{Assessment Validation Tools for the Learning Institutions within the Australian landscape —
{Assessment Validation Tools for the Learning Institutions within the Australian landscape —
Blog Article
Assessment Validation Overview
Registered Training Organisations manage numerous obligations after becoming registered, such as annual declarations, AVETMISS reporting, and advertising compliance. Among these tasks, assessment validation often stands out. While we've discussed validation in several publications, let's revisit the fundamental principles. ASQA describes validation of assessments as granular review of the assessment procedure.
Principally, assessment validation is aimed at 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, meet the training package requirements and are conducted according to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.
The standards mandate two types of validation. The first type of assessment validation ensures compliance with the requirements of the training package within your organisation's scope. The other type verifies that assessments are conducted according to the principles of assessment and rules of evidence. This suggests that validation is carried out pre- and post-assessment. This article will concentrate on the primary type—assessment tool validation.
Exploring the Types of Assessment Validation
- Assessment Tool Validation: Referred to as pre-assessment validation or verification, is concerned with the initial part of the clause, ensuring compliance with all unit requirements.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Is related to the execution, ensuring Registered Training Organisations conduct assessments in line with the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.
How to Conduct Assessment Tool Validation
Best Time for Conducting Assessment
The goal of assessment tool validation is to make sure that all aspects, performance criteria, and evidence of performance and knowledge are covered by your assessment tools. Therefore, whenever you obtain new learning resources, you must conduct validation of assessment tools before allowing students to use them. There's no need to wait for your next scheduled validation. Review new tools immediately to ensure they are appropriate for students.
Nevertheless, this isn't the only reason to do this type of validation. Conduct validation of assessment tools also when you:
- Amend your resources
- Add new qualifications to scope
- Compare your course with training product updates
- Recognise 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 compliance of all learning resources before use. All RTOs must validate materials for each unit.
Resources Required for Assessment Tool Validation
To validate your assessment tools, you will need the complete set of your learning resources:
- Mapping Resource: The first document to review. It shows which assessment items meet unit requirements, helping with faster validation.
- Learner/Student Workbook: Ensure it is suitable as an assessment resource during validation. Check if instructions are clear and input fields are sufficient. This is a common issue.
- Assessor Guide: Also check if guidelines for assessors are sufficient and if clear standards for each assessment task are provided. Clear criteria are crucial for reliable evaluation results.
- Other Related Resources: These may include evaluation checklists, registers, and forms developed separately from the learner workbook and assessor guide. Validate these to ensure they fit the assessment activity and address subject requirements.
Validation Panel
Standard 1.11 specifies the requirements for panel members. It states validation can be performed by one or more people. However, RTOs usually ask all trainers and evaluators to participate, sometimes including field experts.
Collectively, your assessment validation panel must have:
- Vocational Competencies and Current Professional Skills relevant to the unit being validated.
- Current Knowledge and Skills in Vocational Teaching and Learning.
- Either of the following training and assessment credentials:
- TAE40116 Training and Assessment Certificate IV or its successor.
Assessment Principles
- Equity: Is the assessment process fair and equitable for all candidates?
- Flexibility: 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?
- Consistency: Will different assessors make the same decision on skill competence?
Evidence Rules
- Relevance: Does the evidence demonstrate that the candidate has the skills, knowledge, and attributes described in the unit of competency and associated assessment requirements?
- Completeness: Does the evidence adequately demonstrate the required skills and knowledge?
- Genuineness: Does the assessment tool verify that the work is the candidate’s own?
- 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 action words in the unit criteria and ensure they are addressed by the assessment item. For example, in the unit CHCECE032 Nurture babies and toddlers, one performance evidence requirement asks students to:
- Change nappies
- Feed babies with bottles and clean equipment
- Feed babies with solid food
- Respond appropriately to baby signs and cues
- Prepare babies for sleep and help them settle
- Observe and promote suitable physical activities and motor skills for babies
Common Pitfalls
Asking students to describe the nappy-changing process for babies under 12 months old does not meet the unit requirement. Unless the unit criteria is meant to assess underpinning knowledge (i.e., evidence of knowledge), students should be performing the tasks.
Be Careful with Plurals!
Pay attention to the quantities. In our example, one of the unit requirements of CHCECE032 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 is not sufficient.
All or Not Competent
Pay attention to enumerated tasks. As mentioned earlier, if students do not complete all the tasks listed, it’s non-compliant. Each evaluation task must address all requirements, or the student is incompetent, here and the assessment method is not compliant.
Can You Be More Specific?
Each assessment item must have clear and specific benchmark answers to guide the assessor’s evaluation on the student’s competence. Therefore, it’s crucial that your guidelines do not mislead students or trainers.
Avoid Double-Barrelled Questions
Avoiding double-barrelled questions makes it simpler for students to respond and for trainers to accurately judge student competence.
Assurance During Audits
Considering these requirements, you might wonder, “Don’t learning resource developers offer audit guarantees?” However, with these assurances, you must wait for an audit before they help rectify noncompliance. This influences your compliance status, 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.