is needed, but "the provider must complete robust initial assessments" to place each learner at the right level (Entry Requirements, page 6).
- Devices are needed at every level: the minimum equipment is "desktop computers or laptops (ideally 1:1 or minimum 1:2 ratio)" with a "stable and filtered internet connection", software for document creation, communication and file management, and file storage (Physical Resources, page 6).
- Pupils need an email account they can use to send real messages, because Entry Level 2 to Level 1 each require learners to "Create and send a work-related email" (Level 1 adds an attachment) (Unit Content, pages 14, 17 and 20).
- Copyright is optional at Level 2: "Learners may also include the basics of copyright law, such as recognising when online materials can be used, identifying Creative Commons symbols" (Level 2 indicative content, page 24).
- The document has drafting slips: the Entry Level 3 suggested task table is a copy of the Entry Level 2 table (Assessment Approach, pages 8 to 9), the Level 1 indicative content labels the email criterion "AC 3.4" although the criterion is 3.3 (page 21), and there are typing errors such as "addresd" and "work purpos" (pages 15 and 24).
Links with other qualifications
The Pearson Skills for Work unit Using IT in the Workplace is 10 guided learning hours with one holistic criterion per level, built around privacy, security and one digital document; the Open Awards unit is 20 hours at every level and assesses all four strands (finding information, creating content, digital communication and digital safety) with separate criteria, including sending real emails and, at Level 2, explaining an Acceptable Use Policy and GDPR. The WJEC Skills for Work unit of the same name covers similar ground in 20 hours. Searching, judging reliability and bias, file management, document formatting and data protection link directly with GCSE Digital Technology, and security threats such as viruses, hacked passwords and unauthorised access link with GCSE Computer Science. Professional emails and the CV or Health and Safety poster at Level 1 support GCSE Business, and within the Open Awards suite the unit pairs naturally with Interview and Confidence Techniques and with the online safety content of Personal Safety.
Source: Open Awards Skills for Work Unit Specification, Using IT in the Workplace, Entry Level 1 to Level 2.