Intro to RTO Assessment Validation
Registered Training Organisations are responsible for multiple tasks post-registration, such as yearly reports, AVETMISS compliance, and advertising compliance. Among these tasks, assessment validation often stands out. While validation has been covered in multiple discussions, let's return to the basics. The Australian Skills Quality Authority identifies validation of assessments as quality assurance of the assessment procedure.
Principally, validation of assessments is concerned with 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 SRTOs 2015 regulations, 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 require two forms of validation. The first type of assessment validation guarantees adherence to the requirements of the training package within your organisation's scope. The other type guarantees that assessments follow the principles of assessment and Rules of Evidence. This implies that we perform validation in both pre- and post-assessment stages. This article will discuss the initial type—assessment tool validation.
Overview of Assessment Validation Types
- Assessment Tool Validation: Often termed pre-assessment validation or verification, is concerned with the first part of the regulation, ensuring meeting all unit requirements.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Is related to the execution, ensuring that RTO assessments align with the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.
Conducting Assessment Tool Validation
When to Validate Assessment Tools
The purpose of validating assessment tools is to make sure that all aspects, criteria for performance, and evidence of performance and knowledge are addressed by your assessment methods. Therefore, whenever you get new training materials, you must perform validation of assessment tools prior to student use. There's no need to wait for your next 5-year cycle validation schedule. Validate new materials as soon as possible to confirm they are fit for student use.
Nevertheless, this isn't the only reason to perform this type of validation. Conduct validation of assessment tools also when you:
- Revise your resources
- Incorporate new training products on scope
- Compare 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.
What Training Products Need Validation?
Remember that this validation ensures conformity of all training materials before student use. All RTOs must validate resources for each unit.
Necessary Resources for Assessment Tool Validation
To validate your evaluation tools, you will need the complete set of your learning resources:
- Mapping Tool: The first document to review. It indicates which assessment tasks meet unit requirements, aiding in faster validation.
- Student Workbook: Ensure it is suitable as an evaluation tool during validation. Check if instructions are clear and input fields are sufficient. This is a common issue.
- Assessor Guide: Also verify if guidelines for evaluators are sufficient and if clear benchmarks for each evaluation item are provided. Clear criteria are crucial for reliable assessment outcomes.
- Additional Resources: These may include checklists, logs, and templates designed separately from the workbook and assessor guide. Validate these to ensure they fit the assessment task and meet unit requirements.
Panel for Validation
Standard 1.11 specifies the requirements for panel members. It states validation can be performed by one or more people. However, RTOs usually mandate all trainers and assessors to participate, sometimes including industry experts.
Collectively, your panel must have:
- Workplace Competencies and Current Industry Skills relevant to the unit under validation.
- Current Expertise in Vocational Training.
- Either of the following training and assessment credentials:
- TAE40116 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment or its successor.
Principles of Assessment
- Fairness: Does the assessment process offer equal opportunity and access to everyone?
- Adaptability: Is the assessment adaptable to different needs and preferences of candidates?
- Accuracy: Does the assessment evaluate what it is intended to evaluate?
- Dependability: Are the assessment results consistent regardless of who conducts the training?
Evidence Rules
- Appropriateness: Is the evidence appropriate to the requirements of the unit of competency?
- Sufficiency: Does the evidence adequately demonstrate the required skills and knowledge?
- Originality: Does the evidence confirm the originality of the candidate's work?
- Timeliness: Does the evidence reflect current skills and knowledge?
Important Factors in Assessment Validation
Pay attention to the tasks in the unit criteria and ensure they are addressed by the assessment task. For example, in the unit CHCECE032 Caring for Babies and Toddlers, one performance criteria asks students to:
- Perform diaper changes
- Prepare and feed bottles, clean feeding equipment
- Feed babies with solid food
- Respond appropriately to baby signs and cues
- Prepare babies for sleep and help them settle
- Monitor and encourage age-appropriate physical exploration and gross motor skills
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 specification is meant to assess theoretical understanding (i.e., knowledge evidence), students should be performing the tasks.
Mind the Plurals!
Pay attention to the quantities. In our example, one of the unit requirements of CHCECE032 Baby and Toddler Care requires the students to complete the tasks at least once on two different babies under 12 months these guys of age. Having students complete the tasks listed twice on just one baby is not sufficient.
All or Not Competent
Pay attention to enumerated tasks. As mentioned earlier, if students perform only half the tasks listed, it’s out of compliance. Each assessment item must address all criteria, or the student is incompetent, and the assessment method is out of compliance.
Can You Be More Specific?
Each assessment item must have clear and specific reference answers to guide the assessor’s judgment on the student’s competence. Therefore, it’s crucial that your instructions do not mislead students or assessors.
Double-Barrelled Questions: Avoid Them
Avoiding double-barrelled questions makes it simpler for students to respond and for trainers to accurately evaluate 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 until an audit to address noncompliance. This impacts your compliance record, so it's better to take a proactive and compliant approach.
By following these guidelines and understanding the Principles of Assessment and evidence rules, you can ensure that your assessment tools are valid with the regulations mandated by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.