Overview
RTOs manage various duties after becoming registered, which include yearly declarations, AVETMISS reporting, and marketing compliance. Among these tasks, assessment validation is notably challenging. While validation has been reviewed in multiple discussions, a review of the basics is necessary. The Australian Skills Quality Authority defines validation of assessments as quality assurance of the assessment procedure.
Primarily, assessment validation is about identifying which parts of an RTO's assessment process 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 regulations require two forms of validation. The initial type of assessment review ensures compliance with the requirements of the training package within your organisation's scope. The second validation ensures that assessments adhere to the principles of assessment and Rules of Evidence. This implies that validation is performed both before and after the assessment. This article will discuss the primary type—assessment tool validation.
Two Types of Assessment Validation
- Assessment Tool Validation: Referred to as pre-assessment validation or verification, is related to the initial part of the clause, aimed at meeting all unit requirements.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Is concerned with the implementation, ensuring RTOs conduct assessments in line with the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.
Process of Conducting Assessment Tool Validation
Optimal Timing for Assessment Tool Validation
The goal of assessment tool validation is to make sure that all aspects, performance criteria, and performance and knowledge evidence are included by your assessment tools. Therefore, whenever you purchase new educational resources, you must conduct validation of assessment tools before students use them. There's no need to wait for your next scheduled validation. Validate new materials as soon as possible to ensure they are fit for student use.
Nevertheless, this isn't the only time to do this type of validation. Conduct validation of assessment tools also when you:
- Enhance your resources
- Add new training products on scope
- Assess your course with training product updates
- Recognise your learning resources as a risk during your risk assessment
The Australian Skills Quality Authority employs a risk-based approach for regulating RTOs and expects regular risk assessments. Therefore, student complaints about learning resources are an ideal time to conduct assessment tool validation.
Identifying Training Products for Validation
Keep in mind that this validation guarantees adherence of all learning resources before use. All RTOs must validate materials for each subject unit.
Resources Required for Assessment Tool Validation
To start assessment tool validation, you will need the complete set of your educational resources:
- Mapping Resource: The first document to review. It shows which assessment items meet course unit requirements, aiding in faster validation.
- Learner/Student Workbook: Ensure it is suitable as an evaluation tool during validation. Check if directions are clear and answer fields are sufficient. This is a common issue.
- Marking Guide: Also verify if instructions for assessors are sufficient and if clear criteria for each evaluation item are provided. Clear standards are crucial for reliable assessment results.
- Additional Resources: These may include evaluation checklists, logs, and forms designed separately from the workbook and marking guide. Validate these to ensure they match the assessment task and address course unit requirements.
Panel for Validation
Regulation 1.11 specifies the requirements for panel members. It states validation can be performed by one or more people. However, RTOs usually mandate all trainers and assessors to participate, sometimes including field experts.
Collectively, your panel must have:
- Vocational Competencies and Current Industry Skills relevant to the validated unit.
- Current Expertise in Vocational Training.
- Either of the following credentials for training and assessment:
- TAE40116 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment or its successor.
Assessment Principles
- Impartiality: Does the assessment process offer equal opportunity and access to everyone?
- Flexibility: Is the assessment adaptable to different needs and preferences of candidates?
- Accuracy: Does the assessment evaluate what it is intended to evaluate?
- Consistency: Will different assessors make the same decision on skill competence?
Guidelines for Evidence
- Appropriateness: Is the evidence relevant to the skills, knowledge, and attributes described in the unit of competency?
- Sufficiency: Is the evidence sufficient to cover all 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 tasks in the unit criteria and ensure they are addressed by the assessment task. For example, in the unit CHCECE032 Baby and Toddler Care, one required performance evidence asks students to:
- Change diapers
- Feed babies with bottles and clean equipment
- Prepare and give solid food to babies
- React suitably to baby signals and cues
- Prepare babies for sleep and help them settle
- Monitor and encourage age-appropriate physical exploration and gross motor skills
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 assess underpinning knowledge (i.e., knowledge-based evidence), students should be carrying out the tasks.
Mind the Plurals!
Pay attention to the numbers. In our example, one of the unit requirements of CHCECE032 Baby and Toddler Care requires 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 won’t cut it.
All or Nothing Competence
Pay attention to enumerated tasks. As mentioned earlier, if students only complete half the tasks, it’s out of compliance. Each evaluation task must meet all criteria, 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 assessor’s evaluation on the student’s competence. Therefore, it’s crucial that your instructions do not mislead students or trainers.
Avoid Double-Barrelled Questions
Steering clear of double-barrelled questions makes it more straightforward for students to respond and for assessors to accurately evaluate student competence.
Assurance During Audits
Considering these requirements, you might wonder, “Don’t learning resource developers offer audit guarantees?” However, with these guarantees, 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 recommendations and understanding the principles of assessment and evidence rules, you can ensure that your assessment awesome site methods are reliable with the regulations mandated by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.