Intro to Validating Assessments for RTOs
Registered Training Organisations manage numerous tasks after becoming registered, such as annual statements, AVETMISS compliance, and advertising compliance. Among these tasks, validation of assessments is notably challenging. While we've discussed validation in several publications, let's revisit the fundamental principles. The Australian Skills Quality Authority describes validation of assessments as quality assurance of the assessment procedure.
Basically, assessment review is focused on identifying which parts of an RTO’s assessment procedures 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, 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 primary type of assessment review guarantees adherence to the training package assessment requirements within your RTO's scope. The subsequent validation verifies that assessments follow the principles of assessment and rules of evidence. This suggests that we perform validation both before and after the assessment. This article will concentrate on the first type—assessment tool validation.
Overview of Assessment Validation Types
- Assessment Tool Validation: Also called pre-assessment validation or verification, deals with the first part of the rule, aimed at compliance with all unit requirements.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Is related to the implementation, guaranteeing that RTO assessments adhere to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.
Steps to Conduct Assessment Tool Validation
Timing for Assessment Tool Validation
The purpose of validating assessment tools is to verify that all components, criteria for performance, and performance and knowledge evidence are addressed by your assessment methods. Therefore, whenever you purchase new training materials, you must perform validation of assessment tools prior to student use. There's no need to wait for your next five-year validation cycle. Check new materials as soon as possible to confirm they are appropriate for students.
Nevertheless, this isn't the only reason to perform this type of validation. Do assessment tool validation also when you:
- Update your resources
- Expand with new training products on scope
- Audit your course with training product updates
- Identify 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.
Training Products to Validate
Remember that this validation ensures conformity of all educational resources before student use. All RTOs must validate training products for each subject unit.
Resources Required for Assessment Tool Validation
To validate your evaluation tools, you will need the complete set of your learning resources:
- Mapping Resource: The first document to review. It shows which assessment items meet unit requirements, helping with faster validation.
- 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.
- Assessor Guide/Marking Guide: Also check if guidelines for assessors are sufficient and if clear standards for each assessment task are provided. Clear benchmarks are crucial for reliable evaluation results.
- Other Related Resources: These may include lists, logs, and evaluation templates developed separately from the learner workbook and assessor guide. Validate these to ensure they fit the evaluation task and meet course unit requirements.
Assessment Validation Panel
Regulation 1.11 specifies the requirements for validation panel members. It states assessment validation can be performed by one or more people. However, RTOs usually ask all educators and assessors to participate, sometimes including field experts.
Collectively, your assessment validation panel must have:
- Workplace Competencies and Current Professional Skills relevant to the unit under validation.
- Current Expertise in Vocational Training.
- Either of the following credentials for training and assessment:
- TAE40116 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment or its successor.
Principles Guiding Assessment
- Fairness: Does the assessment process offer equal opportunity and access to everyone?
- Versatility: Are there multiple ways to demonstrate competence, accommodating different needs and preferences?
- 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: Does the evidence demonstrate that the candidate has the skills, knowledge, and attributes described in the unit of competency and associated assessment requirements?
- Sufficiency: Is the evidence sufficient to cover all the required skills and knowledge?
- Genuineness: Is the evidence genuine and truly representative of the candidate's abilities?
- 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 evaluation task. For example, in the unit CHCECE032 Caring for Babies and Toddlers, one performance evidence requirement asks students to:
- Change nappies
- Prepare and feed bottles, clean feeding equipment
- Prepare solid food and feed babies
- 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 criteria is meant to assess theoretical understanding (i.e., evidence of knowledge), students should be performing the tasks.
Mind the Plurals!
Pay attention to the numbers. 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.
Full Competence or Not Competent
Pay attention to lists. As mentioned earlier, if students only complete half the tasks, it’s not compliant. Each assessment task must meet all specifications, or the student is incompetent, and the assessment tool is non-compliant.
Can You Be More Specific?
Each assessment item must have clear and specific benchmark answers to guide the evaluator’s decision on the student’s competence. Therefore, it’s crucial that your guidelines do not confuse students or trainers.
Double-Barrelled Questions: Avoid Them
Not using double-barrelled questions makes it simpler for students to respond and for assessors to accurately assess 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 help rectify noncompliance. This affects your compliance history, so it's better to take a preventative and compliant approach.
By following these guidelines and understanding the assessment principles and rules of evidence, you can ensure that your here evaluation tools are reliable with the standards established by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.