Assessment purposes and theoretical foundations in university mathematics assessment practices: A comprehensive scoping review

This scoping review addresses the limited scopes of current research on classroom assessment in university mathematics education (UME). We examine 67 empirical studies (2012–2024) from two crucial but ignored aspects: assessment purposes and theoretical foundations. Our key findings reveal (1) significant geographic disparities reflecting the tensions among assessment practice, society, culture, and epistemology in UME assessment practices; (2) a notable increase in the attention towards Assessment as Learning (AaL) with implementation challenges in mathematics contexts, technology application, and self-assessment practices; and (3) limited theoretical engagement (only 42% of studies with explicit theories), predominately favoring cognitivism and constructivism. By shedding light on overlooked research aspects, this review informs future research and practices in developing the disciplinary assessment tools and design to optimize student learning as well as enhancing research designs to improve the understanding of mathematics assessment. Copyright © 2025 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.