{Tools for Assessment Validation pertaining to Vocational Education and Training in Australia —

{Tools for Assessment Validation pertaining to Vocational Education and Training in Australia —

Blog Article

Intro to Validating Assessments for RTOs

RTOs have multiple duties post-registration, such as annual declarations, AVETMISS reporting, and marketing compliance. Among these tasks, validation of assessments frequently stands out. While validation has been covered in many posts, let's return to the basics. ASQA (Australian Skills Quality Authority) identifies validation of assessments as quality assurance of the evaluation process.

Fundamentally, validation of assessments 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 Standards for RTOs 2015, 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 standards require two types of validation. The primary type of assessment validation guarantees adherence to the requirements of the training package within your RTO's scope. The subsequent validation verifies that assessments follow the principles of assessment and Rules of Evidence. This implies that validation is carried out in both pre- and post-assessment stages. This article will discuss the initial type—validation of assessment tools.

Two Types of Assessment Validation

- Assessment Tool Validation: Sometimes called pre-assessment validation or verification, concerns the primary part of the rule, ensuring meeting all unit requirements.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Is related to the conduct, verifying that RTOs conduct assessments according to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.

Steps to Conduct Assessment Tool Validation

Best Time for Conducting Assessment

The goal of validating assessment tools is to make sure that all elements, criteria for performance, and performance and knowledge evidence are addressed by your evaluation tools. Therefore, whenever you get new learning resources, you must carry out assessment tool validation before allowing students to use them. There's no need to wait for your next five-year validation cycle. Validate new tools immediately to ensure they are fit for student use.

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

- Upgrade your resources
- Add new training products on scope
- Assess your course with training product updates
- Note 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.

Which Training Products Should You Validate?

Remember that this validation guarantees adherence of all learning resources before being used. All RTOs must validate resources 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 subject requirements, helping with faster validation.
- Learner/Student Workbook: Ensure it is suitable as an assessment resource during validation. Check if directions are clear and answer fields are sufficient. This is a common issue.
- Marking Guide: Also check if instructions for evaluators are sufficient and if clear criteria for each evaluation item are provided. Clear benchmarks are crucial for reliable evaluation results.
- Additional Resources: These may include evaluation checklists, registers, and templates created separately from the student workbook and marking guide. Validate these to ensure they suit the evaluation task and meet subject requirements.

Validation Panel

Clause 1.11 specifies the requirements for members of the validation panel. It states 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 panel must have:

- Workplace Competencies and Current Industry Skills relevant to the unit under validation.
- Current Expertise in Vocational Training.
- Either of the following credentials for training and assessment:
- TAE40116 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment or its successor.

Principles Guiding Assessment

- Fairness: Does the assessment process offer equal opportunity and access to everyone?
- 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?
- Consistency: Will the assessment produce consistent results every time?

Rules of Evidence

- check here Relevance: Is the evidence relevant to the skills, knowledge, and attributes described in the unit of competency?
- Sufficiency: Does the evidence adequately demonstrate the required skills and knowledge?
- Authenticity: Does the evidence confirm the originality of the candidate's work?
- Relevance: Are the assessment tools based on current units of competency and up-to-date industry practices?

Key Considerations for Assessment Validation

Pay attention to the action words in the unit requirements and ensure they are addressed by the evaluation task. For example, in the unit CHCECE032 Caring for Babies and Toddlers, one performance evidence requirement asks students to:

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

Common Pitfalls

Describing the nappy-changing process for babies under 12 months does not fulfill the unit requirement. Unless the unit criteria is meant to evaluate underlying knowledge (i.e., knowledge evidence), students should be doing the tasks.

Mind the Plurals!

Pay attention to the quantities. 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 does not fulfill the requirement.

All or Nothing Competence

Pay attention to lists. As mentioned earlier, if students perform only half the tasks listed, it’s out of compliance. Each assessment task must address all criteria, or the student is incompetent, and the assessment tool is not compliant.

Be Specific!

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 assessors.

Double-Barrelled Questions: Avoid Them

Avoiding double-barrelled questions makes it more straightforward for students to respond and for evaluators to accurately evaluate student competence.

Audit Guarantees

Considering these requirements, you might wonder, “Do resource developers offer guarantees for audits?” However, with these guarantees, you must wait for an audit before they assist with noncompliance. This impacts your compliance record, so it's better to take a safe and compliant approach.

By following these recommendations and understanding the assessment principles and evidence rules, you can ensure that your assessment methods are compliant with the standards established by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.