{Validation of Assessment regarding Education Providers within Australia's training sector —

{Validation of Assessment regarding Education Providers within Australia's training sector —

Blog Article

Introduction

Registered Training Organisations handle many obligations post-registration, such as yearly declarations, AVETMISS data submission, and marketing compliance. Among these tasks, assessment validation often stands out. While validation has been covered in several articles, let's return to the basics. The Australian Skills Quality Authority describes assessment validation as granular review of the assessment process.

In essence, assessment validation is focused on 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, adhere to the training package requirements and are conducted according to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.

The rules require two types of validation. The primary type of assessment review guarantees adherence to the training package assessment requirements within your organisation's scope. The other type guarantees that assessments adhere to the principles of assessment and rules of evidence. This suggests that validation is carried out in both pre- and post-assessment stages. This article will concentrate on the first type—assessment tool validation.

The Two Types of Assessment Validation

- Assessment Tool Validation: Sometimes called pre-assessment validation or verification, relates to the primary part of the rule, focusing on meeting all unit requirements.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Pertains to the implementation, ensuring RTOs conduct assessments in line with the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.

Conducting Validation of Assessment Tools

When to Validate Assessment Tools

The purpose of assessment tool validation is to ensure that all components, performance criteria, and performance and knowledge evidence are addressed by your assessment tools. Therefore, whenever you acquire new educational resources, you must perform validation of assessment tools before students use them. There's no need to wait for your next 5-year cycle validation schedule. Check new tools immediately to verify they are fit for student use.

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

- Update your resources
- Incorporate new training products on scope
- Evaluate your course with training product updates
- Flag 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 educational resources before being used. All RTOs must validate materials for each course unit.

Necessary Resources for Assessment Tool Validation

To start assessment tool validation, you will need the complete set of your learning resources:

- Mapping Tool: The first document to review. It identifies which assessment tasks meet course unit requirements, more info helping with faster validation.
- Learner/Student Workbook: Ensure it is suitable as an assessment resource during validation. Check if directions are clear and answer fields are sufficient. This is a common issue.
- Marking Guide: Also check if guidelines for assessors are sufficient and if clear standards for each assessment item are provided. Clear standards are crucial for reliable assessment outcomes.
- Supplementary Resources: These may include checklists, logs, and evaluation templates developed separately from the learner workbook and marking guide. Validate these to ensure they fit the assessment task and address subject requirements.

Assessment Validation Panel

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

Collectively, your validation panel must have:

- Vocational Competencies and Up-to-date Industry Skills relevant to the validated unit.
- Updated Knowledge and Skills in Vocational Training.
- Either of the following training and assessment credentials:
- TAE40116 Training and Assessment Certificate IV or its successor.

Principles Guiding Assessment

- Fairness: Does the assessment process offer equal opportunity and access to everyone?
- Adaptability: Is the assessment adaptable to different needs and preferences of candidates?
- Accuracy: Does the assessment evaluate what it is intended to evaluate?
- Consistency: Will different assessors make the same decision on skill competence?

Guidelines for Evidence

- Appropriateness: 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?
- Genuineness: Does the evidence confirm the originality of the candidate's work?
- Timeliness: Is the evidence up-to-date with current industry practices?

Key Considerations for 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 Baby and Toddler Care, one required performance evidence asks students to:

- Perform diaper changes
- Feed babies with bottles and clean equipment
- Prepare and give solid food to babies
- 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

Frequent Errors

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 carrying out the tasks.

Watch Out for the Plurals!

Pay attention to the quantities. In our example, one of the unit requirements of CHCECE032 Nurture babies and toddlers 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.

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 evaluation task must address all criteria, or the student is not competent, and the evaluation tool is out of compliance.

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 assessors.

Steer Clear of Double-Barrelled Questions

Avoiding double-barrelled questions makes it easier for students to respond and for trainers to accurately judge student competence.

Audit Guarantees

Considering these requirements, you might wonder, “Don’t learning resource developers offer audit guarantees?” However, with these promises, you must wait for an audit before they assist with noncompliance. This affects your compliance history, so it's better to take a preventative and compliant approach.

By following these recommendations and understanding the assessment principles and Rules of Evidence, you can ensure that your assessment methods are compliant with the requirements set by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.