Assessment in the age of AI: time for a rethink?

With the rapid advancement and availability of AI tools we have entered a new era in higher education, one where students can generate essays, reports, code and feedback in minutes. This poses a critical question for us in education.

• Originally posted to LinkedIn: 14th March 2025 [Link]

➡️ Is our current approach to assessment still fit for purpose?

The Challenge: AI can mimic human writing and an individual’s writing style. It can conduct research and generate compelling academic content. This disrupts traditional assessment models like essays, reports, and open-book assignments. If students can use AI to produce credible work, are we assessing knowledge and critical thinking or the ability to use AI effectively?

The opportunity: Rather than resisting AI, what if we reimagined assessment to embrace it?

✅ AI-inclusive assessment: ask students to use AI tools, but critically evaluate and refine the output.
✅ Real-world challenges: alter assessment strategies towards problem-based, portfolio, or experiential assessments that AI can’t easily replicate.
✅ Process over product: place more emphasis on the process of learning and thinking, rather than the final output.

The big question: if we continue assessing students as we did before AI, we risk encouraging clever prompt engineering rather than deep learning. But if we harness AI wisely, we could empower students with future-ready skills.

➡️ Do we need to radically redesign assessments in higher education? Should we teach students how to use AI ethically rather than trying to ban it? How do we protect academic integrity while promoting innovation?

What’s the future of assessment in higher education — and are we ready for it?

[📷 Photo adapted from Alexander Grey on Unsplash]