2nd October

This week's collection captures an assessment industry at a critical juncture, facing simultaneous pressures from AI disruption, security challenges, and equity concerns. AI has fundamentally shifted the landscape: Advanced models now pass the most difficult professional exams (CFA Level III) in minutes, while 88% of learners use AI for assessments and research shows cheating rates jump from 5% to 84% when tasks are delegated to AI. Students with lower academic confidence increasingly outsource thinking rather than learning. The security response is intensifying: The industry is deploying real-time forensics, investigating AI-generated question overlap, and polarising between online proctoring and test centres as hybrid models fail. Equity and access dominate policy debates: New UK guidance prioritises rest breaks over extra time for struggling pupils, mandatory Year 8 reading tests aim to address disengagement, and controversy erupts over schools requiring parents to fund laptops. The digital divide threatens fair access as assessment becomes increasingly technology-dependent. The fundamental question emerges: The paper versus digital debate, explored in depth through multiple perspectives, reveals deeper tensions about what assessment should measure, who it should serve, and whether traditional exam formats remain relevant when AI can master them. The industry must decide whether to defend existing models more aggressively or reimagine assessment entirely for an AI-integrated world.