When a major Australian education authority endeavoured to digitise student exams, we recognised the critical need for inclusive research to ensure digital equity for all students. Over 10-weeks, our team delivered a comprehensive 'Voice of Schools' research report detailing strategic and evidence-based recommendations for the digital transformation, accessibility requirements for build and targeted interventions to bridge the educational and technological divide.
Major Australian Government Agency
(Client name withheld due to NDA)
Research Lead and Inclusive Design & Accessibility SME
When a major Australian education authority approached us to build a business case for digitising their exam system—affecting every high school student in the state—we recognised both the immense potential and significant risks involved. While digital assessments could bridge the divide for some students with accessibility needs, we identified a critical gap: no research had been conducted to understand how this shift from paper-based to digital exams would impact students with diverse needs and abilities, such as disability, neurodiversity, remote communities and low digital literacy.
Recognising the magnitude of this change, we proposed inclusive research as an essential addition to the business case development—an approach the client valued so highly they increased their budget to include it, ensuring they could make informed decisions for a de-risked and fit for purpose solution.
We conducted a comprehensive 10-week inclusive research program that engaged 160+ participants across the educational ecosystem. Using a mixed-methodology approach of one-on-one interviews, focus groups, and surveys, we deliberately recruited a diverse representation including students with disabilities, neurodiverse learners, those in remote areas, parents, teachers, principals, and IT leaders.
Our recruitment strategy tapped into multiple sources—disability organisations, recruitment agencies, the client's internal network, and our professional connections—to ensure authentic representation of the Australian student population. Drawing on trauma-informed research practices, we created safe spaces for all participants to share their experiences and concerns about digital transformation in education.
Our research provided the client with critical strategic insights and holistic recommendations that fundamentally shaped their approach to digitisation. We agitated a key tension: while digitisation offers significant accessibility benefits for some students (such as those requiring scribes), it risks creating a digital divide that disadvantages students from lower socio-economic backgrounds and remote communities who lack consistent technology access.
We delivered comprehensive recommendations across three key areas:
- Overarching strategic considerations to inform their digitisation approach
- Specific accessibility requirements for platform development
- Targeted interventions to bridge the technological divide for disadvantaged students
By providing evidence-based recommendations alongside the technical business case, we empowered the client to secure funding while ensuring their digital strategy prioritised inclusivity and accessibility for all students across the state.
