Overview

Registered Training Organisations manage various duties upon registration, like yearly declarations, AVETMISS data submission, and promotional compliance. Among these tasks, validating assessments is particularly challenging. While validation has been reviewed in several articles, let's return to the basics. ASQA (Australian Skills Quality Authority) describes assessment review as a quality review of the evaluation process.

Primarily, validation of assessments is focused on 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, adhere to the training package requirements and are conducted according to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.

The rules specify two forms of validation. The primary type of validation of assessments guarantees adherence to the requirements of the training package within your RTO's scope. The other type ensures that assessments adhere to the principles of assessment and rules of evidence. This suggests that we perform validation pre- and post-assessment. This article will focus on the first type—assessment tool validation.

Overview of Assessment Validation Types

- Assessment Tool Validation: Also known as pre-assessment validation or verification, concerns the initial part of the clause, ensuring compliance with all unit requirements.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Is concerned with the implementation, ensuring Registered Training Organisations conduct assessments in line with the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.

Conducting Assessment Tool Validation

Optimal Timing for Assessment Tool Validation

The aim of assessment tool validation is to make sure that all aspects, performance standards, and performance and knowledge evidence are addressed by your evaluation tools. Therefore, whenever you get new training materials, you must carry out assessment tool validation before students use them. There's no need to wait for your next scheduled validation. Review new resources right away to verify they are fit for student use.

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

- Revise your resources
- Integrate new training products on scope
- Assess your course with training product updates
- Identify 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.

What Training Products Require Validation

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

Resources Required for Assessment Tool Validation

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

- Mapping Tool: The first document to review. It indicates which assessment items meet unit requirements, aiding in faster validation.
- Learner 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 ensure if guidelines for assessors are sufficient and if clear benchmarks for each evaluation item are provided. Clear benchmarks are crucial for reliable evaluation results.
- Additional Resources: These may include evaluation checklists, registers, and forms created separately from the student workbook and marking guide. Validate these to ensure they suit the evaluation task and meet subject requirements.

Panel for Validation

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

Collectively, your validation panel must have:

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

Principles of Assessment

- Equity: Does the assessment process offer equal opportunity and access to everyone?
- Flexibility: Is the assessment adaptable to different needs and preferences of candidates?
- Validity: Is the assessment an accurate tool for evaluating the required skills and knowledge?
- Reliability: Will different assessors make the same decision on skill competence?

Rules of Evidence

- Validity: Is the evidence relevant to the skills, knowledge, and these guys 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?
- Relevance: Does the evidence reflect current skills and knowledge?

Specific Considerations for Assessment Validation

Pay attention to the action words in the unit specifications and ensure they are addressed by the assessment task. For example, in the unit CHCECE032 Baby and Toddler Care, one required performance evidence asks students to:

- Perform diaper changes
- Feed babies with bottles and clean equipment
- Feed babies with solid food
- React suitably to baby signals and cues
- Prepare and settle babies for sleep
- 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 requirement is meant to assess theoretical understanding (i.e., knowledge evidence), students should be carrying out the tasks.

Watch Out for the Plurals!

Pay attention to the frequency. In our example, one of the unit requirements of CHCECE032 Nurture babies and toddlers calls for 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 enumerated tasks. As mentioned earlier, if students do not complete all 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 non-compliant.

Provide Specific Details

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

Avoid Double-Barrelled Questions

Steering clear of double-barrelled questions makes it simpler for students to respond and for assessors to accurately assess student competence.

Assurance During Audits

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 impacts your compliance record, so it's better to take a safe and compliant approach.

By following these recommendations and understanding the principles of assessment and rules of evidence, you can ensure that your evaluation tools are compliant with the regulations mandated by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.