Interventions and facilitators of oral assessment performance in higher education: a systematic review

This systematic review examines the factors that facilitate student performance in oral assessments at the undergraduate and master’s levels across diverse academic disciplines. As higher education increasingly shifts from traditional written assessments to alternative summative methods—partly in response to the rise of generative artificial intelligence (GAI)—understanding the strategies that enhance oral assessment performance has become critical. A comprehensive search of databases, including ERIC, EBSCO Host, Education Full Text, PsycINFO, JSTOR, and Web of Science, identified 24 relevant studies encompassing qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-methods research. A narrative synthesis approach was employed to summarise key findings. The synthesis identified several facilitators of student performance, including structured opportunities for practice, timely and constructive feedback from instructors and peers, the integration of technology (e.g. virtual reality), and the use of self-reflective strategies. These findings highlight practical approaches for educators to enhance student outcomes in oral assessments and suggest avenues for future research to optimise assessment practices in higher education.