{Guide to Assessment Validation for VET Providers in the Australian landscape :

{Guide to Assessment Validation for VET Providers in the Australian landscape :

Blog Article

Intro to Assessment Validation

Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) are responsible for various tasks upon registration, which include annual declarations, AVETMISS reporting, and marketing compliance. Among these tasks, assessment validation often stands out. While validation has been reviewed in multiple posts, let's return to the basics. ASQA (Australian Skills Quality Authority) defines validation of assessments as quality assurance of the assessment procedure.

Basically, assessment validation is designed to identify 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, 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 regulations mandate two forms of validation. The initial type of assessment review guarantees adherence to the requirements of the training package within your RTO's scope. The subsequent validation guarantees that assessments are conducted according 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 first type—assessment tool validation.

What are the Two Types of Assessment Validation?

- Assessment Tool Validation: Sometimes called pre-assessment validation or verification, involves the primary part of the rule, aimed at compliance with all unit requirements.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Pertains to the execution, ensuring Registered Training Organisations conduct assessments in line with the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.

Process of Conducting Assessment Tool Validation

Scheduling Assessment Tool Validation

The purpose of assessment tool validation is to verify that all elements, performance standards, and performance and knowledge evidence are addressed by your evaluation tools. Therefore, whenever you get new training materials, you must perform validation of assessment tools prior to student use. There's no need to wait for your next five-year validation cycle. Check new materials right away to ensure they are fit for student use.

Nevertheless, this isn't the only time to conduct this type of validation. Conduct assessment tool validation also when you:

- Improve your resources
- Incorporate new training products on scope
- Compare your course with training product updates
- Identify potential risks in your learning resources 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 ensures conformity of all learning resources before use. All RTOs must validate resources for each subject unit.

Resources Needed to Start Assessment Tool Validation

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

- Mapping Resource: The first document to review. It indicates which assessment tasks meet course unit requirements, assisting in faster validation.
- Student Workbook: Ensure it is suitable as an assessment resource during validation. Check if instructions are clear and answer fields are sufficient. This is a common issue.
- Assessor Guide: Also ensure if guidelines for trainers are sufficient and if clear benchmarks for each assessment item are provided. Clear standards are crucial for reliable assessment results.
- Supplementary Resources: These may include evaluation checklists, evaluation registers, and forms designed separately from the student workbook and marking guide. Validate these to ensure they match the assessment activity and meet course unit requirements.

Panel for Validation

Clause 1.11 specifies the requirements for validation panel members. It states assessment validation can be performed by one or more people. However, RTOs usually require all trainers and assessors to participate, sometimes including sector experts.

Collectively, your assessment validation panel must have:

- Vocational Skills and Current Professional Skills relevant to the validated unit.
- Current Knowledge and Skills in Vocational Training.
- Either of the following certifications for training and assessment:
- TAE40116 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment or its successor.

Principles Guiding Assessment

- Fairness: Is the assessment process fair and equitable for all candidates?
- Flexibility: Does the assessment offer various options to demonstrate competence based on different needs and preferences?
- Validity: Is the assessment an accurate tool for evaluating the required skills and knowledge?
- Reliability: Are the assessment results consistent regardless of who conducts the training?

Rules of Evidence

- Appropriateness: Does the evidence demonstrate that the candidate has the skills, knowledge, and attributes described in the unit of competency and associated assessment requirements?
- Sufficiency: Is there enough evidence to ensure that the learner has the skills and knowledge required?
- Genuineness: Does the assessment tool verify that the work is the candidate’s own?
- Timeliness: Does the evidence reflect current skills and knowledge?

Important Factors in Assessment Validation

Pay attention to the tasks in the unit specifications and ensure they are addressed by the evaluation task. For example, in the unit CHCECE032 Nurture babies and toddlers, one performance evidence requirement asks students to:

- Perform diaper changes
- Prepare and feed bottles, clean feeding equipment
- Prepare solid food and feed babies
- Respond to baby signs and cues properly
- Get babies ready for sleep and settle them
- Supervise and support age-appropriate physical activities and motor development

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 criteria is meant to evaluate underlying knowledge (i.e., knowledge evidence), students should be doing the tasks.

Be Careful with Plurals!

Pay attention to the quantities. 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 do not complete all the tasks listed, it’s not compliant. Each assessment item must cover all specifications, here or the student is incompetent, and the assessment method is out of compliance.

Can You Be More Specific?

Each evaluation task must have clear and specific reference answers to guide the assessor’s evaluation on the student’s competence. Therefore, it’s crucial that your guidelines do not confuse students or trainers.

Double-Barrelled Questions: Avoid Them

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

Audit Guarantees

Considering these requirements, you might wonder, “Do resource developers offer guarantees for audits?” 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 safe and compliant approach.

By following these instructions and understanding the assessment principles and rules of evidence, you can ensure that your evaluation tools are reliable with the standards established by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.