{Assessment Validation for Training Providers across the Australian landscape -
IntroductionTraining Organisations handle various responsibilities following registration, which include yearly reports, AVETMISS reporting, and promotional compliance. Among these tasks, assessment validation frequently stands out. While validation has been covered in many articles, let's revisit the fundamental principles. The Australian Skills Quality Authority describes assessment review as a quality review of the evaluation process.
At its core, validation of assessments is intended to identify 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, meet the training package requirements and are conducted according to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.
The rules mandate two forms of validation. The initial type of assessment review guarantees adherence to the training package assessment requirements within your RTO's scope. The other type 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 focus on the initial type—validation of assessment tools.
Overview of Assessment Validation Types
- Assessment Tool Validation: Also referred to as pre-assessment validation or verification, involves the first part of the rule, focusing on ensuring all unit requirements are met.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Involves the implementation, guaranteeing that RTO assessments adhere to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.
Methods for Conducting Assessment Tool Validation
Optimal Timing for Assessment Tool Validation
The goal of validating assessment tools is to make sure that all elements, performance criteria, and performance and knowledge evidence are addressed by your assessment tools. Therefore, whenever you purchase new training materials, you must carry out assessment tool validation before students use them. There's no need to wait for your next scheduled validation. Review new tools immediately 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:
- Upgrade your resources
- Add new training products on scope
- Examine 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.
What Training Products Require Validation
Note that this validation ensures compliance of all learning resources before being used. All RTOs must validate training products for each subject unit.
Necessary Resources for Assessment Tool Validation
To validate your evaluation tools, you will need the complete set of your training materials:
- Mapping Tool: The first document to review. It shows which evaluation items meet unit requirements, helping with faster validation.
- Learner/Student Workbook: Ensure it is suitable as an assessment resource during validation. Check if instructions 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 benchmarks for each evaluation item are provided. Clear criteria are crucial for reliable assessment outcomes.
- Additional Resources: These may include evaluation checklists, evaluation registers, and templates developed separately from the student workbook and assessor guide. Validate these to ensure they match the assessment activity and address unit requirements.
Assessment Validation Panel
Regulation 1.11 specifies the requirements for members of the validation panel. It states validation can be performed by one or more people. However, RTOs usually require all trainers and evaluators to participate, sometimes including sector experts.
Collectively, your panel must have:
- Vocational Skills and Up-to-date Industry Skills relevant to the unit being validated.
- Updated Knowledge and Skills in Vocational Teaching and Learning.
- Either of the following credentials for training and assessment:
- Certificate IV in Training and Assessment TAE40116 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: Does the assessment evaluate what it is intended to evaluate?
- Reliability: Will the assessment produce consistent results every time?
Rules of Evidence
- Appropriateness: Is the evidence appropriate to the requirements of website the unit of competency?
- Adequacy: Is there enough evidence to ensure that the learner has the skills and knowledge required?
- Genuineness: Does the evidence confirm the originality of the candidate's work?
- Currency: Is the evidence up-to-date with current industry practices?
Key Considerations for Assessment Validation
Pay attention to the verbs in the unit criteria and ensure they are addressed by the evaluation task. For example, in the unit CHCECE032 Nurture babies and toddlers, one required performance evidence asks students to:
- Perform diaper changes
- Feed babies with bottles and clean equipment
- Feed babies with solid food
- React suitably to baby signals and cues
- Prepare and settle babies for sleep
- Supervise and support age-appropriate physical activities and motor development
Common Pitfalls
Describing the nappy-changing process for babies under 12 months does not fulfill the unit requirement. Unless the unit criteria is meant to evaluate underlying knowledge (i.e., knowledge evidence), students should be carrying out the tasks.
Watch Out for the Plurals!
Pay attention to the numbers. In our example, one of the unit requirements of CHCECE032 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 enumerated tasks. As mentioned earlier, if students do not complete all the tasks listed, it’s non-compliant. Each evaluation task must address all criteria, or the student is not competent, and the assessment method is non-compliant.
Can You Be More Specific?
Each evaluation 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 mislead students or evaluators.
Avoid Double-Barrelled Questions
Not using double-barrelled questions makes it simpler for students to respond and for trainers to accurately assess student competence.
Assurance During Audits
Considering these requirements, you might wonder, “Do resource developers offer guarantees for audits?” 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 assessment methods are valid with the requirements set by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.