{Assessment Validation Guide for Educational Institutions throughout the context of Australia :

Intro to Assessment Validation

Training Organisations have various tasks upon registration, including annual declarations, AVETMISS reporting, and promotional compliance. Among these tasks, validating assessments is notably challenging. While validation has been reviewed in multiple discussions, a review of the basics is necessary. ASQA describes validation of assessments as a quality review of the assessment process.

Primarily, assessment validation is concerned with 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 mandate two forms of validation. The first type of assessment validation checks conformity with the training package assessment requirements within your organisation's scope. The second validation guarantees that assessments are conducted according to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence. This indicates that we perform validation both before and after the assessment. This article will concentrate on the initial type—validation of assessment tools.

The Two Types of Assessment Validation

- Assessment Tool Validation: Also referred to as pre-assessment validation or verification, deals with the initial part of the clause, aimed at ensuring all unit requirements are met.
- Post-Assessment Validation: Concerns the implementation, verifying that RTOs conduct assessments according to the Principles of Assessment and Rules of Evidence.

Guide to Conducting Assessment Tool Validation

Best Time for Conducting Assessment

The goal of validating assessment tools is to make sure that all elements, criteria for performance, and evidence of performance and knowledge are included by your evaluation tools. Therefore, whenever you acquire new learning resources, you must carry out validation of assessment tools prior to student use. There's no need to wait for your next five-year validation cycle. Validate new materials immediately to verify they are appropriate for students.

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

- Enhance your resources
- Integrate new training products on scope
- Audit 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.

What Training Products Require Validation

Remember that this validation ensures compliance of all training materials before being used. All RTOs must validate training products for each unit.

Resources Needed to Start Assessment Tool Validation

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

- Mapping Resource: The first document to review. It identifies which assessment items meet course unit requirements, helping with faster validation.
- Learner Workbook: Ensure it is suitable as an assessment resource during validation. Check if guidelines are clear and answer fields are sufficient. This is a common issue.
- Assessor Guide: Also verify if instructions for trainers are sufficient and if clear standards for each evaluation item are provided. Clear benchmarks are crucial for reliable assessment outcomes.
- Other Related Resources: These may include checklists, evaluation registers, and forms created separately from the learner workbook and marking guide. Validate these to ensure they fit the evaluation task and address subject requirements.

Panel for Validation

Clause 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 evaluators to participate, sometimes including field experts.

Collectively, your panel must have:

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

Assessment Principles

- Equity: Is equal opportunity and access provided to everyone in the assessment process?
- Flexibility: 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?
- Consistency: Are the assessment results consistent regardless of who conducts the training?

Rules of Evidence

- Appropriateness: Is the evidence relevant to the skills, knowledge, and attributes described in the unit of competency?
- Completeness: Does the evidence adequately demonstrate the required skills and knowledge?
- Authenticity: 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?

Important Factors in Assessment Validation

Pay attention to the tasks in the unit criteria and ensure they are addressed by the assessment task. For example, in the unit CHCECE032 Nurture babies and toddlers, one required performance evidence asks students to:

- Change diapers
- Feed babies with bottles and clean equipment
- Prepare solid food and feed babies
- React suitably to baby signals and cues
- Prepare babies for sleep and help them settle
- Supervise and support age-appropriate physical activities and motor development

Common Pitfalls

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 evaluate underlying knowledge (i.e., knowledge-based evidence), 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 Baby and Toddler Care 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 does not fulfill the requirement.

All or Not Competent

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

Can You Be More Specific?

Each assessment task must have clear and specific standard answers to guide the evaluator’s decision on the student’s competence. Therefore, it’s crucial that your instructions 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.

Ensuring Audit Compliance

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

By following these recommendations and understanding the assessment principles and evidence rules, you can ensure that your assessment methods are compliant with the standards established by ASQA and the SRTOs 2015.