ABSTRACT
Introduction The aim of this chapter is to provide an overview of the key challenges facing higher education institutions (HEIs) in the twenty-first century in relation to the management of assessment systems and processes, and describes how two English universities have responded to these challenges. The first section outlines the key issues to be addressed, with a discussion of problems faced in the past and anticipated in the future, as well as internal and external constraints. The second section describes how these issues have been addressed, by comparing and contrasting approaches. The third section provides examples of good practice, advice and guidance. Issues surrounding the academic practice of assessing students are not covered here, although we recognise that ‘trends in assessment policy and practice’ and the ‘consideration of the purposes of assessment’ (Leathwood, 2005) are topical debates.
