Top Tips for Buying Off-the-Shelf Learning and Assessment Tools...
- Specialised VET Services
- Apr 21
- 5 min read
... and confirming they are fit-for-use
When it comes to VET learning and assessment materials, there's two main camps:
1. Purchase something "off-the-shelf"
2. Bespoke development
Bespoke development may be in-house or commissioned via an experienced, niche writer. This is usually a more labour-intensive (and therefore higher-priced) option. But that's only at the front-end, with cost efficiencies typical in the reduction of the amount of re-work, contextualisation and/or customisation required.
Off-the-shelf purchasing is typically a cheaper, faster option giving cheaper, faster results. However, cheap doesn't always equate to value and this fact is not news.
And across both camps, we're seeing the infiltration of AI-generated content, usually to varying degrees of polish and accuracy.
The rise of generative AI since late 2022 has certainly created an interesting - and at times, devastating - impact on the materials market. With reduced effort and time to produce a product, generative AI has meant a flood of information pumped out for consumption. Depending on the level of oversight on that output, and the expertise of the overseer, we're presented with product that ranges from obviously AI-generated generic gumpf, complete with the seemingly obligatory dot point list, use of em dash, oft-used terms 'leverage', 'boost', and 'elevate', and a smattering of factual inaccuracies, right through to near-impossible to discern as AI-assisted outputs (because it's been edited and refined and fact-checked by a human with the requisite underpinning expertise).
Resource supply businesses have been feeling the pinch - with some having to close their doors for good. Other businesses have either been able to streamline and somewhat adapt, or else, others still, simply continue with the generic, mass produced outputs that can now be generated at much faster rates.
Some suppliers have maintained a heavy level of human input to the materials, distrustful of AI - but even then, it's important to note that pre-ChatGPT, there were still varying degrees of quality in the fully human-developed content. Not everyone has the skill and expertise to write well, and then, to write well to meet compliance requirements.
So what's the answer?
When it comes to selecting what's best for an RTO to use and supply to their students... well, that's up to the RTO, and there certainly are benefits from both the bespoke and off-the-shelf camps. This article has been written to provide a series of useful tips for those RTOs choosing the off-the-shelf route.
1) Compare cost and value
What is the initial cost of the product versus any costs associated with the time and expertise to tailor as required? And when it comes to cost, make sure you’re comparing apples with apples too.
2) Square peg, round hole and all that
Off-the-shelf products are typically written for a one-size-fits-most approach; check that you aren’t trying to squeeze something into an unnatural fit for your RTO’s delivery methodology.
Confirm the product is somewhat aligned to your intended strategy for training and assessment and make the necessary contextualisation for your specific cohort – this may include transferring activity types to suit the way you need to collect evidence and other alterations.
Remember, what worked for the RTO up the road isn’t necessarily going to work for you.
3) It’s not just about labels
True contextualisation of an off-the-shelf resource involves more than simply adding your RTO’s code, labels and branding.
You need to ensure that things such as the instructions to students, instructions to assessors, decision-making rules etc. are specifically tailored and aligned with the way you do things in your RTO (and the ways documented in your strategies for training and assessment, and overall quality system!)
4) DYO – Do Your Own
Due diligence is a must.
Do your own due diligence by validating the tools before you put them into use. This best-practice activity is now mandatory too by the way (Outcome Standard 1.3.2b).
Ensure you have someone appropriately experienced to conduct the pre-use validation for you, as the quality of the tool and its outcomes for your students is only as good as its validation result which is only as good as the validator's skill.
A validation of mapping activity is strongly recommended as a starting point. It will:
Confirm whether the assessment you’ve just bought covers the unit of competency requirements, and
Highlight any gaps that may be present
You also need to be assured that the assessment is going to collect the right type of evidence.
Conduct a DYO Due Diligence (DYODD) activity to confirm things including:
That performance and skills evidence requirements of the unit are being met
Sufficient evidence can be collected to make a reasonable judgement on performance
That the student will have the chance to provide evidence that meets the Rules of Evidence
(Other aspects of the Principles of Assessment will necessarily be contained in the RTO's existing assessment system).
If your DYODD activity shows the tool covers all requirements and has no gaps, then after appropriate contextualisation, you should be good to go with putting the tool to use.
5) Act on results
If your DYODD activity shows gaps in the tools, you must act on that.
Allocate to or engage an experienced assessment writer to edit and/or re-purpose your purchased product. Then, validate the materials again to ensure all gaps are filled.
Schedule all tools for periodic quality review, and act on those results.
Putting tools with gaps into use presents a seriously high risk to your RTO. Think Outcome Standards’ requirements, think quality, think compliance, think rectification implications, think ASQA's recent cancellation of over 12k qualifications …. Seriously high risk indeed.
6) Know your purpose
Consider and know whether you are purchasing an off-the-shelf product to use ‘as is’ or to use as a basis for further development.
This will help guide you when it comes to comparing cost and value, and what amount your RTO is prepared to invest (or needs to invest).
7) Be realistic – “any colour you like, as long as it’s black”
Be aware of the limitations of mass-production. Henry Ford made the above quote famous with regards to his Model T motor car. Having the car only in black was efficient for keeping production costs down.
The same concept is seen with any mass-produced item. There will always be a difference between bespoke, tailored on-demand, and off-the-shelf training and assessment materials. Each have their place in the market and can service different needs.
Purchasers need to be realistic though in terms of what they expect from what they are buying; is this an "only-in-black-item"?
Can you be happy with black?
Or are you expecting the silver Rolls Royce at the Model T price tag?
8) Hold your horses
Don’t rush.
You can purchase off-the-shelf tools very quickly and easily, but before you put them into circulation, check all of the above.
Take the time to make sure the tools will meet requirements, have been properly contextualised for the way you deliver to students, and have been properly entered into your RTO’s quality system.
9) There's no such thing as "audit ready" with off-the-shelf
Why? Because every single off-the-shelf material must be contextualised by the RTO to suit its:
Delivery methodology
Intended cohort
Intended industry/workplace application
Available assessment resources/locations/conditions
Overall quality system
Learning and assessment does not sit in isolation to the rest of how the RTO operates. As just one example, think about the instructions in an assessment tool - they have to match what the RTO says it does, and what it actually does. (See the DDEER Model for more on this). And that's impossible for an off-the-shelf product to know and include. Instead, they come as necessarily generic items - a key risk identified by ASQA.
So no, there's no such thing as an "audit ready" off-the-shelf tool.
In summary, we recommend all RTOs maintain a responsible approach to materials on which learning and assessment must be based. After all, quality outcomes can only be achieved on quality foundations.
-This article is AITA Scale Rating 1 - 100% Human Intelligence
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