Intro to Assessment Validation

RTOs have many obligations post-registration, including annual declarations, AVETMISS data submission, and advertising compliance. Among these tasks, validation of assessments is particularly challenging. While validation has been covered in multiple articles, let's return to the basics. ASQA describes assessment validation as granular review of the assessment process.

In essence, assessment review is aimed at identifying which parts of an RTO’s evaluation 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 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 regulations mandate two types of validation. The primary type of assessment review ensures compliance with the training package assessment requirements within your RTO's scope. The subsequent validation verifies that assessments follow the Principles of Assessment and rules of evidence. This implies that validation is performed pre- and post-assessment. This article will concentrate on the initial type—assessment tool validation.

Types of Assessment Validation

- Assessment Tool Validation: Also known as pre-assessment validation or verification, involves the initial part of the clause, ensuring meeting all unit requirements.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Relates to the execution, ensuring that RTO assessments align with the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.

Conducting Validation of Assessment Tools

Best Time for Conducting Assessment

The goal of assessment tool validation is to make sure that all elements, performance standards, and performance and knowledge evidence are included by your assessment methods. 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 five-year validation cycle. Review new materials as soon as possible to verify they are appropriate for students.

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

- Upgrade your resources
- Include new training products on scope
- Check your course against 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.

What Training Products Need Validation?

Keep in mind that this validation ensures compliance of all educational resources before being used. All RTOs must validate training products for each unit.

Resources Needed to Start Assessment Tool Validation

To validate your assessment tools, you will need the complete set of your educational resources:

- Mapping Document: The first document to review. It indicates which assessment items meet unit requirements, aiding in faster validation.
- Student Workbook: Ensure it is suitable as an assessment resource during validation. Check if guidelines are clear and answer fields are sufficient. This is a common issue.
- Assessor Guide: Also check if guidelines for evaluators are sufficient and if clear benchmarks for each assessment task are provided. Clear criteria are crucial for reliable assessment outcomes.
- Other Related Resources: These may include checklists, evaluation registers, and templates designed separately from the workbook and marking guide. Validate these to ensure they fit the assessment activity and meet subject requirements.

Panel for Validation

Clause 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:

- Vocational Skills and Current Industry 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:
- TAE40116 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment or its successor.

Assessment Principles

- Equity: Does the assessment process offer equal opportunity and access to everyone?
- Flexibility: Is the assessment adaptable to different needs and preferences of candidates?
- Relevance: Is the assessment relevant to the skills and knowledge it aims to evaluate?
- Reliability: Will the assessment produce consistent results every time?

Rules of 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?
- Originality: Is the evidence genuine and truly representative of the candidate's abilities?
- Currency: Is the evidence up-to-date with current industry practices?

Specific Considerations for Assessment Validation

Pay attention to the verbs in the unit specifications and ensure they are addressed by the assessment task. For example, in the unit CHCECE032 Nurture babies and toddlers, one performance criteria asks students to:

- Change nappies
- Prepare and feed bottles, clean feeding equipment
- Prepare and give solid food to babies
- Respond to baby signs and cues properly
- Prepare babies for sleep and help them settle
- 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 requirement is meant to assess underpinning knowledge (i.e., evidence of knowledge), students should be doing the tasks.

Mind the Plurals!

Pay attention to the numbers. 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 won’t cut it.

All or check it out Not Competent

Pay attention to enumerated tasks. As mentioned earlier, if students only complete half the tasks, it’s out of compliance. Each assessment task must address all specifications, or the student is not competent, and the assessment tool is out of compliance.

Can You Be More Specific?

Each assessment task must have clear and specific benchmark 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.

Steer Clear of Double-Barrelled Questions

Avoiding double-barrelled questions makes it more straightforward for students to respond and for assessors to accurately judge student competence.

Ensuring Audit Compliance

Considering these requirements, you might wonder, “Don't resource developers provide 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 safe and compliant approach.

By following these instructions and understanding the Principles of Assessment and evidence rules, you can ensure that your evaluation tools are reliable with the regulations mandated by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.