Intro to Validating Assessments for RTOs
RTOs manage numerous responsibilities following registration, like yearly reports, AVETMISS compliance, and marketing adherence. Among these tasks, assessment validation frequently stands out. While validation has been reviewed in many discussions, let's revisit the fundamental principles. The Australian Skills Quality Authority identifies validation of assessments as a quality review of the evaluation process.
Basically, assessment review 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 SRTOs 2015, 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 regulations mandate two forms of validation. The first type of validation of assessments guarantees adherence to the requirements of the training package within your RTO's scope. The other type ensures that assessments adhere to the principles of assessment and rules of evidence. This implies that validation is carried out in both pre- and post-assessment stages. This article will discuss the primary type—assessment tool validation.
Overview of Assessment Validation Types
- Assessment Tool Validation: Often termed pre-assessment validation or verification, pertains to the primary part of the rule, focusing on ensuring all unit requirements are met.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Deals with the conduct, ensuring Registered Training Organisations conduct assessments in line with the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.
Guide to Conducting Assessment Tool Validation
Optimal Timing for Assessment Tool Validation
The purpose of validating assessment tools is to ensure that all aspects, performance standards, and evidence of performance and knowledge are covered by your assessment methods. Therefore, whenever you get new educational resources, you must conduct assessment tool validation before allowing students to use them. There's no need to wait for your next five-year validation cycle. Validate new materials as soon as possible to ensure they are fit for student use.
Nevertheless, this isn't the only reason to conduct this type of validation. Perform validation of assessment tools also when you:
- Amend your resources
- Add new training products on scope
- Evaluate your course with training product updates
- Flag 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.
Training Products to Validate
Remember that this validation guarantees adherence of all learning resources before use. All RTOs must validate training products for each unit.
Necessary Resources for Assessment Tool Validation
To validate your assessment tools, you will need the complete set of your learning resources:
- Mapping Tool: The first document to review. It identifies which assessment tasks meet course unit requirements, assisting in faster validation.
- Learner/Student Workbook: Ensure it is suitable as an assessment tool during validation. Check if guidelines are clear and response areas are sufficient. This is a common issue.
- Marking Guide: Also ensure if directions for evaluators are sufficient and if clear benchmarks for each assessment task are provided. Clear benchmarks are crucial for reliable assessment outcomes.
- Other Related Resources: These may include evaluation checklists, registers, and forms developed separately from the student workbook and marking guide. Validate these to ensure they fit the evaluation task and meet unit requirements.
Panel for Validation
Regulation 1.11 specifies the requirements for validation panel members. It states 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:
- Vocational Competencies and Current Professional Skills relevant to the unit being validated.
- Current Knowledge and Skills in Vocational Teaching and Learning.
- Either of the following certifications for training and assessment:
- Certificate IV in Training and Assessment TAE40116 or its successor.
Principles Guiding Assessment
- Fairness: Is equal opportunity and access provided to everyone in the assessment process?
- Adaptability: Does the assessment offer various options to demonstrate competence based on different needs and preferences?
- Accuracy: Is the assessment an accurate tool for evaluating the required skills and knowledge?
- Consistency: Are the assessment results consistent regardless of who conducts the training?
Guidelines for Evidence
- Appropriateness: Is the evidence relevant to the skills, knowledge, and attributes described in the unit of competency?
- Adequacy: Is there enough evidence to ensure that the learner has the skills and knowledge required?
- Authenticity: Is the evidence genuine and truly representative of the candidate's abilities?
- Relevance: 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 specifications and ensure they are addressed by the assessment item. For example, in the unit CHCECE032 Baby and Toddler Care, one required performance evidence asks students to:
- Change nappies
- Prepare and feed bottles, clean feeding equipment
- Prepare and give solid food to 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
Describing the nappy-changing process for babies under 12 months does not fulfill the unit requirement. Unless the unit specification is meant to assess theoretical understanding (i.e., knowledge-based evidence), students should be carrying out the tasks.
Be Careful with Plurals!
Pay attention to the frequency. In our example, one of the unit requirements of CHCECE032 Nurture babies and toddlers 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 does not fulfill the requirement.
All 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 cover all specifications, or the student is not yet competent, and the assessment tool is not compliant.
Provide Specific Details
Each assessment task must have clear and specific standard answers to guide the assessor’s evaluation on the student’s competence. Therefore, it’s crucial that your instructions do not baffle students or trainers.
Double-Barrelled Questions: Avoid Them
Steering clear of double-barrelled questions makes it simpler for students to respond and for evaluators to accurately judge student competence.
Assurance During Audits
Considering these requirements, you might wonder, “Don't resource developers provide audit guarantees?” 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 preventative and compliant approach.
By following these guidelines and check it out understanding the assessment principles and Rules of Evidence, you can ensure that your assessment tools are reliable with the standards established by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.