How Catapult supports contextualisation

Contextualisation adapts training and assessment materials to the student cohort, industry or workplace context and delivery environment of a registered training organisation (RTO). It makes the resource relevant and usable without weakening the requirements of the training product.

Contextualisation does not change the competency standard. It changes how learning and assessment are presented or applied while preserving what the learner must know, do and demonstrate.

Why contextualisation matters

Purchased resources provide a starting point, but each RTO must determine whether the materials are fit for its students and intended delivery context. Under the 2025 Standards for RTOs, assessment tools must be reviewed before use and the outcomes of that review must inform any necessary changes.

The ASQA Assessment Practice Guide identifies reliance on purchased assessment tools that are not contextualised to the student cohort, learning environment or training product requirements as a known risk to quality outcomes.

Effective contextualisation can make instructions clearer, workplace examples more relevant and evidence requirements more practical for the way your RTO delivers training. It also helps trainers, assessors and learners understand how the unit applies in their setting.

What contextualisation can look like

Contextualisation could include:

• replacing generic terminology with language used in the relevant industry or workplace
• adapting scenarios, examples, documents or organisational procedures to the intended context
• clarifying learner instructions and how evidence will be collected
• adjusting assessment methods or formats to suit the delivery environment
• aligning assessor guidance, benchmarks and mapping with a changed assessment task
• improving accessibility or making a reasonable adjustment without lowering the competency requirements

The changes needed will depend on the training product, student cohort, industry advice, delivery mode and assessment environment.

What must remain intact

Contextualisation must not remove or weaken required elements, performance criteria, foundation skills, knowledge evidence, performance evidence or assessment conditions. Licensing, regulatory and workplace requirements must also be preserved where they apply.

Replacing a logo, organisation name or a few examples is not enough if the assessment remains unsuitable for the cohort or delivery context. A practical demonstration cannot be replaced with a written answer where the training product requires the learner to perform a skill.

When one part of an assessment changes, review the related learner instructions, assessor guidance, benchmarks, evidence tools and mapping together.

Use Edify to contextualise a resource

Catapult resources give your RTO a structured starting point for learning and assessment. Edify is Catapult's support mechanism for contextualisation where your organisation's access and permissions allow it.

Depending on your Edify edition, permissions and enabled services, Edify can be used to change learning content, assessments, supporting information, media, mapping, online structure and print outputs. Permission controls, resource history and publication workflows support a controlled development process.

For an introduction to the authoring environment and its relationship to Catapult LMS, see What is Edify? For the implementation process, see Contextualise a Catapult resource safely.

What remains your RTO's responsibility

Your RTO decides what contextualisation is needed and remains responsible for the implemented training and assessment system. It must review and approve changes, test the version that learners and assessors will use, maintain appropriate records and include the resource in its validation and continuous improvement processes.

Contextualisation supports relevance and fitness for purpose. It does not by itself guarantee compliance, validation or a successful audit outcome.

For a controlled implementation process, see Contextualise a Catapult resource safely.