{Validation of Assessment pertaining to Vocational Education Centres in the Australian context An Authoritative Guide

{Validation of Assessment pertaining to Vocational Education Centres in the Australian context An Authoritative Guide

Blog Article

Assessment Validation Overview

RTOs manage many responsibilities after becoming registered, such as annual declarations, AVETMISS reporting, and promotional compliance. Among these tasks, validating assessments is notably challenging. While validation has been reviewed in multiple posts, a review of the basics is necessary. ASQA defines validation of assessments as quality assurance of the assessment procedure.

Primarily, assessment validation is dedicated to 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, 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 forms of validation. The initial type of validation of assessments guarantees adherence to the training package assessment requirements within your RTO's scope. The other type verifies that assessments adhere to the principles of assessment and rules of evidence. This indicates that we perform validation both before and after the assessment. This article will focus on the initial type—validation of assessment tools.

Types of Assessment Validation

- Assessment Tool Validation: Often termed pre-assessment validation or verification, pertains to the first part of the regulation, focusing on ensuring all unit requirements are met.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Pertains to the conduct, making sure RTOs conduct assessments according to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.

Steps to Conduct Assessment Tool Validation

Scheduling Assessment Tool Validation

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

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

- Improve your resources
- Add new training products on scope
- Review your course against training product updates
- Identify 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.

Training Products Requiring Validation

Keep in mind that this validation ensures conformity of all educational resources before use. All RTOs must validate resources for each course unit.

Resources Required for Assessment Tool Validation

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

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

Assessment Validation Panel

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

Collectively, your panel must have:

- Workplace Competencies and Current Professional Skills relevant to the unit under validation.
- Updated Knowledge and Skills in Vocational Education.
- Either of the following certifications for training and assessment:
- Certificate IV in Training and Assessment TAE40116 or its successor.

Assessment Principles

- Impartiality: 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?
- Relevance: 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

- Appropriateness: Is the evidence relevant to the skills, knowledge, and attributes described in the unit of competency?
- Adequacy: Is the evidence sufficient to cover all the required skills and knowledge?
- Genuineness: Is the evidence genuine and truly representative of the candidate's abilities?
- Relevance: Are the assessment tools based on current units of competency and up-to-date industry practices?

Key Considerations for Assessment Validation

Pay attention to the tasks in the unit requirements 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
- Feed babies with bottles and clean equipment
- Feed babies with solid food
- Respond appropriately to baby signs and cues
- Prepare and settle babies for sleep
- Monitor and encourage age-appropriate physical exploration and gross motor skills

Typical Mistakes

Describing the nappy-changing process for babies under 12 months does not fulfill the unit requirement. Unless the unit criteria is meant to evaluate underlying knowledge (i.e., evidence of knowledge), students should be performing the tasks.

Mind 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 is not sufficient.

Full Competence or Not Competent

Pay attention to lists. As mentioned earlier, if students do not complete all the tasks listed, it’s non-compliant. Each assessment RTO assessment tool validation item must meet all criteria, or the student is not competent, and the assessment method is out of compliance.

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 evaluators.

Avoid Double-Barrelled Questions

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

Assurance During Audits

Considering these requirements, you might wonder, “Don't resource developers provide audit guarantees?” However, with these assurances, 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 instructions and understanding the Principles of Assessment and rules of evidence, you can ensure that your assessment methods are reliable with the regulations mandated by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.