Overview
Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) are responsible for various responsibilities upon registration, including yearly declarations, AVETMISS compliance, and marketing adherence. Among these tasks, assessment validation often stands out. While validation has been covered in many publications, let's revisit the fundamental principles. The Australian Skills Quality Authority describes assessment review as quality assurance of the assessment procedure.
Fundamentally, validation of assessments is about identifying which parts of an RTO’s evaluation 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 2015 Standards for RTOs, RTOs must ensure their assessment systems, including RPL, meet 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 primary type of assessment review guarantees adherence to the requirements of the training package within your RTO's scope. The subsequent validation verifies that assessments are conducted according to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence. This implies that validation is carried out both before and after the assessment. This article will concentrate on the first type—assessment tool validation.
Exploring the Types of Assessment Validation
- Assessment Tool Validation: Also known as pre-assessment validation or verification, relates to the primary part of the clause, aimed at ensuring all unit requirements are met.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Pertains to the execution, confirming that RTO assessments follow the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.
Conducting Validation of Assessment Tools
Timing for Assessment Tool Validation
The aim of validating assessment tools is to ensure that all aspects, performance standards, and performance and knowledge evidence are addressed by your assessment tools. Therefore, whenever you purchase new educational resources, you must carry out validation of assessment tools prior to student use. There's no need to wait for your next five-year validation cycle. Review new tools immediately to ensure they are suitable for student use.
Nevertheless, this isn't the only time to do this type of validation. Conduct validation of assessment tools also when you:
- Modify your resources
- Introduce new training products on scope
- Compare your course with training product updates
- Detect 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 Needing Validation
Note that this validation ensures compliance of all training materials before student use. All RTOs must validate training products for each subject unit.
Resources Required for Assessment Tool Validation
To validate your assessment tools, you will need the complete set of your learning resources:
- Mapping Resource: The first document to review. It shows which evaluation items meet subject requirements, helping with faster validation.
- Student Workbook: Ensure it is suitable as an assessment tool during validation. Check if directions are clear and response areas are sufficient. This is a common issue.
- Assessor Guide/Marking Guide: Also check if guidelines for assessors are sufficient and if clear standards for each assessment item are provided. Clear standards are crucial for reliable assessment outcomes.
- Supplementary Resources: These may include checklists, logs, and forms developed separately from the learner workbook and marking guide. Validate these to ensure they suit the assessment activity and comply with unit requirements.
Validation Panel
Standard 1.11 specifies the requirements for panel members. It states assessment validation can be performed by one or more people. However, RTOs usually mandate all trainers and assessors to participate, sometimes including sector experts.
Collectively, your validation panel must have:
- Vocational Skills and Current Professional Skills relevant to the unit being validated.
- Updated Knowledge and Skills in Vocational Education.
- Either of the following certifications for training and assessment:
- TAE40116 Training and Assessment Certificate IV or its successor.
Principles Guiding Assessment
- Impartiality: Does the assessment process offer equal opportunity and access to everyone?
- Versatility: Does the assessment offer various options to demonstrate competence based on different needs and preferences?
- Validity: Does the assessment evaluate what it is intended to evaluate?
- Reliability: Will different assessors make the same decision on skill competence?
Rules of Evidence
- Validity: Is the evidence relevant to the skills, knowledge, and attributes described in the unit of competency?
- Adequacy: Does the evidence adequately demonstrate the required skills and knowledge?
- Genuineness: Does the evidence confirm the originality of the candidate's work?
- Currency: Are the assessment tools based on current units of competency and up-to-date industry practices?
Key Considerations for Assessment Validation
Pay attention to the tasks in the unit requirements and ensure they are addressed by the assessment task. For example, in the unit CHCECE032 Caring for Babies and Toddlers, one performance evidence requirement asks students to:
- Change diapers
- Prepare and feed bottles, clean feeding equipment
- Feed babies with solid food
- Respond to baby signs and cues properly
- Get babies ready for sleep and settle them
- Monitor and encourage age-appropriate physical exploration and gross motor skills
Common Pitfalls
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 doing the tasks.
Watch Out for the Plurals!
Pay attention to the quantities. In our example, one of the unit requirements of CHCECE032 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 Not Competent
Pay attention to itemized requirements. As mentioned earlier, if students website perform only half the tasks listed, it’s not compliant. Each evaluation task must cover all criteria, or the student is incompetent, and the assessment method is non-compliant.
Can You Be More Specific?
Each assessment item 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 confuse students or assessors.
Double-Barrelled Questions: Avoid Them
Not using double-barrelled questions makes it easier for students to respond and for trainers to accurately judge 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 recommendations and understanding the principles of assessment and Rules of Evidence, you can ensure that your assessment methods are compliant with the requirements set by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.