{Tools for Assessment Validation for the Registered Training Organisations across the Australian landscape -

{Tools for Assessment Validation for the Registered Training Organisations across the Australian landscape -

Blog Article

Overview

Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) have multiple tasks after becoming registered, such as 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 defines assessment review as granular review of the assessment procedure.

Basically, validation of assessments is aimed at identifying 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 2015 Standards for RTOs, RTOs must ensure their assessment systems, including RPL, adhere to the training package requirements and are conducted according to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.

The standards mandate two types of validation. The primary type of assessment validation guarantees adherence to the training package assessment requirements within your organisation's scope. The other type guarantees that assessments are conducted according to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence. This implies that validation is performed both before and after the assessment. This article will focus on the first type—assessment tool validation.

Types of Assessment Validation

- Assessment Tool Validation: Sometimes called pre-assessment validation or verification, involves the primary part of the rule, focusing on compliance with all unit requirements.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Concerns the implementation, guaranteeing that RTO assessments adhere to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.

Steps to Conduct Assessment Tool Validation

Best Time for Conducting Assessment

The goal of validating assessment tools is to verify that all aspects, performance standards, and performance and knowledge evidence are addressed by your assessment tools. Therefore, whenever you get new learning 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 immediately to confirm they are fit for student use.

Nevertheless, this isn't the only reason to conduct this type of validation. Conduct assessment tool validation also when you:

- Update your resources
- Add new training products on scope
- Assess 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.

Identifying Training Products for Validation

Keep in mind that this validation guarantees adherence of all training materials before being used. All RTOs must validate materials for each subject unit.

Resources Needed to Start 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 identifies 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 assessment task are provided. Clear standards are crucial for reliable evaluation results.
- Supplementary Resources: These may include lists, logs, and templates designed separately from the student workbook and assessor guide. Validate these to ensure they match the assessment activity and address subject requirements.

Assessment Validation Panel

Standard 1.11 specifies the requirements for validation panel members. It states assessment validation can be performed by one or more people. However, RTOs usually mandate all educators and assessors to participate, sometimes including industry 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 Training.
- Either of the following certifications for training and assessment:
- TAE40116 Training and Assessment Certificate IV or its successor.

Assessment Principles

- Equity: Is the assessment process fair and website equitable for all candidates?
- Versatility: Is the assessment adaptable to different needs and preferences of candidates?
- Accuracy: Is the assessment an accurate tool for evaluating the required skills and knowledge?
- Reliability: Will the assessment produce consistent results every time?

Rules of Evidence

- Relevance: Is the evidence relevant to the skills, knowledge, and attributes described in the unit of competency?
- Completeness: Does the evidence adequately demonstrate the required skills and knowledge?
- 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 task. For example, in the unit CHCECE032 Caring for Babies and Toddlers, one required performance evidence asks students to:

- Change diapers
- Feed babies with bottles and clean equipment
- Prepare solid food and feed babies
- Respond appropriately to baby signs and cues
- Get babies ready for sleep and settle them
- Supervise and support age-appropriate physical activities and motor development

Common Pitfalls

Having students describe the nappy-changing process for babies under 12 months old doesn’t directly meet the unit requirement. Unless the unit criteria is meant to assess underpinning knowledge (i.e., evidence of knowledge), students should be doing the tasks.

Watch Out for the Plurals!

Pay attention to the quantities. 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.

All or Nothing Competence

Pay attention to lists. As mentioned earlier, if students only complete half the tasks, it’s non-compliant. Each assessment item must cover all requirements, or the student is incompetent, and the assessment tool is out of compliance.

Can You Be More Specific?

Each assessment task must have clear and specific standard answers to guide the assessor’s judgment on the student’s competence. Therefore, it’s crucial that your directions do not baffle students or assessors.

Double-Barrelled Questions: Avoid Them

Steering clear of double-barrelled questions makes it easier for students to respond and for assessors to accurately assess student competence.

Ensuring Audit Compliance

Considering these requirements, you might wonder, “Don’t learning resource developers offer audit guarantees?” However, with these guarantees, you must wait for an audit before they help rectify noncompliance. This impacts your compliance record, so it's better to take a preventative and compliant approach.

By following these instructions and understanding the assessment principles and evidence rules, you can ensure that your assessment methods are compliant with the standards established by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.