- Assessment and Feedback /
- High Level Requirements /
- Summative Assessment Tasks and Tariff
Summative Assessment and Tariff
Guidance on the normal loading of summative assessment for courses adopting the revised curriculum structures schemes is as follows: Level 0 (Foundation Year) a maximum of four summative tasks, Level 4, 5 and 6 a maximum of six summative tasks, and Level 7 a maximum of nine summative tasks. These should be mapped to level and course learning outcomes. At levels 4, 5, and 6, this could equate to one task per 20 credits of study, but this is not mandated.
Assessment should be designed with academic integrity in mind.
At all levels, including Foundation Years (level 0), assessment should support the continued development of personal and professional skills and behaviours expected of a professional in the related sectors aligned to the course.
Assessment Tariff
The University encourages the use of a range of assessment methods, appropriately scaffolded, that provide students with opportunities to demonstrate course level learning outcomes. The volume of assessment within a module should take into consideration a student's assessment load across a course, including formative assessment, to help ensure that students are not overburdened with assessment. Academic staff should also take into consideration the impact on marking and feedback turnaround deadlines when deciding on appropriate assessment methods.
The Assessment Tariff should guide staff when designing or re-designing assessment with the aim of a broad comparability of summative assessment loads across modules that have the same credit weighting. Assessments should be applied, authentic and wherever possible modelling the nature of the work expected of a professional in the sector aligned to the course, embedding the principles of the Hallam Model. Assessment at level 0 should be designed as supportive and preparatory for work at undergraduate level.
The tariff aligns to the assessment loading articulated in 2.1. and outlines the maximum amount of summative assessment. When considering the tariff, course teams are advised to consider module assessments in the context of demonstrating course learning outcomes. Assessment task magnitude (e.g. word count, duration, number of pages, etc) should be provided to students for all assessment tasks. At validation and modifications, assessment packages will be reviewed in terms of both the number of assessment tasks and their magnitude.
Professional, Statutory and Regulatory Body (PSRB) requirements take precedence over the stated tariffs, in such cases the appropriate documentation from the PSRB must be presented to the department Quality Lead and made available to staff and students on the appropriate module Blackboard sites.
Maximum Amount of Assessment by Level for new and modified provision
| Level of Study | Assessment Type | Maximum Total Wordcount/ Time |
|---|---|---|
| Foundation Year | CW Submitted and / or PR Scheduled | 12,000 words |
| PR Scheduled and / or EX Invigilated | 9 Hours | |
| Level 4, 5 and 6 | CW Submitted and / or PR Scheduled | 16,000 words (per level) |
| PR Scheduled and / or EX Invigilated | 12 Hours (per level) | |
| Level 7 | CW Submitted and / or PR Scheduled | 24,000 words |
| PR Scheduled and / or EX Invigilated | 6 Hours | |
| Integrated Masters L7 | An integrated masters normally has 120 credits at L7. Where there are fewer than 180 credits at L7 a pro rata amount should be used. Therefore, the L7 of an integrated masters would normally have a tariff of 16,000 words/ 12 hours. | |
| Points to Note: | This tariff is not additive: it is not 16,000 words PLUS 12 hours, it is either / or, or a pro rata amount of each | |
| Presentation | For all types of presentation 6 minutes of a student presentation would equate to 1000 words. | |
| Group Assessment | The length of a group assessment should not be a multiple of the suggested individual assessment length. Instead, course teams should consider an appropriate length or duration that may be marginally higher (max. 20%) than the tariffs stated above reflecting the shared input. | |
| Portfolio | A portfolio can be a combination of written and oral presentation, for example the task for a 20-credit module could consist of a related 12 minute presentation and 1000 word document. | |
Assessment categorisations for new and modified provision
| Type | Description | Examples | Information needed from academic staff | Extenuation that would apply |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CW Submitted | Piece of work (usually electronic) submitted before a specific deadline. | Essay, blog, video (inc. pre recorded presentation), artwork, dissertation, media artefacts, journal, lab report, logbook, portfolio, posters, reflective accounts, research proposal, problem sheet, stat report, website | Deadline Location for physical submissions (i.e., artwork, artefacts) | Extensions for 5 days (no evidence requested) RRAA can be submitted for repeat attempt. Work submitted within 24 hours of the deadline will be capped |
| PR Scheduled | Locally managed, time constrained, and often live events. Live events are usually supervised by an academic. | Presentation, OSCE, teaching observation, viva, phase test, in-module closed-book test, take-home test, time-bound report / case study (e.g. 24h to complete), MCQ, clinical observation, kitchen demonstration, exhibition, oral language assessment, walkthrough. | Schedule for the assessment to take place (for example, available timeslots) or release date and timing of assessment, plus final deadline for the completion of first sit | No extensions RRAA can be submitted for repeat attempt. Late submissions receive a zero mark. |
| EX Invigilated | Take place during the examination period and require formal invigilation. | Paper-based or computer based. Multiple choice, short answer, long answer, case study, problem based. | Rationale for exam as an assessment method (e.g. PSRB requirement) Verified exam papers | No extensions RRAA can be submitted for repeat attempt. Late submissions receive a zero mark. |
Word Limits
The word guidance provided above sets the maximum word count limit for all assessment tasks provided to students. Word guidance provide a clear steer to students of the number of words that are expected to undertake the assessment appropriately. Where a word limit is set (and applied as +/- 10% of the given word limit) and penalties applied (for example, only content up to the maximum word limit is marked), it must be clearly articulated to students how the word limit is managed. The feedback to students on an assessment which breaches the word limit must clearly show how the penalty has been applied. Courses must have a consistent course approach to any penalties set, including on joint awards.