Designing Preferred Futures through Critical Design Futures Thinking and Generative AI: Evaluating Students' Futures Thinking Mindset in Authentic Assessment

<p dir="ltr">This paper presents a practice-based study on how integrating Critical Design Futures (CDF) thinking and Generative AI (GenAI) into an authentic assessment framework can enhance students' futures thinking mindset. Conducted in a university-level Introduction to Design Innovation module, the initiative aimed to equip students with forward-thinking skills by engaging them in envisioning their future profession and prototyping solutions using GenAI tools. Grounded in the CDF framework, the assessment design required students to explore industry challenges beyond current standards and develop preferred futures. Students engaged with scenario planning, trend analysis and design ideation, guided by a series of 'Question Starters' targeting critical, design and futures thinking competencies. Through iterative prompts and dialogic 'sparring' with GenAI tools - such as ChatGPT and text-to-image generators - students refined their creative concepts and visual prototypes. The combination of rigorous questioning, technological experimentation and collaborative iteration underscored the authentic nature of the assignment: solutions were not merely theoretical exercises, but industry professionals assessed forward-looking proposals with tangible industry relevance. To evaluate shifts in students' futures thinking dispositions, a validated 33-item Futures Thinking Mindset survey was administered before and after the module. Additional qualitative data - comprising student reflections, digital prototypes and industry feedback - were collected to capture the depth and breadth of learning. Preliminary findings indicate measurable growth in students' capacity to anticipate emerging trends, imagine transformative possibilities and articulate nuanced visions of the future. Students reported heightened enthusiasm for continuous scanning of cultural, technological and social signals, alongside greater confidence in crafting actionable scenarios. Notably, the integration of GenAI fueled a sense of intellectual agility: students learned to critique and iteratively refine AI-generated outputs, leading to enhanced critical competence, design dexterity and futures flexibility. By foregrounding both CDF principles and GenAI-driven experimentation, this study demonstrates how authentic assessments can cultivate a proactive, future-oriented mindset among learners. The assignment moved beyond conventional tests of content knowledge, situating students in real-world contexts where the future is simultaneously uncertain and creatively malleable. Findings highlight the potential of combining technology with strategic futures thinking in the design of higher education curricula. This synergy fosters deeper student engagement and adaptive thinking skills, preparing graduates to thrive in rapidly evolving industries. Ultimately, the paper argues that purposefully embedding CDF thinking and GenAI within authentic assessments serves as a powerful catalyst for expanding students' imaginative capacities and real-world impact. It concludes with practical recommendations for educators seeking to adopt similar approaches, including scaffolded scenario planning, structured AI explorations and robust measures of futures thinking dispositions.</p>