Guidelines on Assessment OR EXAMINATION IN WELSH OR IN A LANGUAGE Other than the Language of Tuition AND, moderation of assessment
1. Definitions/Ensuring Quality and Standards/Process following appointment of an Assessment Advisor
1.1 What is an Assessment Advisor?
An external Assessment Advisor is normally an academic often from a different University who has agreed to act as a moderator for an assessment submitted in Welsh or other language. Assessment Advisors will be paid for their work, and Academic Quality Services can be contacted via externalexaminers@swansea.ac.uk where they will be able to provide further guidance on fees.
An Assessment Advisor will be required to:
- Moderate students’ work through the medium of Welsh/other language in line with the University’s moderation process and timeframe.
- Submit a moderator’s report.
An Assessment Advisor will not be required to:
- Carry out primary marking
- Contribute to the assessment questions
- Attend examination boards
Assessment Advisers are recruited solely to moderate students' work in the language in which they submitted. There is no further involvement at any stage.
1.2 Who is responsible for ensuring quality and standards of marking are maintained?
The module co-ordinator and Programme Director will assume responsibility for ensuring that the quality and standards of marking through the medium of Welsh/other language by Assessment Advisors is maintained. This is made possible through the moderator’s report.
1.3 What happens after we have appointed an Assessment Advisor?
The University will conduct a Right to Work Check to verify that every individual working for the University is eligible to work in the UK, prior to them commencing any work with the University. This requirement includes Assessment Advisors and is in accordance with UK Visa and Immigration, a department of the UK Government Home Office. The Assessment Advisor will be asked to present or email a copy of their identification to Academic Quality Services, usually a passport (and visa, if relevant), before they commence work with the University. The original documentation will need to be presented on the first visit to the University premises.
Should the nominee accept the role of Assessment Advisor, they will not normally be permitted to be appointed as an External Examiner in the same subject area for a minimum of five years. It may also be the case that any colleague in the same Department as the Assessment Advisor may not be considered sufficiently independent to act as an External Examiner for five years.
1.4 Moderation of Marking
The process for moderation of marking is detailed in the Assessment, Marking and Feedback Policy - Swansea University.
2. Assessment or Examination in Welsh
2.1 Assessments through the medium of Welsh
Irrespective of the language of tuition, students have a legal right under the Welsh Language Standards to submit work or be examined in Welsh and in accordance with the University’s Assessment, Marking and Feedback Policy - Swansea University.
These guidelines DO NOT apply to students pursuing modules in which proficiency/competency in another language must be demonstrated.
Students must submit an electronic form to the Faculty within four weeks of the start of the relevant module(s) to be permitted to sit an examination and/or submit assessed work in Welsh. The Faculty assessment team shall then forward these requests to the Examination Office and ensure provision regarding:
- The provision of question papers through the medium of English or Welsh;
- The necessary arrangements for the translation and/or marking of scripts in time for the inclusion of candidates’ results as appropriate;
- The engagement of a suitable person or persons to act as an assessment advisor or (at an approved fee and as a final resort) as translators.
2.2 Translation of Assessment Questions
Students will be provided with a bilingual examination paper. This approach is taken in order to ensure that the opportunity for students to be assessed in the language of their choosing does not compromise the student’s ability to achieve to their maximum.
2.3 Marking of assessed work submitted in Welsh
For programmes taught through the medium of English
2.3.1 Welsh Medium Assessment Framework
All students of Swansea University may submit assessed work in either English or Welsh. QAA has published updated guidance stating that Assessment in Welsh should be undertaken by internal and external examiners who are linguistically and academically competent to make judgements on the original text in Welsh. Therefore, to maintain the integrity of assessments submitted in Welsh, and follow QAA guidance the University will ensure wherever possible, that work is marked and feedback provided through the medium of Welsh entirely, in lieu of translation to English.
The University has established the following framework to manage the marking of assessments submitted through the medium of Welsh to ensure assessment integrity and compliance with the Welsh Language Standards.
2.3.2 What process should be followed when a student wishes to submit an assessment in Welsh?
Should a student at Swansea University elect to submit an assessment in Welsh, Faculties/Schools must ensure that they have the necessary expertise in place to enable a student to do so.
To ensure Faculties/Schools have sufficient time to put the necessary framework in place, it is essential that students alert their Faculty/School to their potential Welsh language submission as early as possible, and no later than four weeks from the start of the relevant module. Students who do not inform their Faculties/Schools may experience some delays in marking.
When a student submits an assessment in Welsh, Faculty Quality and Assessment teams should refer to the table below to identify the best solution and inform Faculty Welsh Language Leads of the student’s request.
| Scenario | Proposed Option(s) |
|---|---|
| Internal Welsh-speaking primary marker and moderator in place | No further action needed. Work is marked internally as standard. |
| Internal Welsh-speaking primary marker in place, without moderator | Faculty/School to source external Assessment Advisor to act as a moderator (Should the internal primary marker not be available, Faculties/Schools should revert to option 1 or 2 below) |
| No primary marker in place |
1) Source internal Welsh-speaking member of staff from cognate subject area to ascertain if they would be willing to act as a primary marker. The work will then be sent to an Assessment Advisor for moderation.
2) Work is translated and an internal member of staff acts as a primary marker, and the Welsh version of the work is sent to an Assessment Advisor for moderation and to ensure the integrity of the marking.
3) As a last resort the work is translated and the primary marking and moderation is carried out internally through the medium of English.
|
2.4 How can I find a potential Assessment Advisor?
Each Faculty/School will be provided with a list of potential Assessment Advisors and their disciplines by Academic Quality Services at the beginning of each academic year. Programme Directors in Faculties/Schools who require an Assessment Advisor should select up to two, complete the Nomination form, return it to Education Services and contact externalexaminers@swansea.ac.uk for guidance on fees and next steps. The School Education Lead will review the nominations and select the most appropriate Assessment Advisor and inform the Programme Director of the outcome. The potential Assessment Advisor should then be approached by the Programme Director to ascertain their availability to complete the work. The Pro-Vice Chancellor (Education) reserves the right to be able to choose an independent Assessment Advisor if considered necessary.
2.5 For programmes taught through the medium of Welsh
As a first principle, we encourage assignments to be marked by the individual teaching on that topic.
As a second principle, we encourage the appointment of a Welsh speaking External Examiner who is linguistically and academically competent in both Welsh and English to make judgements on the original language text or oral assessments. Welsh speaking competency is requested in the nomination form for External Examiners. The Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol also maintain a database of Welsh-speaking External Examiners to which Swansea University has access to assist in identifying appropriate expertise.
2.6 Good Practice
Where a bilingual External Examiner is appointed, it is good practice for the examiner to review assessments in English as well as Welsh to compare and confirm standards.
3. Assessments or examination through a language other than Welsh/English
In the case of students pursuing Modern Languages programmes, continuous assessment or examinations will be dependent on the task set within the module, and may be submitted in the target language or, in the student’s chosen language for study i.e. English or Welsh.
3.1
What process should be followed when a student submits an assessment?
To ensure Faculties/Schools have sufficient time to put the necessary framework in place, any extenuating circumstances should be shared within the Faculty as early as possible, and normally no later than four weeks from the start of the relevant module. The table below helps to identify the best solution for most eventualities.
Assessment Framework
| Scenario | Proposed Option(s) |
|---|---|
| Internal primary marker and moderator in languages other than Welsh/English in place | No further action needed. Work is marked internally as standard. |
| Internal primary marker in languages other than Welsh/English in place, without moderator | Faculty/School to source external Assessment Advisor to act as a moderator (Should the internal primary marker not be available, Faculties/Schools should revert to option 1 or 2 below) |
| No primary marker in place |
1) Source internal member of staff from cognate subject area to ascertain if they would be willing to act as a primary marker. The work will then be sent to an Assessment Advisor for moderation. 2) Work is translated and an internal member of staff acts as a primary marker, and the Welsh version of the work is sent to an Assessment Advisor for moderation and to ensure the integrity of the marking. 3) As a last resort the work is translated and the primary marking and moderation is carried out internally through the medium of English. |
3.2 Marking of assessed work submitted in a language other than Welsh/English
In the case of students pursuing Modern Languages programmes, internal and External Examiners must be competent in the relevant languages and therefore issues regarding assuring standards and translation matters (as outlined above for Welsh language submissions) are not applicable.
3.3 How can I find a potential Assessment Advisor?
Programme Directors in Faculties/Schools who require an Assessment Advisor should select up to two, complete the Nomination form, return it to Education Services and contact externalexaminers@swansea.ac.uk for guidance on fees and next steps. The School Education Lead will review the nominations and select the most appropriate Assessment Advisor and inform the Programme Director of the outcome. The potential Assessment Advisor should then be approached by the Programme Director to ascertain their availability to complete the work. The Pro-Vice Chancellor (Education) reserves the right to be able to choose an independent Assessment Advisor if considered necessary.