{Assessment Validation regarding Vocational Training Establishments within the Australian landscape —

{Assessment Validation regarding Vocational Training Establishments within the Australian landscape —

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Introduction

Training Organisations handle many responsibilities upon registration, such as yearly reports, AVETMISS compliance, and promotional compliance. Among these tasks, validation of assessments often stands out. While validation has been reviewed in multiple articles, let's revisit the fundamental principles. ASQA identifies assessment validation as a quality review of the assessment process.

Fundamentally, assessment validation is concerned with 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 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 regulations specify two types of validation. The primary type of assessment validation guarantees adherence to the requirements of the training package within your RTO's scope. The second validation ensures that assessments follow the Principles of Assessment and rules of evidence. This implies that validation is performed pre- and post-assessment. This article will focus on the first type—assessment tool validation.

Exploring the Types of Assessment Validation

- Assessment Tool Validation: Often termed pre-assessment validation or verification, relates to the initial part of the rule, ensuring meeting all unit requirements.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Is concerned with the execution, verifying that RTOs conduct assessments according to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.

Methods for Conducting Assessment Tool Validation

Best Time for Conducting Assessment

The purpose of validating assessment tools is to verify that all aspects, performance criteria, and performance and knowledge evidence are covered by your assessment tools. Therefore, whenever you acquire new learning resources, you must carry out assessment tool validation before students use them. There's no need to wait for your next five-year validation cycle. Validate new materials immediately to confirm they are appropriate for students.

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

- Amend your resources
- Expand with new training products on scope
- Examine your course with 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.

Identifying Training Products for Validation

Bear in mind that this validation ensures conformity of all learning resources before being used. All RTOs must validate materials 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 identifies which assessment tasks meet course unit requirements, helping with faster validation.
- Learner Workbook: Ensure it is suitable as an evaluation tool during validation. Check if directions are clear and response areas are sufficient. This is a common issue.
- Marking Guide: Also ensure 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, evaluation registers, and forms designed separately from the student workbook and evaluation guide. Validate these to ensure they fit the assessment activity and meet course unit requirements.

Assessment Validation Panel

Standard 1.11 specifies the requirements for members 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 panel must have:

- Vocational Competencies and Current Industry Skills relevant to the unit under validation.
- Updated Knowledge and Skills in Vocational Teaching and Learning.
- Either of the following credentials for training and assessment:
- TAE40116 Training and Assessment Certificate IV or its successor.

Assessment Principles

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

Evidence Rules

- Validity: Does the evidence demonstrate that the candidate has the skills, knowledge, and attributes described in the unit of competency and associated assessment requirements?
- Completeness: 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?
- Currency: Does the evidence reflect current skills and knowledge?

Important Factors in Assessment Validation

Pay attention to the verbs in the unit specifications and ensure they are addressed by the assessment task. For example, in the unit CHCECE032 Caring for Babies and Toddlers, one performance evidence requirement asks students to:

- Change diapers
- Prepare bottles, bottle feed babies and clean equipment
- Feed babies with solid food
- React suitably to baby signals and cues
- Prepare and settle babies for sleep
- Observe and promote suitable physical activities and motor skills for babies

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 requirement is meant to assess underpinning knowledge (i.e., knowledge evidence), students should be doing the tasks.

Be click here Careful with Plurals!

Pay attention to the frequency. 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 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 not compliant. Each assessment task must meet all specifications, or the student is not yet competent, and the evaluation tool is not compliant.

Provide Specific Details

Each assessment task must have clear and specific benchmark answers to guide the evaluator’s decision on the student’s competence. Therefore, it’s crucial that your directions do not mislead students or evaluators.

Steer Clear of Double-Barrelled Questions

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

Ensuring Audit Compliance

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 principles of assessment and Rules of Evidence, you can ensure that your assessment tools are reliable with the standards established by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.