ABSTRACT
Students deserve equal opportunities to succeed, but there is more to being equitable than treating all students the same, and assessment is no different. Assessment which treats students identically, is not equitable, because it wrongly assumes that all students have the same opportunities to learn and express themselves. Yet, for reasons of “fairness”, students are commonly required to complete the same assessment task and produce identical artefacts to evidence learning outcomes. Internationally, there is growing concern that students from many non-traditional backgrounds do not benefit from higher education in the same way as their more advantaged peers. However, few scholars have examined the influence of assessment on disparities in academic achievement or employment outcomes for students who belong to recognised equity groups. This chapter examines shortcomings of assessment with respect to the needs of students from low socio-economic status (SES) backgrounds and propose ways in which assessment for inclusion could be better leveraged to enhance both academic achievement and employability.
