Assessment Validation Overview
Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) are responsible for various responsibilities upon registration, like yearly reports, AVETMISS compliance, and promotional compliance. Among these tasks, assessment validation often stands out. While validation has been covered in several publications, let's revisit the fundamental principles. ASQA identifies validation of assessments as a quality review of the evaluation process.
Essentially, assessment review is designed 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 first type of validation of assessments guarantees adherence to the training package assessment requirements within your RTO's scope. The subsequent validation ensures that assessments are conducted according to the principles of assessment and Rules of Evidence. This implies that validation is carried out both before and after the assessment. This article will focus on the initial type—assessment tool validation.
The Two Types of Assessment Validation
- Assessment Tool Validation: Sometimes called pre-assessment validation or verification, concerns the first part of the rule, ensuring compliance with all unit requirements.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Pertains to the conduct, verifying that RTOs conduct assessments according to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.
Guide to Conducting Assessment Tool Validation
Best Time for Conducting Assessment
The aim of assessment tool validation is to make sure that all elements, criteria for performance, and evidence of performance and knowledge are covered by your evaluation tools. Therefore, whenever you obtain new educational resources, you must carry out assessment tool validation before students use them. There's no need to wait for your next 5-year cycle validation schedule. Validate new materials as soon as possible to ensure they are appropriate for students.
Nevertheless, this isn't the only reason to perform this type of validation. Conduct validation of assessment tools also when you:
- Upgrade your resources
- Introduce new training products on scope
- Review your course against 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.
What Training Products Need Validation?
Note that this validation ensures compliance of all educational resources before student use. All RTOs must validate resources for each subject unit.
Necessary Resources for Assessment Tool Validation
To validate your assessment tools, you will need the complete set of your learning resources:
- Mapping Document: The first document to review. It identifies which evaluation items meet unit requirements, assisting in faster validation.
- Learner/Student Workbook: Ensure it is suitable as an assessment tool during validation. Check if instructions are clear and response areas are sufficient. This is a common issue.
- Assessor these guys Guide: Also ensure if guidelines for trainers are sufficient and if clear standards for each evaluation item are provided. Clear standards are crucial for reliable evaluation results.
- Supplementary Resources: These may include checklists, evaluation registers, and forms developed separately from the learner workbook and evaluation guide. Validate these to ensure they suit the assessment task and comply with unit requirements.
Assessment 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 evaluators to participate, sometimes including field experts.
Collectively, your validation panel must have:
- Workplace Competencies and Current Professional Skills relevant to the validated unit.
- Current Knowledge and Skills in Vocational Education.
- Either of the following credentials for training and assessment:
- TAE40116 Training and Assessment Certificate IV or its successor.
Assessment Principles
- Impartiality: Is equal opportunity and access provided to everyone in the assessment process?
- Versatility: Is the assessment adaptable to different needs and preferences of candidates?
- Relevance: Does the assessment evaluate what it is intended to evaluate?
- Consistency: Are the assessment results consistent regardless of who conducts the training?
Guidelines for Evidence
- Appropriateness: Is the evidence appropriate to the requirements of the unit of competency?
- Adequacy: Is there enough evidence to ensure that the learner has the skills and knowledge required?
- Genuineness: Does the assessment tool verify that the work is the candidate’s own?
- Timeliness: Is the evidence up-to-date with current industry practices?
Key Considerations for Assessment Validation
Pay attention to the action words in the unit requirements and ensure they are addressed by the assessment 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
- Prepare solid food and feed babies
- React suitably to baby signals and cues
- Prepare and settle babies for sleep
- 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 requirement is meant to evaluate underlying knowledge (i.e., evidence of knowledge), students should be performing the tasks.
Watch Out for the Plurals!
Pay attention to the frequency. In our example, one of the unit requirements of CHCECE032 Baby and Toddler Care 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 does not fulfill the requirement.
All or Not Competent
Pay attention to itemized requirements. As mentioned earlier, if students only complete half the tasks, it’s out of compliance. Each assessment task must meet all criteria, or the student is not competent, and the assessment method is out of compliance.
Can You Be More Specific?
Each assessment item must have clear and specific standard answers to guide the assessor’s evaluation on the student’s competence. Therefore, it’s crucial that your directions do not mislead students or trainers.
Avoid Double-Barrelled Questions
Steering clear of 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, “Do resource developers offer guarantees for audits?” However, with these guarantees, you must wait until an audit to address noncompliance. This influences your compliance status, so it's better to take a proactive 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 reliable with the regulations mandated by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.