About assessment categories
About assessment categories
Assessment categories
The Assessment Ideas Factory uses multiple categorisation sets (taxonomies). Each taxonomy has a particular purpose.
Security
- Secure
- An assessment is considered "secure" when it is either completed under fully supervised conditions, or when unsupervised work is paired with a supervised component that generates individually attributable, high-quality evidence of learning, operates under controlled conditions, and is essential for demonstrating minimum achievement.
- Open
- Assessment completed without supervision, providing broader opportunities for students to complete tasks in authentic contexts. In open assessments, students may use resources such as notes, course materials and other tools, including AI, while completing the task.
The examples shown in the Assessment Ideas Factory will be accompanied by their "Security" status. This refers to the security status of the specific context of the example shown, but it should be noted that examples that are "Secure" could also be conducted in an "Open" manner if the supervision was removed. Likewise, assessment examples that are "Open" could be conducted in a "Secure" manner if the key elements of the assessment completion process were to be supervised.
Conditions
Conditions refer to policy implementations or restrictions. A single assessment item can require more than one condition.
- AI Required
- Students are required to use AI and are assessed on their use of AI (e.g., tool selection, prompting, verification, and integration) within this assessment task. Requiring AI is necessary to effectively assess the learning outcomes aligned to this task, and verify students as responsible, ethical and effective users and shapers of AI in studies, careers and communities.
- Team or Group based
- Group work assessments encourage students to interact effectively by working cooperatively and productively within a group or team of peers towards a common outcome. In addition to assessing understand, the benefits of group work include the development of organisational skills and interpersonal skills such as communication, negotiation and co-operation.
Group work teaches skills that can enhance student employability. - Peer-assessed
- One or more students judge the work or performance of another student.
- Sequence
- An assessment sequence is a set of two or more assessment tasks of similar nature or common purpose, which may be used as developmental learning opportunities for students or to comprehensively assess a particular learning outcome. The sequence may be used progressively or at significant points in a course.
- Time-limited
- Students are given a certain number of hours to complete their assessments.
Assessment delivery mode
What is the format of this task?
- Digital task
- Digital written task, video, audio, multimedia, or other tasks using digital tools
- Oral / verbal / performance
- Speaking or performing
- Paper-based task
- Writing/drawing on paper
- Practical / demonstration
- Showing/doing something
Assessment delivery setting
When/where does the assessment delivery occur?
- In-person
- Students deliver this assessment in person
- Online asynchronous
- Students deliver this assessment online asynchronously (e.g. video recording, written task upload, etc)
- Online synchronous
- Students deliver this assessment online in real time (e.g. live video)
- Blended
- This assessment may have some in-person and some online delivery components
Authenticity context
In what way(s) is this assessment authentic?
- Professional simulation
- An assessment that immerses students in a realistic, simulated professional scenario where they practise decision‑making, communication, and task performance as if in real practice. e.g. OSCE, viva, role‑play, lab/clinic sim.
- Public‑facing / Community‑engaged
- An assessment where student work is created for, shared with, or co‑developed alongside external audiences or community/industry partners, giving it purpose beyond the classroom. e.g. The Conversation piece, public exhibition, community partner.
- Reflective / Professional identity
- An assessment requiring students to critically reflect on experiences, skills, and values to develop their self‑awareness and emerging professional identity. e.g. folio, reflective presentation.
- Research‑based / Inquiry / Problem‑based
- An assessment structured around investigating questions or solving authentic, often ill‑structured problems, requiring students to apply disciplinary knowledge, research, and critical thinking. e.g. fieldwork, primary data collection, mixed‑methods investigation, case‑based analysis, scenario‑based problem solving, diagnostic reasoning tasks.
- Work‑integrated / Work‑related
- An assessment embedded in or aligned with real or simulated work contexts, where students apply learning through authentic tasks linked to industry, professional practice, or external stakeholders. e.g. placement, client brief, industry dataset.
Submission medium
What is submitted as evidence?
- Audio
- Digital product
- Live performance
- Physical product
- Text
- Audio
Supervision status
In what ways is this assessment example supervised?
- Not supervised
- Supervised - in-person
- Supervised - remote - asynchronous recording (e.g. via a recorded invigilation platform)
- Supervised - remote - synchronous (e.g. through a live invigilation platform)