Overview

Training Organisations handle multiple duties following registration, which include yearly declarations, AVETMISS data submission, and advertising compliance. Among these tasks, validation of assessments is particularly challenging. While validation has been reviewed in several posts, let's return to the basics. ASQA identifies assessment review as quality assurance of the assessment process.

Fundamentally, assessment validation is dedicated to 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 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 mandate two forms of validation. The first type of assessment review checks conformity with the training package assessment requirements within your organisation's scope. The second validation ensures that assessments are conducted according to the principles of assessment and rules of evidence. This suggests that validation is performed pre- and post-assessment. This article will concentrate on the first type—validation of assessment tools.

What are the Two Types of Assessment Validation?

- Assessment Tool Validation: Also known as pre-assessment validation or verification, is concerned with the initial part of the regulation, focusing on compliance with all unit requirements.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Involves the conduct, ensuring RTOs conduct assessments in line with the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.

Process of Conducting Assessment Tool Validation

Scheduling Assessment Tool Validation

The aim of assessment tool validation is to ensure that all elements, performance standards, and evidence of performance and knowledge are covered by your assessment methods. Therefore, whenever you obtain new educational resources, you must carry out assessment tool validation before students use them. There's no need to wait for your next scheduled validation. Review new tools as soon as possible to confirm they are suitable 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
- Examine your course with training product updates
- Spot 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.

Identifying Training Products for Validation

Keep in mind that this validation ensures conformity of all training materials before student use. All RTOs must validate training products for each course unit.

Necessary Resources for Assessment Tool Validation

To start assessment tool validation, you will need the complete set of your educational resources:

- Mapping Document: The first document to review. It indicates which assessment tasks meet unit requirements, assisting in faster validation.
- Student Workbook: Ensure it is suitable as an evaluation tool during validation. Check if guidelines are clear and input fields are sufficient. This is a common issue.
- Marking Guide: Also verify if guidelines for assessors are sufficient and if clear standards for each assessment task are provided. Clear benchmarks are crucial for reliable assessment results.
- Other Related Resources: These may include checklists, evaluation registers, and templates designed separately from the student workbook and evaluation guide. Validate these to ensure they fit the assessment activity and meet course unit requirements.

Panel for Validation

Standard 1.11 specifies the requirements for members this site of the validation panel. It states validation can be performed by one or more people. However, RTOs usually mandate all educators and assessors to participate, sometimes including sector experts.

Collectively, your assessment validation 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 training and assessment credentials:
- TAE40116 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment or its successor.

Principles Guiding Assessment

- Fairness: Is equal opportunity and access provided to everyone in the assessment process?
- Flexibility: Is the assessment adaptable to different needs and preferences of candidates?
- Accuracy: Is the assessment relevant to the skills and knowledge it aims to evaluate?
- Reliability: Will the assessment produce consistent results every time?

Rules of Evidence

- Relevance: Is the evidence appropriate to the requirements of the unit of competency?
- Sufficiency: Is the evidence sufficient to cover all the required skills and knowledge?
- Genuineness: Is the evidence genuine and truly representative of the candidate's abilities?
- Timeliness: 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 specifications and ensure they are addressed by the evaluation task. For example, in the unit CHCECE032 Baby and Toddler Care, one performance criteria asks students to:

- Perform diaper changes
- Prepare and feed bottles, clean feeding equipment
- Prepare and give solid food to babies
- Respond to baby signs and cues properly
- Prepare and settle babies for sleep
- Monitor and encourage age-appropriate physical exploration and gross motor skills

Frequent Errors

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 evaluate underlying knowledge (i.e., knowledge-based evidence), students should be performing the tasks.

Be Careful with Plurals!

Pay attention to the quantities. In our example, one of the unit requirements of CHCECE032 Baby and Toddler Care 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 lists. As mentioned earlier, if students perform only half the tasks listed, it’s out of compliance. Each assessment item must meet all requirements, or the student is incompetent, and the assessment method is non-compliant.

Can You Be More Specific?

Each assessment item must have clear and specific benchmark answers to guide the assessor’s evaluation on the student’s competence. Therefore, it’s crucial that your guidelines do not baffle students or assessors.

Steer Clear of Double-Barrelled Questions

Not using double-barrelled questions makes it easier for students to respond and for evaluators to accurately assess student competence.

Ensuring Audit Compliance

Considering these requirements, you might wonder, “Don't resource developers provide 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 safe and compliant approach.

By following these instructions and understanding the assessment principles and Rules of Evidence, you can ensure that your assessment methods are reliable with the standards established by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.