Overview
Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) manage numerous duties upon registration, which include annual declarations, AVETMISS data submission, and marketing compliance. Among these tasks, validation of assessments is particularly challenging. While we've discussed validation in several publications, let's revisit the fundamental principles. ASQA (Australian Skills Quality Authority) defines validation of assessments as a quality review of the assessment process.
In essence, assessment review is concerned with 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 SRTOs 2015, 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 mandate two types of validation. The first type of assessment review guarantees adherence to the requirements of the training package within your RTO's scope. The other type ensures that assessments adhere to the Principles of Assessment and rules of evidence. This indicates that validation is performed both before and after the assessment. This article will concentrate on the first type—assessment tool validation.
Understanding Assessment Validation Types
- Assessment Tool Validation: Referred to as pre-assessment validation or verification, is related to the primary part of the regulation, ensuring compliance with 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.
Guide to Conducting Assessment Tool Validation
When to Conduct Assessment Tool Validation
The aim of validating assessment tools is to ensure that all elements, performance criteria, and evidence of performance and knowledge are addressed by your assessment tools. Therefore, whenever you purchase new training materials, you must conduct validation of assessment tools prior to student use. There's no need to wait for your next five-year validation cycle. Review new tools right away to confirm they are appropriate for students.
Nevertheless, this isn't the only time to do this type of validation. Do assessment tool validation also when you:
- Update your resources
- Expand with 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.
What Training Products Need Validation?
Remember that this validation ensures compliance of all educational resources before being used. All RTOs must validate resources for each unit.
Necessary Resources for Assessment Tool Validation
To start assessment tool validation, you will need the complete set of your educational resources:
- Mapping Tool: The first document to review. It indicates which assessment items meet unit requirements, assisting in faster validation.
- Learner/Student Workbook: Ensure it is suitable as an assessment tool during validation. Check if directions are clear and input fields are sufficient. This is a common issue.
- Marking Guide: Also verify if guidelines for assessors are sufficient and if clear standards for each assessment item are provided. Clear standards are crucial for reliable assessment outcomes.
- Additional Resources: These may include lists, evaluation registers, and forms developed separately from the student workbook and marking guide. Validate these to ensure they fit the assessment activity and address course unit requirements.
Validation Panel
Regulation 1.11 specifies the requirements for validation panel members. It states validation can be performed by one or more people. However, RTOs usually require all educators and assessors to participate, sometimes including field experts.
Collectively, your assessment validation panel must have:
- Vocational Competencies and Up-to-date Industry Skills relevant to the validated unit.
- 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 Guiding Assessment
- Impartiality: Does the assessment process offer equal opportunity and access to everyone?
- Adaptability: Is the assessment adaptable to different needs and preferences of candidates?
- Relevance: Does the assessment evaluate what it is intended to evaluate?
- Consistency: Will the assessment produce consistent results every time?
Rules of Evidence
- Relevance: Is the evidence appropriate to the requirements of the unit of competency?
- Completeness: Is the evidence sufficient to cover all the required skills and knowledge?
- Authenticity: Is the evidence genuine and truly representative of the candidate's abilities?
- Timeliness: Is the evidence up-to-date with current industry practices?
Specific Considerations for Assessment Validation
Pay attention to the action words in the unit requirements and ensure they are addressed by the evaluation task. For example, in the awesome site unit CHCECE032 Caring for Babies and Toddlers, one required performance evidence asks students to:
- Perform diaper changes
- Feed babies with bottles and clean equipment
- Prepare and give solid food to babies
- React suitably to baby signals 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 criteria is meant to evaluate underlying knowledge (i.e., evidence of knowledge), students should be carrying out the tasks.
Be Careful with Plurals!
Pay attention to the frequency. In our example, one of the unit requirements of CHCECE032 Baby and Toddler Care calls for 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.
Full Competence or Not Competent
Pay attention to itemized requirements. As mentioned earlier, if students only complete half the tasks, it’s out of compliance. Each assessment item must cover all specifications, or the student is not yet competent, and the evaluation tool is out of compliance.
Can You Be More Specific?
Each assessment item must have clear and specific standard answers to guide the assessor’s evaluation on the student’s competence. Therefore, it’s crucial that your directions do not mislead students or evaluators.
Steer Clear of Double-Barrelled Questions
Steering clear of double-barrelled questions makes it simpler for students to respond and for assessors to accurately evaluate student competence.
Ensuring Audit Compliance
Considering these requirements, you might wonder, “Don't resource developers provide 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 instructions and understanding the Principles of Assessment and evidence rules, you can ensure that your assessment tools are reliable with the regulations mandated by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.