{Assessment Validation Process regarding Education Providers throughout the Australian context —

Overview

Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) manage multiple obligations after becoming registered, such as annual declarations, AVETMISS reporting, and advertising compliance. Among these tasks, validation of assessments frequently stands out. While validation has been covered in multiple posts, a review of the basics is necessary. ASQA (Australian Skills Quality Authority) defines validation of assessments as granular review of the assessment process.

In essence, assessment review is focused on 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 SRTOs 2015 regulations, 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 types of validation. The first type of assessment validation guarantees adherence to the requirements of the training package within your organisation's scope. The second validation ensures that assessments adhere to the principles of assessment and rules of evidence. This suggests that we perform validation both before and after the assessment. This article will discuss the primary type—assessment tool validation.

Two Types of Assessment Validation

- Assessment Tool Validation: Sometimes called pre-assessment validation or verification, is related to the primary part of the clause, ensuring compliance with all unit requirements.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Relates to the conduct, confirming that RTO assessments follow the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.

Conducting Validation of Assessment Tools

When Should Assessment Tool Validation Be Conducted?

The purpose of assessment tool validation is to make sure that all elements, performance standards, and performance and knowledge evidence are covered by your evaluation tools. Therefore, whenever you obtain new learning resources, you must conduct validation of assessment tools before students use them. There's no need to wait for your next 5-year cycle validation schedule. Review new resources right away to confirm they are fit for student use.

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

- Update your resources
- Introduce new training products on scope
- Check your course against training product updates
- Recognise 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 Require Validation

Remember that this validation ensures conformity of all training materials before being used. All RTOs must validate materials for each course unit.

Necessary Resources for Assessment Tool Validation

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

- Mapping Resource: The first document to review. It indicates which assessment items meet unit requirements, helping with faster validation.
- Learner Workbook: Ensure it is suitable as an evaluation tool during validation. Check if instructions are clear and response areas are sufficient. This is a common issue.
- Assessor Guide: Also check if directions for assessors are sufficient and if clear standards for each evaluation item are provided. Clear criteria are crucial for reliable assessment results.
- Additional Resources: These may include checklists, registers, and evaluation templates created separately from the learner 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 evaluators to participate, sometimes including sector experts.

Collectively, your panel must have:

- Vocational Competencies and Up-to-date Industry Skills relevant to the unit being validated.
- Current Expertise in Vocational Teaching and Learning.
- Either of the following credentials for training and assessment:
- TAE40116 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment or its successor.

Assessment Principles

- Fairness: Is the assessment process fair and equitable for all candidates?
- Adaptability: Are there multiple ways to demonstrate competence, accommodating different needs and preferences?
- Accuracy: Is the assessment an accurate tool for evaluating the required skills and knowledge?
- Reliability: Will different assessors make the same decision on skill competence?

Evidence Rules

- Appropriateness: Does the evidence demonstrate that the candidate has the skills, knowledge, and attributes described in the unit of competency and associated assessment requirements?
- Adequacy: Is the evidence sufficient to cover all the required skills and knowledge?
- Genuineness: Does the assessment tool verify that the work is the candidate’s own?
- Relevance: Is the evidence up-to-date with current industry practices?

Key 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 Nurture babies and toddlers, one required performance evidence asks students to:

- Change diapers
- Feed babies with bottles and clean equipment
- Feed babies with solid food
- Respond to baby signs and cues properly
- Prepare and settle babies for sleep
- Observe and promote suitable physical activities and motor skills for babies

Frequent Errors

Asking students to describe the nappy-changing process for babies under 12 months old check here does not meet the unit requirement. Unless the unit criteria is meant to evaluate underlying knowledge (i.e., knowledge-based evidence), students should be doing the tasks.

Be Careful with 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 Not Competent

Pay attention to itemized requirements. As mentioned earlier, if students only complete half the tasks, it’s out of compliance. Each evaluation task must meet all criteria, or the student is not competent, and the assessment method is not compliant.

Be 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 confuse students or assessors.

Avoid Double-Barrelled Questions

Steering clear of double-barrelled questions makes it more straightforward for students to respond and for assessors to accurately evaluate student competence.

Assurance During Audits

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 assist with noncompliance. This influences your compliance status, so it's better to take a proactive and compliant approach.

By following these guidelines and understanding the principles of assessment and rules of evidence, you can ensure that your assessment methods are reliable with the requirements set by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.