Intro to RTO Assessment Validation

RTOs have multiple responsibilities post-registration, including annual declarations, AVETMISS reporting, and promotional compliance. Among these tasks, assessment validation is particularly challenging. While validation has been reviewed in several publications, let's revisit the fundamental principles. The Australian Skills Quality Authority describes assessment review as granular review of the assessment procedure.

In essence, assessment review is about identifying which parts of an RTO’s evaluation 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 SRTOs 2015 regulations, 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 standards require two types of validation. The primary type of assessment validation ensures compliance with the training package assessment requirements within your organisation's scope. The second validation guarantees that assessments follow the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence. This suggests that validation is performed pre- and post-assessment. This article will discuss the initial type—validation of assessment tools.

What are the Two Types of Assessment Validation?

- Assessment Tool Validation: Sometimes called pre-assessment validation or verification, pertains to the first part of the rule, ensuring meeting all unit requirements.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Deals with the conduct, ensuring RTOs 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 validating assessment tools is to make sure that all aspects, performance standards, and evidence of performance and knowledge are addressed by your assessment methods. Therefore, whenever you acquire new educational resources, you must conduct assessment tool validation before allowing students to use them. There's no need to wait for your next scheduled validation. Validate new resources immediately to ensure they are appropriate for students.

Nevertheless, this isn't the only occasion to perform this type of validation. Do assessment tool validation also when you:

- Enhance your resources
- Add new training products on scope
- Evaluate 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.

What Training Products Require Validation

Keep in mind that this validation ensures conformity of all educational resources before being used. 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 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 input fields are sufficient. This is a common issue.
- Assessor Guide: Also verify if guidelines for assessors are sufficient and if clear criteria for each assessment item are provided. Clear benchmarks are crucial for reliable evaluation results.
- Supplementary Resources: These may include evaluation checklists, registers, and evaluation templates created separately from the learner workbook and assessor guide. Validate these to ensure they fit the assessment activity and address course unit requirements.

Assessment Validation Panel

Regulation 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 educators and assessors to participate, sometimes including field experts.

Collectively, your validation panel must have:

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

Principles Guiding Assessment

- Equity: Is equal opportunity and access provided to everyone in the assessment process?
- Adaptability: Does the assessment offer various options to demonstrate competence based on different needs and preferences?
- Validity: Is the assessment relevant to the skills and knowledge it aims to evaluate?
- Reliability: Will different assessors make the same decision on skill competence?

Guidelines for Evidence

- Validity: Is the evidence appropriate to the requirements of the unit of competency?
- Adequacy: Is there enough evidence to ensure that the learner has the skills and knowledge required?
- Genuineness: Does the evidence confirm the originality of the candidate's work?
- Currency: 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 assessment task. 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 and give solid food to babies
- Respond appropriately to baby signs and cues
- Prepare babies for sleep and help them settle
- Monitor and encourage age-appropriate physical exploration and gross motor skills

Common Pitfalls

Having students describe the nappy-changing process for babies under 12 months old doesn’t directly meet the unit requirement. Unless the unit specification is meant to assess theoretical understanding (i.e., knowledge-based evidence), students should be performing the tasks.

Watch Out for the Plurals!

Pay attention to the numbers. In our example, one of the unit requirements of CHCECE032 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 Not Competent

Pay attention to itemized requirements. As mentioned earlier, if students perform only half the tasks listed, it’s not compliant. Each assessment item must meet all criteria, 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 directions do not mislead students or evaluators.

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, “Do resource developers offer guarantees for audits?” However, with these guarantees, you must wait until an audit to address noncompliance. This affects your compliance history, so it's better to take a safe and compliant approach.

By following these recommendations and understanding the Principles of Assessment and evidence rules, you can ensure that your assessment tools are reliable with the requirements set by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.