MODULE MARKS &

RECOMMENDATIONS Main Period Preparation

2010/11

Matt Wildig - Student RecordsPresented by Helen Webb and Anna WhitehouseApril 2011

Mark Entry - Components

Components: What are they?

•Components are the individual assessments that comprise a module.

A module might be assessed by two essays and one exam…

For example:

Each one of those essays and the exam count as a component of the module.

Components: Why do we need them?

•BIRMS receives component marks and then uses them to calculate the overall module mark.

•If we do not enter the component marks correctly this may lead to errors in the calculation of the overall module mark.

Component Structure (Basic)

Module Mark

Component Marks65 54 72

Essay 1 Essay 2 Exam25% of overall mark

25% of overall mark

50% of overall mark

66

BIRMS calculates

Component Structure (Complex)

Module Mark

Top Level Component Marks

65 54 72Assessment Essay Exam40% of overall mark

25% of overall mark

35% of overall mark

84 52

Oral Presentation40% of component mark

Project60% of component mark

BIRMS calculates – roll up

65

Parent Component Mark

Child Component Marks

BIRMS calculates

Mark Entry - Modules

Every Module Needs a Mark:

BIRMS needs to know that a student has a mark for every module they are registered for.

If a student is registered for a module that has no mark this will prevent you from correctly running End of Session in BIRMS.

This one is ready to be released.

Once the components have been recorded calculate the module mark and recommendation.

Mark Entry – Late Marks

If you have students registered for modules that have not yet been marked at the time of your exam board, BIRMS still needs to have a mark entered.

For modules with late marks:

2. Calculate the Module mark “00”

3. Select recommendation “M”

1. Enter component marks of “00”

Why “M” And What Does It Do?Selecting the recommendation “M” tells BIRMS to create a registration in the supplementary period where the mark can be entered when it is ready.

Main Period

00M

BIRMS creates the Supplementary

Registration

Supplementary Period

Release this mark in the Main Period

End of Session

Release this mark in the Supplementary Period

End of Session

67

Because the original “00” was released with the “M”

recommendation it is processed as a mitigated mark.

This means that when the actual mark is entered in the

supplementary period it will be treated as a 1st attempt mark. It

will not be capped.

Supplementary Period

67

Main Period

00M

Mark Entry – Module Recommendations

Pass, Fail and Re-sit

Modules will have different recommendations in BIRMS depending on whether a student has passed or failed the module.

Modules’ recommendations may also vary depending on whether or not the student is re-sitting the module or not.

P - Pass

Where a student:

1. has achieved a mark equal to or higher than the pass mark for the module;

the correct module recommendation is “P – Pass”

SE – Supplementary with Centrally Timetabled Exam

Where a student:

1. has not achieved a mark equal to or higher than the pass mark for the module;

2. has the opportunity to re-sit the failed assessment;

3. is to re-sit the assessment as a centrally timetabled exam;

the correct module recommendation is “SE – Supp. with CT exam”

SU – Supplementary without Centrally Timetabled Exam

Where a student:

1. has not achieved a mark equal to or higher than the pass mark for the module;

2. has the opportunity to re-sit the failed assessment; and

3. is not going to re-sit the assessment as a centrally timetabled exam;

the correct module recommendation is “SU – Supp, no CT exam”

ME – Mitigated supplementary with Centrally Timetabled Exam

Where a student:

1. has not achieved a mark equal to or higher than the pass mark for the module;

2. has mitigations for failing the assessment;

3. has the opportunity to ‘sit’ the failed assessment;

4. is to ‘sit’ the assessment as a centrally timetabled exam;

the correct module recommendation is “ME – Sit with CT exam”

M – Mitigated supplementary without Centrally Timetabled Exam

Where a student:

the correct module recommendation is “M – Sit, no CT exam”

1. has not achieved a mark equal to or higher than the pass mark for the module;

2. has mitigations for failing the assessment;

3. has the opportunity to ‘sit’ the failed assessment; and

4. is not going to ‘sit’ the assessment as a centrally timetabled exam;

RP-Repeat

Where a student:

1. has not achieved a mark equal to or higher than the pass mark for the module; and

2. the method of re-assessment for the module is to repeat the whole module in the next academic year;

the correct module recommendation is

“RP-Repeat”

RS-Resit

Where a student:1. has not achieved a mark equal to or

higher than the pass mark for the module; and

2. the next re-assessment opportunity for the module is in the next academic year;

the correct module recommendation is “RS-Resit”

M – Mitigated supplementary without Centrally Timetabled Exam

Where a student:

the correct module recommendation is “M – Sit, no CT exam”

1. has not achieved a mark equal to or higher than the pass mark for the module;

2. has mitigations for failing the assessment;

3. will need to re-take the whole module again in the next academic year

F - Fail

Where a student:

1. has not achieved a mark equal to or higher than the pass mark for the module; and

2. is not permitted to have any further attempts at the failed assessments;

the correct module recommendation is

“F – Fail”

N – Not Required

Where a student:

1. is registered on a module for which they are not required to submit an assessment (eg. some Affiliate students or Erasmus students);

the correct module recommendation is

“N – Not Required”

Mark Entry – Supplementary Components

Supplementary ComponentsYour component structures for supplementary period module registrations will depend on how your module is set up.

BIRMS treats original marks for failed modules differently according to the “Supplementary Mark Calculation Rule” that is in place for a module.

There are three Supplementary Mark Calculation Rules:

Supplementary Mark Calculation Rule 1

A student’s overall module mark will be calculated using only

component marks achieved in the supplementary assessment

period.

Supplementary Mark Calculation Rule 2

Where a mark for a component is missing in one assessment period, take the mark from the other

assessment period.

Where there are marks for the same component in both assessment

periods, use only the Supplementary mark.

Supplementary Mark Calculation Rule 3

Where a mark for a component is missing in one assessment period,

take the mark from the other assessment period.

Where there are marks for the same component in both assessment periods, use the higher mark.

Do not enter a mark of “00” in the Supplementary Period for any assessments that have been passed in the Main. Leave

the mark field blank. BIRMS may use a “0” in the Supplementary to calculate the overall

module mark when it shouldn’t.

A mark of “00” should only be entered for a component in the Supplementary Period where:

1. A student has actually failed that assessment in the Supplementary Period; or

2. A student has simply not turned up to take a re-sit assessment that they should have taken.

Releasing the marks means that the students will have immediate access to them via the “my.bham” portal. It is important to take measures to ensure that the correct data gets released.

Are your marks Exam Board Approved

Marks should only be released once they have been through an exam board. Releasing the marks means that the students will have immediate access to them

via the “my.bham” portal. If you make a correction to a mark that has already been released, that corrected

mark will be immediately visible on the Student Portal.

BOXI can help you

There are a number of BOXI reports that exist to help you run data quality checks on the data you have entered:

– PGT Results Grid– Missing Marks– Missing ARTs

Releasing Marks – Final Checks

The “Display Errors” ButtonOnce you have released your marks BIRMS is likely to return some errors to youwhich can be viewed by clicking on the “Display Errors” button . BIRMS will give you a breakdown of the errors that have come up in processing your marks and progress decisions.

Don’t Panic! Help is at hand…

The BIRMS guides hold a list of the commonly encountered errors with advice on how to address them.

Student Records staff are on hand to advise and support throughout the process.

End of Session Helpline on 58009