Intro to RTO Assessment Validation
RTOs handle various responsibilities after becoming registered, including annual declarations, AVETMISS compliance, and advertising compliance. Among these tasks, assessment validation frequently stands out. While validation has been covered in multiple articles, a review of the basics is necessary. ASQA (Australian Skills Quality Authority) defines assessment validation as granular review of the evaluation process.
Principally, assessment review is aimed at identifying which parts of an RTO's assessment process 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 Standards for RTOs 2015, 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 regulations specify two types of validation. The initial type of assessment review guarantees adherence to the training package assessment requirements within your RTO's scope. The other type ensures that assessments adhere to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence. This indicates that we perform validation pre- and post-assessment. This article will focus on the primary type—assessment tool validation.
Differentiating Assessment Validation Types
- Assessment Tool Validation: Also referred to as pre-assessment validation or verification, pertains to the first part of the clause, ensuring meeting all unit requirements.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Involves the implementation, ensuring RTOs conduct assessments in line with the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.
Conducting Validation of Assessment Tools
When Should Assessment Tool Validation Be Conducted?
The goal of assessment tool validation is to verify that all elements, criteria for performance, and performance and knowledge evidence are included by your assessment methods. Therefore, whenever you get new training materials, you must perform validation of assessment tools before allowing students to use them. There's no need to wait for your next five-year validation cycle. Validate new tools as soon as possible to verify they are appropriate for students.
Nevertheless, this isn't the only reason to conduct this type of validation. Do validation of assessment tools also when you:
- Enhance your resources
- Incorporate new training products on scope
- Assess your course with training product updates
- Identify 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 Needing Validation
Note that this validation ensures conformity of all training materials before use. All RTOs must validate materials for each unit.
Necessary Resources for Assessment Tool Validation
To start assessment tool validation, you will need the complete set of your training materials:
- Mapping Resource: The first document to review. It shows which evaluation items meet course unit requirements, helping with faster validation.
- Learner/Student Workbook: Ensure it is suitable as an evaluation tool during validation. Check if guidelines are clear and answer fields are sufficient. This is a common issue.
- Marking Guide: Also verify if instructions for assessors are sufficient and if clear benchmarks for each evaluation item are provided. Clear standards are crucial for reliable assessment results.
- Other Related Resources: These may include checklists, registers, and templates developed separately from the workbook and evaluation guide. Validate these to ensure they match the evaluation task and meet course unit requirements.
Validation Panel
Regulation 1.11 specifies the requirements for validation 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 field experts.
Collectively, your panel must have:
- Vocational Skills and Up-to-date Industry Skills relevant to the unit being validated.
- Updated Knowledge and Skills in Vocational Education.
- Either of the following certifications for training and assessment:
- Certificate IV in Training and Assessment TAE40116 or its successor.
Principles of Assessment
- Impartiality: Does the assessment process offer equal opportunity and access to everyone?
- Flexibility: Does the assessment offer various options to demonstrate competence based on different needs and preferences?
- Accuracy: Is the assessment relevant to the skills and knowledge it aims 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?
- Completeness: Does the evidence adequately demonstrate the required skills and knowledge?
- Genuineness: Is the evidence genuine and truly representative of the candidate's abilities?
- Currency: Is the evidence up-to-date with current industry practices?
Important Factors in Assessment Validation
Pay attention to the action words in the unit specifications and ensure they are addressed by the assessment task. For example, in the unit CHCECE032 Nurture babies Assessment validation and toddlers, one performance criteria asks students to:
- Perform diaper changes
- Prepare bottles, bottle feed babies and clean equipment
- Feed babies with solid food
- React suitably to baby signals and cues
- Prepare and settle babies for sleep
- 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-based evidence), students should be doing the tasks.
Mind the Plurals!
Pay attention to the quantities. In our example, one of the unit requirements of CHCECE032 Nurture babies and toddlers 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 is not sufficient.
All or Nothing Competence
Pay attention to itemized requirements. As mentioned earlier, if students only complete half the tasks, it’s not compliant. Each evaluation task must meet all requirements, or the student is not yet competent, and the assessment tool is out of compliance.
Provide Specific Details
Each assessment item must have clear and specific reference answers to guide the assessor’s evaluation on the student’s competence. Therefore, it’s crucial that your instructions do not mislead students or evaluators.
Steer Clear of Double-Barrelled Questions
Not using double-barrelled questions makes it simpler for students to respond and for trainers to accurately judge student competence.
Audit Guarantees
Considering these requirements, you might wonder, “Don't resource developers provide 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 guidelines and understanding the principles of assessment and evidence rules, you can ensure that your evaluation tools are reliable with the standards established by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.