Intro to Assessment Validation
Training Organisations handle numerous tasks after becoming registered, like yearly reports, AVETMISS reporting, and promotional compliance. Among these tasks, assessment validation often stands out. While we've discussed validation in multiple articles, let's revisit the fundamental principles. ASQA describes assessment validation as granular review of the evaluation process.
Essentially, assessment validation 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 SRTOs 2015, 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 rules specify two types of validation. The primary type of validation of assessments checks conformity with the training package assessment requirements within your RTO's scope. The second validation ensures that assessments adhere to the Principles of Assessment and rules of evidence. This implies that we perform validation both before and after the assessment. This article will concentrate on the primary type—assessment tool validation.
Two Types of Assessment Validation
- Assessment Tool Validation: Commonly called pre-assessment validation or verification, involves the first part of the clause, focusing on ensuring all unit requirements are met.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Deals with the conduct, guaranteeing that RTO assessments adhere to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.
Conducting Validation of Assessment Tools
Optimal Timing for Assessment Tool Validation
The goal of validating assessment tools is to make sure that all aspects, performance criteria, and performance and knowledge evidence are addressed by your assessment tools. Therefore, whenever you obtain new training materials, you must conduct assessment tool validation before students use them. There's no need to wait for your next 5-year cycle validation schedule. Validate new resources immediately to confirm they are suitable for student use.
Nevertheless, this isn't the only time to conduct this type of validation. Perform validation of assessment tools also when you:
- Revise your resources
- Introduce new training products on scope
- Examine your course with training product updates
- Detect 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 Needing Validation
Bear in mind that this validation ensures compliance of all learning resources before student use. All RTOs must validate resources for each unit.
Resources Required for Assessment Tool Validation
To start assessment tool validation, you will need the complete set of your training materials:
- Mapping Document: The first document to review. It shows which assessment tasks meet course unit requirements, helping with faster validation.
- Student Workbook: Ensure it is suitable as an assessment 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 standards for each assessment item are provided. Clear criteria are crucial for reliable assessment outcomes.
- Supplementary Resources: These may include evaluation checklists, registers, and forms designed separately from the workbook and evaluation guide. Validate these to ensure they fit the assessment task and address course unit requirements.
Assessment Validation Panel
Regulation 1.11 specifies the requirements for validation 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 sector experts.
Collectively, your panel must have:
- Workplace Competencies and Current Professional Skills relevant to the validated unit.
- Current Knowledge and Skills in Vocational Education.
- Either of the following credentials 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?
- Adaptability: 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?
- Dependability: Will the assessment produce consistent results every time?
Guidelines for Evidence
- Relevance: 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: Does the evidence confirm the originality of the candidate's work?
- Currency: Are the assessment tools based on current units of competency and up-to-date industry practices?
Specific Considerations for Assessment Validation
Pay attention to the tasks in the unit criteria and ensure they are addressed by the evaluation task. For example, in the unit CHCECE032 Caring for Babies and Toddlers, one performance criteria asks students to:
- Change nappies
- Feed babies with bottles and clean equipment
- Feed babies with solid food
- Respond appropriately to baby signs 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 assess underpinning knowledge (i.e., knowledge 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 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.
Full Competence or Not Competent
Pay attention to enumerated tasks. As mentioned earlier, if students do not complete all the tasks listed, it’s non-compliant. Each evaluation task must address all criteria, or the student is incompetent, and the evaluation tool is out of compliance.
Can You Be More Specific?
Each evaluation task must have clear and specific reference answers to guide the evaluator’s decision on the student’s competence. Therefore, it’s crucial that your instructions do not baffle students or evaluators.
Double-Barrelled Questions: Avoid Them
Avoiding 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, “Do resource developers offer guarantees for audits?” 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 proactive and compliant approach.
By following these guidelines and understanding the principles of assessment and rules of evidence, you can ensure check it out that your assessment methods are valid with the requirements set by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.