Liesbeth Baartman
HU University of Applied Sciences Utrecht, The Netherlands
SIG 1 Conference 2026
Under the theme "Opening up assessment and evaluation to new possibilities" the EARLI SIG 1 Conference 2026 invites researchers and educators to explore how assessment and evaluation can move beyond traditional boundaries. Reflection on how educational assessment and evaluation research and practices can be made more transparent, adaptable, and responsive to diverse learners, perspectives, and contexts is encouraged by this theme.
Opening up assessment challenges us to broaden the ways in which assessment and evaluation are conceptualized and implemented. From classroom-based to large-scale contexts, including feedback, peer and self-assessment, collaborative and co-created approaches, electronic assessment, and learning analytics, the theme promotes exploration across different research traditions in assessment and evaluation. In addition to being open to different perspectives, flexible designs, and socially conscious practices that prioritize justice, authenticity, and student and teacher agency, it calls for innovation in theoretical, methodological, and interdisciplinary directions. In this way, assessment and evaluation can contribute both to meaningful individual learning processes and to collective goals across educational systems and levels.
Advances in technology, such as artificial intelligence (AI) and automated feedback systems, open up new avenues for effective, flexible, and efficient assessment. At the same time, they raise important questions about accountability, equity, and the role of human judgment. Technology is one of many lenses through which openness can be explored.
This conference offers a platform to exchange research findings and ideas within the community of EARLI researchers who study assessment and evaluation. In the beautiful city of Utrecht, we aim to create a space for new connections, experimentation, and reflection.
