Introduction
RTOs manage numerous responsibilities upon registration, such as yearly declarations, AVETMISS data submission, and marketing adherence. Among these tasks, validating assessments is particularly challenging. While we've discussed validation in multiple posts, let's return to the basics. ASQA (Australian Skills Quality Authority) identifies assessment review as a quality review of the assessment process.
Primarily, validation of assessments is intended to identify which parts of an RTO’s assessment methods 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 Standards for RTOs 2015, RTOs must ensure their assessment systems, including RPL, comply with the training package requirements and are conducted according to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.
The standards specify two types of validation. The first type of assessment validation checks conformity with the requirements of the training package within your organisation's scope. The other type ensures that assessments follow the Principles of Assessment and rules of evidence. This implies that validation is carried out both before and after the assessment. This article will focus on the primary type—validation of assessment tools.
Overview of Assessment Validation Types
- Assessment Tool Validation: Sometimes called pre-assessment validation or verification, is related to the initial part of the clause, aimed at meeting all unit requirements.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Is related to the execution, verifying that RTOs conduct assessments according to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.
Methods for Conducting Assessment Tool Validation
When to Validate Assessment Tools
The purpose of validating assessment tools is to ensure that all elements, performance criteria, and performance and knowledge evidence are addressed by your evaluation tools. Therefore, whenever you obtain new learning resources, you must carry out assessment tool validation prior to student use. There's no need to wait for your next five-year validation cycle. Review new resources as soon as possible to ensure they are fit for student use.
Nevertheless, this isn't the only reason to conduct this type of validation. Do assessment tool validation also when you:
- Amend your resources
- Introduce new training products on scope
- Examine your course with training product updates
- Flag 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.
Training Products to Validate
Bear in mind that this validation ensures conformity of all educational resources before use. All RTOs must validate training products for each unit.
Resources Needed to Start Assessment Tool Validation
To validate your assessment tools, you will need the complete set of your training materials:
- Mapping Document: The first document to review. It shows which assessment tasks meet unit requirements, aiding in faster validation.
- Learner/Student Workbook: Ensure it is suitable as an assessment tool during validation. Check if instructions are clear and answer fields are sufficient. This is a common issue.
- Assessor Guide/Marking Guide: Also ensure if guidelines for evaluators are sufficient and if clear benchmarks for each assessment item are provided. Clear criteria are crucial for reliable evaluation results.
- Additional Resources: These may include checklists, evaluation registers, and forms developed separately from the student workbook and assessor guide. Validate these to ensure they match the evaluation task and comply with course unit requirements.
Panel for Validation
Regulation 1.11 specifies the requirements for members of the validation panel. It states assessment validation can be performed by one or more people. However, RTOs usually require all educators and assessors to participate, sometimes including industry experts.
Collectively, your panel must have:
- Vocational Competencies and Current Professional Skills relevant to the unit being validated.
- Updated Knowledge and Skills in Vocational Teaching and Learning.
- Either of the following certifications for training and assessment:
- TAE40116 Training and Assessment Certificate IV or its successor.
Principles of Assessment
- Fairness: Is the assessment process fair and equitable for all candidates?
- Adaptability: Are there multiple ways to demonstrate competence, accommodating different needs and preferences?
- Validity: Does the assessment evaluate what it is intended to evaluate?
- Dependability: Will different assessors make the same decision on skill competence?
Rules of Evidence
- Relevance: Is the evidence appropriate to the requirements of the unit of competency?
- Sufficiency: Is there enough evidence to ensure that the learner has the skills and knowledge required?
- Authenticity: Is the evidence genuine and truly representative of the candidate's abilities?
- Timeliness: Does the evidence reflect current skills and knowledge?
Key Considerations for Assessment Validation
Pay attention to the verbs in the unit requirements and ensure they are addressed by the assessment item. For example, in the unit CHCECE032 Caring for Babies and Toddlers, one required performance evidence asks students to:
- Change diapers
- Prepare bottles, bottle feed babies and clean equipment
- Prepare solid food and feed babies
- Respond appropriately to baby signs and cues
- Prepare and settle babies for these guys sleep
- Monitor and encourage age-appropriate physical exploration and gross motor skills
Typical Mistakes
Describing the nappy-changing process for babies under 12 months does not fulfill the unit requirement. Unless the unit requirement is meant to evaluate underlying knowledge (i.e., knowledge-based evidence), students should be performing the tasks.
Watch Out for the Plurals!
Pay attention to the numbers. In our example, one of the unit requirements of CHCECE032 Nurture babies and toddlers 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 is not sufficient.
Full Competence or Not Competent
Pay attention to itemized requirements. As mentioned earlier, if students do not complete all the tasks listed, it’s out of compliance. Each evaluation task must meet all criteria, or the student is not yet competent, and the assessment method is not compliant.
Be Specific!
Each assessment task must have clear and specific standard answers to guide the evaluator’s decision on the student’s competence. Therefore, it’s crucial that your guidelines do not baffle students or assessors.
Double-Barrelled Questions: Avoid Them
Steering clear of double-barrelled questions makes it more straightforward for students to respond and for assessors to accurately judge student competence.
Assurance During Audits
Considering these requirements, you might wonder, “Do resource developers offer guarantees for audits?” However, with these guarantees, you must wait for an audit before they help rectify noncompliance. This influences your compliance status, so it's better to take a preventative and compliant approach.
By following these instructions and understanding the principles of assessment and rules of evidence, you can ensure that your assessment tools are compliant with the requirements set by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.