As the 21st century began to unfurl, it was becoming increasingly evident that technological ‘connectedness’ was revolutionising not only business and interpersonal relationships but also education. It seemed only a question of time before technology would provide an alternative means for supporting learning (Säljö, 2010), drive changes in assessment design (Bennett, 2002; Shute & Becker, 2010), and prompt efforts to reconfigure existing cycles of teaching, learning and assessment (Shute, Ventura & Kim, 2013; Thornton, 2012).

Multilingualism, linguistic and cultural diversity are closely related to globalisation, increased transnational mobility and increasing refugee populations. It is important to pay attention to multilingualism and multiculturalism in educational settings, to increase awareness and recognition of linguistic and cultural diversity at individual and societal levels, and to take historical, ideological, social, economic and political factors into consideration, as well as language policy and the diverse language practices of teachers and students.

The keywords in this seemingly simple yet complex to answer question are ‘assessment’ and ‘inclusion’. Defining the inclusivity of assessment requires a shared understanding within an operating framework of what inclusion is.