{Assessment Validation concerning Educational Institutions in the Australian landscape :

Overview of Assessment Validation

Registered Training Organisations handle multiple obligations post-registration, like annual statements, AVETMISS compliance, and marketing adherence. Among these tasks, validation of assessments is notably challenging. While validation has been covered in several publications, let's return to the basics. ASQA describes assessment review as a quality review of the evaluation process.

Principally, assessment validation is dedicated to identifying 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 SRTOs 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 rules require two forms of validation. The initial type of assessment review guarantees adherence to the training package assessment requirements within your organisation's scope. The second validation verifies that assessments follow the principles of assessment and Rules of Evidence. This suggests that validation is performed in both pre- and post-assessment stages. This article will concentrate on the initial type—assessment tool validation.

What are the Two Types of Assessment Validation?

- Assessment Tool Validation: Commonly called pre-assessment validation or verification, relates to the first part of the regulation, aimed at meeting all unit requirements.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Relates to the conduct, verifying that RTOs conduct assessments according to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.

Conducting Assessment Tool Validation

Timing for Assessment Tool Validation

The aim of validating assessment tools is to make sure that all elements, performance criteria, and evidence of performance and knowledge are included by your assessment methods. Therefore, whenever you obtain new learning resources, you must perform assessment tool validation before students use them. There's no need to wait for your next five-year validation cycle. Review new resources as soon as possible to verify they are suitable for student use.

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

- Upgrade your resources
- Expand with new training products on scope
- Check your course against training product updates
- Recognise 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 Need Validation?

Note that this validation ensures conformity of all training materials before student use. All RTOs must validate resources for each unit.

Necessary Resources for Assessment Tool Validation

To validate your assessment tools, you will need the complete set of your training materials:

- Mapping Document: The first document to review. It indicates which assessment tasks meet unit requirements, helping with faster validation.
- Learner Workbook: Ensure it is suitable as an evaluation tool during validation. Check if guidelines are clear and response areas are sufficient. This is a common issue.
- Assessor Guide: Also ensure if guidelines for assessors are sufficient and if clear criteria for each evaluation item are provided. Clear benchmarks are crucial for reliable assessment results.
- Supplementary Resources: These may include evaluation checklists, logs, and evaluation templates developed separately from the student workbook and assessor guide. Validate these to ensure they match the assessment task and address 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 educators and assessors to participate, sometimes including field experts.

Collectively, your assessment validation panel must have:

- Vocational Competencies and Up-to-date Industry Skills relevant to the validated unit.
- Current Expertise in Vocational Teaching get more info and Learning.
- Either of the following certifications for training and assessment:
- Certificate IV in Training and Assessment TAE40116 or its successor.

Principles Guiding Assessment

- Impartiality: Is the assessment process fair and equitable for all candidates?
- Adaptability: Is the assessment adaptable to different needs and preferences of candidates?
- 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?

Rules of Evidence

- Relevance: Is the evidence relevant to the skills, knowledge, and attributes described in the unit of competency?
- Adequacy: Does the evidence adequately demonstrate the required skills and knowledge?
- Authenticity: Does the assessment tool verify that the work is the candidate’s own?
- Timeliness: Are the assessment tools based on current units of competency and up-to-date industry practices?

Important Factors in Assessment Validation

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

- Change diapers
- Feed babies with bottles and clean equipment
- Prepare and give solid food to babies
- React suitably to baby signals and cues
- Get babies ready for sleep and settle them
- Monitor and encourage age-appropriate physical exploration and gross motor skills

Common Pitfalls

Describing the nappy-changing process for babies under 12 months does not fulfill the unit requirement. Unless the unit requirement 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 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 does not fulfill the requirement.

All or Not Competent

Pay attention to itemized requirements. As mentioned earlier, if students do not complete all the tasks listed, it’s out of compliance. Each evaluation task must address all criteria, or the student is not yet competent, and the assessment method is non-compliant.

Provide Specific Details

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

Steer Clear of Double-Barrelled Questions

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

Assurance During Audits

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

By following these guidelines and understanding the Principles of Assessment and rules of evidence, you can ensure that your assessment methods are valid with the standards established by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.