class: middle, centre background-image: url(marking.jpg) background-size: cover .bigtext[Induction Session for Maths Markers] --- # Outline * Ethos and Expectations * Lecturer responsibilities * Aims of Effective Feedback * Marking Conventions * Recording marks and communicating with lecturers --- # Ethos and Expectations * Department will * Provide students with a research-led education in mathematics, training them as part of a community of professional practice. * Provide opportunities for students to develop further their general skills in communications, problem-solving and critical thinking and the ability to work independently. --- # Ethos and Expectations * Students will * Engage actively with the learning opportunities provided for them. * Take responsibility for their own learning, working to understand material through independent study and practicing skills through assigned exercises. --- # Lecturer responsibilities * The lecturer makes it clear to the markers when and where marked work is to be collected * The lecturer provides the marker with both the questions and solutions for the assignment * The lecturer provides a marksheet for the marker to record the marks (post-graduate markers can enter marks via the records programme) * The lecturer should make it clear to the markers when and where the marked work is to be returned (allowing a reasonable time for the marking to be completed) --- # Picking up the Work * For all 2H courses and First Year Auxiliary Courses (SMA, SMB, MES, Discrete, Stats) work can be picked up from the Lockers in CM117. Master Keys for the Lockers will be provided. The room should remain unlocked. --- # Aims of Feedback * To identify strengths and weaknesses in the students understanding * To give the student some idea of how they are coping with the course * To rectify misconceptions by correcting errors * To deepen and broaden the student's understanding of the material by providing alternative solutions, or added insights * To improve the student's skills in presenting mathematics, by correcting notation and layout --- # Effective Feedback Correct Solutions often require the least feedback. But even in this case: * Encourage with much praise (a box of gold stars?) * If possible suggest improvements in presentation or proof, or add insight to a correct solution * A solution may still be correct, even if it is completely different to the model solution provided by the lecturer * Note that a correct solution may look NOTHING LIKE THE MODEL SOLUTION --- # Effective Feedback Incorrect Solutions always require more than a cross! * Indicate where the solution has gone wrong * Indicate enough of the correct idea to enable the student to figure out how to proceed correctly * If the solution to part of a question is missing, suggest how to begin * Do not get fed up writing the same thing on scripts. Students tend to trip up at the same points, but the last student you mark deserves the same quality of feedback as the first --- # Effective Feedback * **Never ever be insulting!** Don't write remarks such as "idiot", "how can you be so thick", etc. --- # Marking Conventions * USE A RED PEN (and preferably not felt-pen if it shows up on other side of page) * Correct statements should be marked with a tick * At the end of each section * At important stages of the proof/calculation * Incorrect statements can be marked with a cross, or with a line, or an omission sign * Explanations/ Indications of correct proof should be written near the mistake if room. Use P.T.O or arrows and put lengthier statements at the end of script if there is no room elsewhere --- # Marking Conventions * Write mark (A-E) at the top of the first page of the script, together with a summary, e.g. * "very good" * "you should practise identifying different types of first order ODE's" * "calculation basically fine, but presentation rather scrappy" * No intermediate marks are given --- # Marking * A = 80% - 100% excellent, minimal problems * B = 60% - 80% good, minor problems * C = 40% - 60% pass, serious problems * D = 20% - 40% fail, extremely serious problems * E = 0% - 20% complete failure Note that D,E count as a fail, so think carefully about the C,D borderline. --- # Recording the Marks * UG/external markers will be given a hard copy of the mark-sheet to fill in * Add any names not on the list at the bottom of the sheet by hand * Alert the lecturer to any script without a name on it * PG markers will use the records programme to enter the marks --- # Returning the Work * Return the work by the agreed deadline * For UG markers, preferably do this in person * The lecturer is "mentor" to the UG markers, and checks and provides feedback on the marking * The marker can alert the lecturer to particular problems that have been flagged by the assignment ("the students haven't a clue about Fourier series") * The marker can alert the lecturer to gross instances of plagiarism (X's work looks just like Y's, clearly Z has a copy of the solutions) --- # Exercise * <a href="https://www.maths.dur.ac.uk/~dma0saa/DoE/induction-october-markers/dyn_correction1.pdf" >Q1</a> * <a href="https://www.maths.dur.ac.uk/~dma0saa/DoE/induction-october-markers/dyn_correction2.pdf" >Q2</a> --- # Questions?