Overview of Assessment Validation
Registered Training Organisations are responsible for many obligations post-registration, like yearly reports, AVETMISS data submission, and marketing compliance. Among these tasks, assessment validation is notably challenging. While validation has been reviewed in several discussions, let's return to the basics. The Australian Skills Quality Authority defines validation of assessments as granular review of the assessment procedure.
Primarily, assessment review is about 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 initial type of validation of assessments checks conformity with the training package assessment requirements within your RTO's scope. The second validation verifies that assessments adhere to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence. This indicates that validation is carried out both before and after the assessment. This article will discuss the initial type—validation of assessment tools.
Overview of Assessment Validation Types
- Assessment Tool Validation: Sometimes called pre-assessment validation or verification, deals with the primary part of the regulation, ensuring ensuring all unit requirements are met.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Pertains to the implementation, verifying that RTOs conduct assessments according to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.
Conducting Assessment Tool Validation
When to Validate Assessment Tools
The aim of assessment tool validation is to make sure that all aspects, performance criteria, and performance and knowledge evidence are covered by your evaluation tools. Therefore, whenever you obtain new educational resources, you must perform validation of assessment tools before students use them. There's no need to wait for your next 5-year cycle validation schedule. Review new materials right away to ensure they are suitable for student use.
Nevertheless, this isn't the only time to conduct this type of validation. Conduct validation of assessment tools also when you:
- Improve your resources
- Add new qualifications to scope
- Evaluate your course with training product updates
- Flag 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
Bear in mind that this validation ensures conformity of all learning resources before use. All RTOs must validate materials for each course unit.
Resources Needed to Start Assessment Tool Validation
To validate your evaluation tools, you will need the complete set of your training materials:
- Mapping Resource: The first document to review. It indicates which assessment tasks meet course unit requirements, assisting in faster validation.
- Learner/Student Workbook: Ensure it is suitable as an assessment resource during validation. Check if instructions are clear and response areas are sufficient. This is a common issue.
- Marking Guide: Also check if guidelines for trainers are sufficient and if clear criteria for each assessment task are provided. Clear criteria are crucial for reliable assessment outcomes.
- Additional Resources: These may include lists, registers, and templates created separately from the workbook and marking guide. Validate these to ensure they match the evaluation task and meet unit requirements.
Validation Panel
Clause 1.11 specifies the requirements for panel members. It states validation can be performed by one or more people. However, RTOs usually require all educators and assessors to participate, sometimes including sector experts.
Collectively, your validation panel must have:
- Vocational Competencies and Current Industry Skills relevant to the unit under validation.
- Updated Knowledge and Skills in Vocational Teaching and Learning.
- Either of the following training and assessment credentials:
- Certificate IV in Training and Assessment TAE40116 or its successor.
Principles Guiding Assessment
- Fairness: Is the assessment process fair and equitable for all candidates?
- Flexibility: Are there multiple ways to demonstrate competence, accommodating different needs and preferences?
- Validity: Is the assessment an accurate tool for evaluating the required skills and knowledge?
- Consistency: Are the assessment results consistent regardless of who conducts the training?
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: Does the evidence adequately demonstrate the required skills and knowledge?
- Authenticity: Does the evidence confirm the originality of the candidate's work?
- Currency: 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
- React suitably to baby signals and cues
- Prepare babies for sleep and help them settle
- Monitor and encourage age-appropriate physical exploration and gross motor skills
Typical Mistakes
Describing the nappy-changing process for babies under 12 months does not fulfill the unit requirement. Unless the unit criteria is meant to assess underpinning knowledge (i.e., knowledge-based evidence), students should be performing the tasks.
Mind the Plurals!
Pay attention to the frequency. In our example, one of the unit requirements of CHCECE032 Nurture babies and toddlers 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 won’t cut it.
All or Nothing Competence
Pay attention to itemized requirements. As mentioned earlier, if students perform only half the tasks listed, it’s non-compliant. Each assessment item must address all specifications, or the student is incompetent, awesome site and the assessment method is not compliant.
Be Specific!
Each evaluation task must have clear and specific standard answers to guide the evaluator’s decision on the student’s competence. Therefore, it’s crucial that your instructions 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 trainers to accurately judge student competence.
Ensuring Audit Compliance
Considering these requirements, you might wonder, “Don’t learning resource developers offer 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 preventative and compliant approach.
By following these recommendations and understanding the assessment principles and rules of evidence, you can ensure that your assessment tools are valid with the standards established by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.