Introduction
Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) have numerous obligations after becoming registered, like yearly reports, AVETMISS compliance, and marketing compliance. Among these tasks, assessment validation is particularly challenging. While validation has been reviewed in several articles, let's return to the basics. ASQA defines assessment review as quality assurance of the assessment process.
Basically, assessment validation is aimed at identifying which parts of an RTO’s assessment procedures are effective and which need improvement. With a proper grasp of its key aspects, validation becomes less daunting. According to Clause 1.8 of the SRTOs 2015 regulations, RTOs must ensure their assessment systems, including RPL, adhere to the training package requirements and are conducted according to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.
The rules specify two types of validation. The initial type of assessment review checks conformity with the requirements of the training package within your organisation's scope. The other type guarantees that assessments are conducted according to the Principles of Assessment and rules of evidence. This indicates that we perform validation in both pre- and post-assessment stages. This article will concentrate on the initial type—assessment tool validation.
The Two Types of Assessment Validation
- Assessment Tool Validation: Commonly called pre-assessment validation or verification, involves the initial part of the clause, ensuring compliance with all unit requirements.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Involves the conduct, verifying that RTOs conduct assessments according to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.
Process of Conducting Assessment Tool Validation
When to Validate Assessment Tools
The purpose of assessment tool validation is to ensure that all aspects, performance criteria, and performance and knowledge evidence are covered by your assessment methods. Therefore, whenever you get new learning resources, you must conduct assessment tool validation before allowing students to use them. There's no need to wait for your next scheduled validation. Validate new resources as soon as possible to ensure they are appropriate for students.
Nevertheless, this isn't the only time to conduct this type of validation. Conduct validation of assessment tools also when you:
- Update your resources
- Expand with new training products on scope
- Assess your course with training product updates
- Detect your learning resources as a risk during your risk assessment
ASQA uses a risk-based approach for regulating RTOs and requires regular risk assessments. Therefore, student complaints about learning resources are an ideal time to conduct assessment tool validation.
Training Products to Validate
Remember that this validation ensures compliance of all educational resources before student use. All RTOs must validate resources for each course unit.
Necessary Resources for Assessment Tool Validation
To validate your assessment tools, you will need the complete set of your educational resources:
- Mapping Tool: The first document to review. It shows which assessment tasks meet unit requirements, helping with faster validation.
- Learner Workbook: Ensure it is suitable as an assessment tool during validation. Check if directions are clear and answer fields are sufficient. This is a common issue.
- Assessor Guide: Also check if guidelines for trainers are sufficient and if clear criteria for each assessment item are provided. Clear criteria are crucial for reliable assessment outcomes.
- Additional Resources: These may include evaluation checklists, evaluation registers, and evaluation templates created separately from the learner workbook and assessor guide. Validate these to ensure they suit the assessment task and comply with unit requirements.
Panel for Validation
Standard 1.11 specifies the requirements for members of the validation panel. It states validation can be performed by one or more people. However, RTOs usually mandate all trainers and evaluators to participate, sometimes including industry experts.
Collectively, your assessment validation panel must have:
- Vocational Skills and Up-to-date Industry Skills relevant to the unit under validation.
- Current Expertise in Vocational Education.
- Either of the following certifications for training and assessment:
- TAE40116 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment or its successor.
Principles Guiding Assessment
- Fairness: Is the assessment process fair and equitable for find it here all candidates?
- Versatility: Does the assessment offer various options to demonstrate competence based on different needs and preferences?
- Relevance: Is the assessment an accurate tool for evaluating the required skills and knowledge?
- Reliability: Are the assessment results consistent regardless of who conducts the training?
Evidence Rules
- Appropriateness: Does the evidence demonstrate that the candidate has the skills, knowledge, and attributes described in the unit of competency and associated assessment requirements?
- Completeness: Does the evidence adequately demonstrate the required skills and knowledge?
- Authenticity: Does the assessment tool verify that the work is the candidate’s own?
- Timeliness: Are the assessment tools based on current units of competency and up-to-date industry practices?
Important Factors in Assessment Validation
Pay attention to the verbs in the unit criteria and ensure they are addressed by the assessment item. For example, in the unit CHCECE032 Nurture babies and toddlers, one performance evidence requirement asks students to:
- Change diapers
- Feed babies with bottles and clean equipment
- Prepare and give solid food to babies
- Respond appropriately to baby signs and cues
- Prepare and settle babies for sleep
- Supervise and support age-appropriate physical activities and motor development
Typical Mistakes
Asking students to describe the nappy-changing process for babies under 12 months old does not meet the unit requirement. Unless the unit requirement is meant to evaluate underlying knowledge (i.e., knowledge evidence), students should be performing the tasks.
Mind the Plurals!
Pay attention to the quantities. In our example, one of the unit requirements of CHCECE032 demands the students to complete the tasks at least once on two different babies under 12 months of age. Having students complete the tasks listed twice on just one baby is not sufficient.
All or Not Competent
Pay attention to lists. As mentioned earlier, if students do not complete all the tasks listed, it’s non-compliant. Each evaluation task must cover all requirements, or the student is not competent, and the assessment method is out of compliance.
Can You Be More Specific?
Each assessment item must have clear and specific benchmark answers to guide the evaluator’s decision on the student’s competence. Therefore, it’s crucial that your guidelines do not mislead students or assessors.
Steer Clear of Double-Barrelled Questions
Avoiding double-barrelled questions makes it easier for students to respond and for trainers to accurately assess student competence.
Assurance During Audits
Considering these requirements, you might wonder, “Don’t learning resource developers offer audit guarantees?” However, with these promises, you must wait for an audit before they assist with noncompliance. This impacts your compliance record, so it's better to take a safe and compliant approach.
By following these instructions and understanding the Principles of Assessment and evidence rules, you can ensure that your evaluation tools are reliable with the regulations mandated by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.