Reimagining Fairness by Inclusive Assessment Practices for Diverse Engineering Cohorts

Abstract

Ensuring fairness in assessment is a cornerstone of equitable engineering education, particularly in diverse first-year cohorts where students enter with varied academic backgrounds, prior subject exposure, and learning preferences. This study presents a case-based implementation of inclusive assessment practices in the 1st semester of an undergraduate engineering program, involving 150 students—30 each from B.Tech Information Technology, B.Tech Computer Engineering, B.Tech Electrical Engineering, B.Tech Civil Engineering, and B.Tech Mechanical Engineering—during the 2024–25 academic session. Recognizing that conventional assessment models often privilege specific skill sets and prior knowledge, the study adopted a multi-modal, scaffolded, and contextually adaptive evaluation approach to provide equitable opportunities for all learners. Grounded in Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and aligned with Outcome-Based Education (OBE) principles, the study operationalizes fairness through multimodal, scaffolded, and linguistically inclusive assessment design. The inclusive framework integrated written, oral, practical, and reflective assessment components to accommodate diverse learning styles, alongside scaffolded question structures that progressed from foundational to complex problem-solving tasks. Language inclusivity was addressed through bilingual technical glossaries and transparent rubrics, while formative, low-stakes assessments were used to build confidence before high-stakes evaluations. Cross-disciplinary contextualization ensured that assessment tasks resonated with students from different engineering domains, fostering deeper engagement. A comparative analysis with the 2023–24 batch, assessed under a traditional single-format model, revealed substantial improvements: the average overall performance increased from 65.8% to 77.6%, and the performance gap between top and bottom quartile students decreased by 34%. Formative assessment participation rose from 68% to 93%, and 88% of students reported reduced assessment anxiety, with 84% affirming that the inclusive approach provided a fairer representation of their capabilities. Qualitative feedback indicated enhanced confidence among students from non-computing backgrounds and stronger peer learning dynamics across disciplines. The findings demonstrate that inclusive assessment practices can effectively reimagine fairness in engineering education, creating more equitable performance outcomes, reducing anxiety, and promoting cross-disciplinary collaboration. This approach offers a scalable model for higher education institutions aiming to support diverse student populations and align with outcome-based, student-centered learning paradigms.