Intro to Assessment Validation
Registered Training Organisations manage various tasks upon registration, such as yearly reports, AVETMISS compliance, and marketing compliance. Among these tasks, validating assessments is notably challenging. While we've discussed validation in several publications, let's revisit the fundamental principles. ASQA (Australian Skills Quality Authority) defines assessment validation as quality assurance of the assessment procedure.
At its core, assessment validation is intended to identify 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, meet the training package requirements and are conducted according to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.
The standards require two forms of validation. The primary type of validation of assessments ensures compliance with the requirements of the training package 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 pre- and post-assessment. This article will focus on the initial type—assessment tool validation.
The Two Types of Assessment Validation
- Assessment Tool Validation: Commonly called pre-assessment validation or verification, relates to the first part of the clause, aimed at meeting all unit requirements.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Deals with the conduct, ensuring Registered Training Organisations conduct assessments in line with the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.
Conducting Validation of Assessment Tools
Timing for Assessment Tool Validation
The purpose of validating assessment tools is to make sure that all components, performance standards, and performance and knowledge evidence are covered by your assessment tools. Therefore, whenever you get new learning resources, you must carry out assessment tool validation prior to student use. There's no need to wait for your next five-year validation cycle. Review new tools as soon as possible to ensure they are suitable for student use.
Nevertheless, this isn't the only occasion to do this type of validation. Conduct validation of assessment tools also when you:
- Enhance your resources
- Introduce new training products on scope
- Review your course against training product updates
- Recognise 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.
Selecting Training Products for Validation
Bear in mind that this validation ensures compliance of all learning resources before student use. All RTOs must validate resources for each unit.
Necessary Resources for Assessment Tool Validation
To validate your assessment tools, you will need the complete set of your training materials:
- Mapping Resource: The first document to review. It indicates which assessment items meet course unit requirements, helping with faster validation.
- Learner Workbook: Ensure it is suitable as an assessment tool during validation. Check if instructions 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 criteria for each evaluation item are provided. Clear benchmarks are crucial for reliable assessment outcomes.
- Additional Resources: These may include checklists, evaluation registers, and forms created separately from the workbook and evaluation guide. Validate these to ensure they fit the assessment task and meet course unit requirements.
Validation Panel
Regulation 1.11 specifies the requirements for members of the validation panel. It states assessment validation can be performed by one or more people. However, RTOs usually require all educators and assessors to check here participate, sometimes including sector experts.
Collectively, your validation panel must have:
- Workplace Competencies and Up-to-date Industry Skills relevant to the unit being validated.
- Current Knowledge and Skills in Vocational Education.
- Either of the following credentials for training and assessment:
- Certificate IV in Training and Assessment TAE40116 or its successor.
Principles Guiding Assessment
- Impartiality: Does the assessment process offer equal opportunity and access to everyone?
- Flexibility: Does the assessment offer various options to demonstrate competence based on different needs and preferences?
- Relevance: Does the assessment evaluate what it is intended to evaluate?
- Dependability: Will different assessors make the same decision on skill competence?
Evidence Rules
- Appropriateness: 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 evidence confirm the originality of the candidate's work?
- Relevance: Is the evidence up-to-date with current industry practices?
Specific Considerations for Assessment Validation
Pay attention to the verbs in the unit requirements and ensure they are addressed by the assessment item. For example, in the unit CHCECE032 Caring for Babies and Toddlers, one required performance evidence asks students to:
- Change diapers
- Prepare bottles, bottle feed babies and clean equipment
- Prepare solid food and feed babies
- React suitably to baby signals and cues
- Prepare babies for sleep and help them settle
- Supervise and support age-appropriate physical activities and motor development
Frequent Errors
Having students describe the nappy-changing process for babies under 12 months old doesn’t directly meet the unit requirement. Unless the unit specification 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 numbers. In our example, one of the unit requirements of CHCECE032 Nurture babies and toddlers 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 does not fulfill the requirement.
All or Not Competent
Pay attention to lists. As mentioned earlier, if students only complete half the tasks, it’s not compliant. Each assessment item must meet all criteria, or the student is not competent, and the assessment tool is out of compliance.
Be Specific!
Each assessment item must have clear and specific benchmark answers to guide the assessor’s evaluation on the student’s competence. Therefore, it’s crucial that your guidelines do not baffle students or assessors.
Avoid Double-Barrelled Questions
Avoiding double-barrelled questions makes it simpler for students to respond and for trainers to accurately judge student competence.
Assurance During Audits
Considering these requirements, you might wonder, “Do resource developers offer guarantees for audits?” However, with these guarantees, you must wait for an audit before they help rectify noncompliance. This influences your compliance status, so it's better to take a safe and compliant approach.
By following these guidelines and understanding the principles of assessment and Rules of Evidence, you can ensure that your evaluation tools are valid with the regulations mandated by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.