Equity-Oriented Assessment in Higher Education: A Conceptual Framework for Assessment, Academic Standards, and Professional Judgment for Students with Learning Disabilities
Keywords:
inclusive assessment; learning disabilities; equity; fairness; academic standards; professional judgment; higher educationAbstract
Assessment is a central mechanism through which higher education institutions make judgments about student competence, progression, and the maintenance of academic standards. For university students with learning disabilities, inclusion debates have largely focused on accommodations, while assessment itself remains under-theorized. This paper presents a critical conceptual analysis of scholarship across assessment studies, inclusive higher education, and disability research to examine how equity, fairness, academic standards, and professional judgment are framed in assessment discourse. The analysis identifies four recurring patterns: fairness framed as procedural consistency; academic standards positioned as institutional safeguards; reliance on discretionary professional judgment; and enduring tensions between inclusion and academic standards. The paper argues that equality-based notions of fairness may constrain equity-oriented assessment design, while standards discourses can legitimize cautious practices that narrow valid ways of demonstrating learning. By conceptualizing assessment as a socially embedded evaluative practice, the study proposes a framework that clarifies how equity, fairness, academic standards, and professional judgment interact in inclusive higher education. Importantly, the study builds on these insights by providing a practical framework for inclusive assessment. The framework offers guidance on redesigning assessment tasks, recognizing different ways of demonstrating learning, supporting professional judgment, maintaining academic standards while allowing flexibility, and informing institutional policies for students with learning disabilities.
https://doi.org/10.26803/ijlter.25.6.46
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