University assessment and quality assurance

Strategies to improve university assessment for students and educators. Here, academics offer guidance on assessment design, covering formative, summative and diagnostic approaches, authentic assessment and how to give useful feedback. You will also find advice on exam preparation, ungrading, managing GenAI, preventing cheating and upholding academic integrity.

By Eliza.Compton, 16 August, 2025

Managing student risk AI-version

Deciding between AI and human intelligence
Could a safe space to experiment with using artificial intelligence to complete an assessment offer students a path to both deeper learning and AI proficiency?
Reading time
4minutes
By kiera.obrien, 6 August, 2025

Discussion forums: the key to AI-proof assessment?

Brightly-coloured speech bubbles and avatars
Providing a supportive learning culture for students will make them less likely to cheat – and discussion forums, with a few tweaks, may be the way to do it
Reading time
5minutes
By Laura.Duckett, 5 August, 2025

How should assessors use AI for marking and feedback?

A teacher marking students' work
While much attention has focused on students’ use of GenAI, its potential to support assessors has mostly been overlooked. Here, Isabel Fischer shares draft principles co-created at a cross-institutional workshop to guide its responsible use in assessment, marking and feedback.
By kiera.obrien, 16 July, 2025

Three AI-focused grids to future-proof your course design

A robot hand holds out a glowing lightbulb
Instead of shaping assessment around policing the use of AI, we need to adopt a holistic approach that helps students and educators judge how much AI use is pedagogically appropriate. These three grids can offer insight
Reading time
5minutes
By Laura.Duckett, 11 July, 2025

When we encourage AI use, how can we still assess student thinking?

A professor marking work at her desk
As more university educators encourage students to use GenAI, how can we ensure assessments still reward critical thinking and originality? Isabel Fischer reflects on emerging usage patterns and shares practical design tips for meaningful, AI-inclusive assessment
Reading time
4minutes
University assessment and quality assurance