{Process of Assessment Validation for Education Providers across Australia's training sector A Full Guide

{Process of Assessment Validation for Education Providers across Australia's training sector A Full Guide

Blog Article

Intro to Assessment Validation

Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) are responsible for many duties upon registration, including annual declarations, AVETMISS data submission, and advertising compliance. Among these tasks, validation of assessments is particularly challenging. While we've discussed validation in several discussions, a review of the basics is necessary. ASQA (Australian Skills Quality Authority) defines validation of assessments as quality assurance of the evaluation process.

Primarily, validation of assessments is aimed at identifying 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 Standards for RTOs 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 require two types of validation. The initial type of assessment validation ensures compliance with the training package assessment requirements within your organisation's scope. The subsequent validation verifies 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 focus on the primary type—validation of assessment tools.

Types of Assessment Validation

- Assessment Tool Validation: Referred to as pre-assessment validation or verification, is concerned with the first part of the clause, focusing on meeting all unit requirements.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Concerns the execution, ensuring that RTO assessments align with the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.

Methods for Conducting Assessment Tool Validation

Best Time for Conducting Assessment

The aim of assessment tool validation is to make sure that all components, performance criteria, and evidence of performance and knowledge are included by your assessment tools. Therefore, whenever you get new learning resources, you must carry out assessment tool validation prior to student use. There's no need to wait for your next scheduled validation. Check new resources as soon as possible to verify they are appropriate for students.

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

- Amend your resources
- Add new training products on scope
- Audit your course with training product updates
- Recognise 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.

Identifying Training Products for Validation

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

Resources Needed to Start Assessment Tool Validation

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

- Mapping Document: The first document to review. It identifies which assessment tasks meet subject requirements, helping with faster click here validation.
- Student Workbook: Ensure it is suitable as an assessment resource during validation. Check if guidelines are clear and answer fields are sufficient. This is a common issue.
- Assessor Guide/Marking Guide: Also verify if directions for assessors are sufficient and if clear criteria for each assessment task are provided. Clear criteria are crucial for reliable evaluation results.
- Supplementary Resources: These may include checklists, logs, and evaluation templates created separately from the student workbook and assessor guide. Validate these to ensure they fit the assessment task and meet subject requirements.

Panel for Validation

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

Collectively, your panel must have:

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

Principles of Assessment

- Fairness: Is equal opportunity and access provided to everyone in the assessment process?
- Versatility: Is the assessment adaptable to different needs and preferences of candidates?
- Relevance: Does the assessment evaluate what it is intended to evaluate?
- Consistency: Are the assessment results consistent regardless of who conducts the training?

Evidence Rules

- Relevance: Is the evidence appropriate to the requirements of the unit of competency?
- Completeness: Does the evidence adequately demonstrate the required skills and knowledge?
- Originality: Is the evidence genuine and truly representative of the candidate's abilities?
- Timeliness: Does the evidence reflect current skills and knowledge?

Key Considerations for Assessment Validation

Pay attention to the verbs in the unit requirements and ensure they are addressed by the assessment item. For example, in the unit CHCECE032 Nurture babies and toddlers, one performance criteria asks students to:

- Change nappies
- Prepare and feed bottles, clean feeding equipment
- Prepare solid food and feed babies
- React suitably to baby signals and cues
- Prepare and settle babies for sleep
- Supervise and support age-appropriate physical activities and motor development

Common Pitfalls

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 assess theoretical understanding (i.e., knowledge-based evidence), students should be carrying out 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 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 is not sufficient.

All or Not Competent

Pay attention to itemized requirements. As mentioned earlier, if students perform only half the tasks listed, it’s out of compliance. Each assessment item must address all requirements, or the student is not competent, and the assessment method is not compliant.

Be 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 instructions do not confuse students or assessors.

Avoid Double-Barrelled Questions

Not using double-barrelled questions makes it more straightforward for students to respond and for evaluators to accurately judge student competence.

Audit Guarantees

Considering these requirements, you might wonder, “Don't resource developers provide audit guarantees?” However, with these guarantees, you must wait until an audit to address noncompliance. This influences your compliance status, so it's better to take a preventative and compliant approach.

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