{Process of Assessment Validation for Vocational Education and Training within Australia An Exhaustive Guide
Intro to Validating Assessments for RTOsRTOs have multiple obligations post-registration, such as annual declarations, AVETMISS data submission, and marketing compliance. Among these tasks, validation of assessments is notably challenging. While we've discussed validation in several publications, let's revisit the fundamental principles. The Australian Skills Quality Authority describes assessment validation as quality assurance of the assessment process.
At its core, assessment review is intended to identify 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 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 require two forms of validation. The initial type of assessment validation guarantees adherence to the requirements of the training package within your organisation's scope. The other type ensures that assessments are conducted according to the Principles of Assessment and rules of evidence. This suggests that validation is performed pre- and post-assessment. This article will focus on the first type—assessment tool validation.
The Two Types of Assessment Validation
- Assessment Tool Validation: Also known as pre-assessment validation or verification, is concerned with the primary part of the regulation, focusing on meeting all unit requirements.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Concerns the implementation, guaranteeing that RTO assessments adhere to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.
Conducting Validation of Assessment Tools
Scheduling Assessment Tool Validation
The aim of validating assessment tools is to ensure that all aspects, criteria for performance, and performance and knowledge evidence are addressed by your evaluation tools. Therefore, whenever you get new training materials, you must carry out assessment tool validation before students use them. There's no need to wait for your next scheduled validation. Review new tools immediately to ensure they are fit for student use.
Nevertheless, this isn't the only time to do this type of validation. Perform assessment tool validation also when you:
- Amend your resources
- Expand with new training products on scope
- Review your course against 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.
Training Products Requiring Validation
Remember that this validation guarantees adherence of all educational resources before use. All RTOs must validate training products for each course unit.
Resources Required for Assessment Tool Validation
To validate your assessment tools, you will need the complete set of your learning resources:
- Mapping Resource: The first document to review. It shows which evaluation items meet unit requirements, assisting in faster validation.
- Learner 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.
- Marking Guide: Also verify if directions for evaluators are sufficient and if clear benchmarks for each evaluation item are provided. Clear standards are crucial for reliable assessment outcomes.
- Additional Resources: These may include evaluation checklists, evaluation registers, and templates designed separately from the student workbook and marking guide. Validate these to ensure they suit the assessment activity and comply with unit requirements.
Panel for Validation
Standard 1.11 specifies the requirements for panel members. It states assessment 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 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:
- Certificate IV in Training and Assessment TAE40116 or its successor.
Principles Guiding Assessment
- Impartiality: Is the assessment process fair and equitable for all candidates?
- Versatility: Are there multiple ways to demonstrate competence, accommodating different needs and preferences?
- Relevance: Is the assessment relevant to the skills and knowledge it aims to evaluate?
- Reliability: Will the assessment produce consistent results every time?
Evidence Rules
- Validity: Does the evidence demonstrate that the candidate has the skills, knowledge, and attributes described in the unit of competency and associated assessment requirements?
- Completeness: Is the evidence sufficient to cover all the required skills and knowledge?
- Authenticity: Does the evidence confirm the originality of the candidate's work?
- Currency: Is the evidence up-to-date with current industry practices?
Specific Considerations for Assessment Validation
Pay attention to the action words in the unit requirements and ensure they are addressed by the assessment task. For example, in the unit CHCECE032 Baby and Toddler Care, one required performance evidence asks students to:
- Perform diaper changes
- Prepare and feed bottles, clean feeding equipment
- Prepare and give solid food to babies
- Respond appropriately to baby signs and cues
- Prepare babies for sleep and help them settle
- Supervise and support age-appropriate physical activities and motor development
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 doing the tasks.
Mind the Plurals!
Pay attention to the numbers. In our example, one of the unit requirements of CHCECE032 requires 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 enumerated tasks. As mentioned earlier, if students only complete half the tasks, it’s out of compliance. read more Each assessment item must address all requirements, or the student is not yet competent, and the evaluation tool is not compliant.
Provide Specific Details
Each assessment task must have clear and specific benchmark answers to guide the evaluator’s decision on the student’s competence. Therefore, it’s crucial that your guidelines do not confuse students or trainers.
Double-Barrelled Questions: Avoid Them
Avoiding double-barrelled questions makes it more straightforward for students to respond and for evaluators to accurately judge student competence.
Audit Guarantees
Considering these requirements, you might wonder, “Don’t learning resource developers offer audit guarantees?” However, with these promises, 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 recommendations and understanding the principles of assessment and Rules of Evidence, you can ensure that your assessment tools are valid with the standards established by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.