Intro to RTO Assessment Validation
RTOs manage multiple duties post-registration, such as yearly reports, AVETMISS compliance, and marketing adherence. Among these tasks, assessment validation frequently stands out. While validation has been reviewed in many posts, let's return to the basics. ASQA (Australian Skills Quality Authority) identifies assessment validation as quality assurance of the assessment procedure.
Primarily, assessment validation is aimed at 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 2015 Standards for RTOs, 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 rules require two forms of validation. The first type of assessment validation checks conformity with the training package assessment requirements within your organisation's scope. The second validation guarantees that assessments are conducted according 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 initial type—validation of assessment tools.
What are the Two Types of Assessment Validation?
- Assessment Tool Validation: Also called pre-assessment validation or verification, involves the first part of the regulation, ensuring meeting all unit requirements.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Is concerned with the execution, guaranteeing that RTO assessments adhere to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.
Guide to Conducting Assessment Tool Validation
When to Validate Assessment Tools
The purpose of validating assessment tools is to verify that all components, performance standards, and evidence of performance and knowledge are included by your evaluation tools. Therefore, whenever you acquire new learning resources, you must perform assessment tool validation prior to student use. There's no need to wait for your next scheduled validation. Validate new tools immediately to verify they are appropriate for students.
Nevertheless, this isn't the only time to perform this type of validation. Perform validation of assessment tools also when you:
- Enhance your resources
- Include new training products on scope
- Audit your course with training product updates
- Spot 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 ensures compliance of all educational resources before use. All RTOs must validate materials for each subject unit.
Resources Required 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 evaluation items meet subject requirements, assisting in 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/Marking Guide: Also verify if instructions for trainers are sufficient and if clear standards for each evaluation item are provided. Clear benchmarks are crucial for reliable assessment outcomes.
- Other Related 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 comply with 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 ask all trainers and assessors to participate, sometimes including sector experts.
Collectively, your validation panel must have:
- Vocational Skills and Up-to-date Industry Skills relevant to the unit under validation.
- Updated Knowledge and Skills in Vocational Training.
- Either of the following certifications for training and assessment:
- TAE40116 Training and Assessment Certificate IV or its successor.
Principles of Assessment
- Fairness: Is the assessment process fair and equitable Assessment validation requirements for all candidates?
- Adaptability: Are there multiple ways to demonstrate competence, accommodating different needs and preferences?
- Validity: Is the assessment an accurate tool for evaluating the required skills and knowledge?
- Reliability: Will the assessment produce consistent results every time?
Guidelines for Evidence
- Validity: Does the evidence demonstrate that the candidate has the skills, knowledge, and attributes described in the unit of competency and associated assessment requirements?
- Adequacy: Is the evidence sufficient to cover all the required skills and knowledge?
- Genuineness: Does the assessment tool verify that the work is the candidate’s own?
- Currency: Does the evidence reflect current skills and knowledge?
Key Considerations for Assessment Validation
Pay attention to the action words in the unit specifications and ensure they are addressed by the evaluation task. For example, in the unit CHCECE032 Baby and Toddler Care, one performance evidence requirement asks students to:
- Perform diaper changes
- Prepare and feed bottles, clean feeding equipment
- Feed babies with solid food
- React suitably to baby signals and cues
- Prepare babies for sleep and help them settle
- Monitor and encourage age-appropriate physical exploration and gross motor skills
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 specification is meant to evaluate underlying knowledge (i.e., knowledge evidence), students should be carrying out the tasks.
Mind the 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 won’t cut it.
Full Competence or Not Competent
Pay attention to enumerated tasks. As mentioned earlier, if students perform only half the tasks listed, it’s non-compliant. Each assessment item must meet all criteria, or the student is not yet 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
Steering clear of double-barrelled questions makes it more straightforward for students to respond and for assessors to accurately judge student competence.
Ensuring Audit Compliance
Considering these requirements, you might wonder, “Don’t learning resource developers offer audit guarantees?” However, with these assurances, you must wait for an audit before they assist with noncompliance. This affects your compliance history, so it's better to take a proactive and compliant approach.
By following these instructions and understanding the assessment principles and rules of evidence, you can ensure that your assessment tools are valid with the regulations mandated by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.