Intro to Validating Assessments for RTOs
Training Organisations handle various obligations upon registration, including yearly declarations, AVETMISS reporting, and marketing compliance. Among these tasks, validating assessments frequently stands out. While validation has been reviewed in many publications, a review of the basics is necessary. The Australian Skills Quality Authority defines assessment validation as granular review of the evaluation process.
Essentially, assessment validation is about identifying 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 SRTOs 2015 regulations, 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 rules specify two forms of validation. The initial type of assessment review checks conformity with the training package assessment requirements within your organisation's scope. The second validation verifies that assessments follow the principles of assessment and Rules of Evidence. This indicates that we perform validation pre- and post-assessment. This article will discuss the first type—validation of assessment tools.
The Two Types of Assessment Validation
- Assessment Tool Validation: Commonly called pre-assessment validation or verification, pertains to the primary part of the rule, ensuring compliance with all unit requirements.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Involves the conduct, ensuring RTOs conduct assessments in line with the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.
Steps to Conduct Assessment Tool Validation
When Should Assessment Tool Validation Be Conducted?
The aim of validating assessment tools is to make sure that all elements, performance criteria, and performance and knowledge evidence are covered by your assessment tools. Therefore, whenever you acquire new learning resources, you must carry out validation of assessment tools prior to student use. There's no need to wait for your next scheduled validation. Validate new tools right away to confirm they are appropriate for students.
Nevertheless, this isn't the only reason to conduct this type of validation. Do assessment tool validation also when you:
- Revise your resources
- Integrate new training products on scope
- Review your course against training product updates
- Recognise 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.
Selecting Training Products for Validation
Remember that this validation guarantees adherence of all training materials before being used. All RTOs must validate materials for each subject unit.
Resources Needed to Start Assessment Tool Validation
To start assessment tool validation, you will need the complete set of your learning resources:
- Mapping Document: The first document to review. It shows which assessment tasks meet course unit requirements, helping with faster validation.
- Student Workbook: Ensure it is suitable as an website assessment resource during validation. Check if guidelines are clear and answer fields are sufficient. This is a common issue.
- Assessor Guide: Also verify if instructions for trainers are sufficient and if clear benchmarks for each assessment item are provided. Clear benchmarks are crucial for reliable evaluation results.
- Supplementary Resources: These may include evaluation checklists, logs, and templates developed separately from the workbook and assessor guide. Validate these to ensure they match the assessment task and meet subject requirements.
Panel for Validation
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 industry experts.
Collectively, your validation panel must have:
- Vocational Competencies and Up-to-date Industry Skills relevant to the validated unit.
- Current Expertise in Vocational Training.
- Either of the following training and assessment credentials:
- TAE40116 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment or its successor.
Assessment Principles
- Fairness: Does the assessment process offer equal opportunity and access to everyone?
- Flexibility: Is the assessment adaptable to different needs and preferences of candidates?
- Relevance: Is the assessment relevant to the skills and knowledge it aims to evaluate?
- Reliability: Are the assessment results consistent regardless of who conducts the training?
Evidence Rules
- 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: Does the assessment tool verify that the work is the candidate’s own?
- Currency: Does the evidence reflect current skills and knowledge?
Specific Considerations for Assessment Validation
Pay attention to the tasks in the unit requirements and ensure they are addressed by the evaluation task. For example, in the unit CHCECE032 Caring for Babies and Toddlers, one required performance evidence asks students to:
- Change nappies
- Prepare and feed bottles, clean feeding equipment
- Prepare and give solid food to babies
- React suitably to baby signals and cues
- Get babies ready for sleep and settle them
- Observe and promote suitable physical activities and motor skills for babies
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 assess underpinning knowledge (i.e., knowledge evidence), 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 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 does not fulfill the requirement.
Full Competence or Not Competent
Pay attention to enumerated tasks. As mentioned earlier, if students do not complete all the tasks listed, it’s not compliant. Each assessment task must cover all specifications, or the student is not competent, and the assessment tool is not compliant.
Can You Be More Specific?
Each evaluation task 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 evaluators.
Double-Barrelled Questions: Avoid Them
Avoiding double-barrelled questions makes it simpler for students to respond and for evaluators to accurately assess student competence.
Ensuring Audit Compliance
Considering these requirements, you might wonder, “Do resource developers offer guarantees for audits?” However, with these promises, you must wait until an audit to address noncompliance. This affects your compliance history, 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 methods are reliable with the standards established by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.