The Student Room Group

Coursework Marking for Access

When I started my Access course the tutor set out the marking criteria for coursework.

"Level 3 coursework is to be handed in by the set deadline. If your coursework fails to reach the requirement it will be graded at level 2. You will then have 1 week to re-complete this coursework and re-submit it. Re-submitted coursework will not be eligible for anything higher than a Level 3 - Pass grade."

This is fine. However, on several occasions people have been allowed to re-submit work that has previously not reached level 3 and are then being awarded level 3 - merit and distinction for it, the excuse being that there was only 'one small thing' that they missed out.

So far ive done four pieces of work and ive got 4 distinctions. But i've achieved my distinctions through hard work and being organised, not through submitting sub-standard work and getting it remarked.

As far as im aware universities judge applicants on a student by student basis and therefore it shouldnt matter what anyone else gets, but only what i achieve myself. This said i cant help but feel that its unfair for me to have to work so hard, only for someone else to achieve the same as me with additional help. I also feel that it devalues my distinction grade if they are willing to hand them out to people that clearly arent capable of doing the work independently.

Anyone else experienced this on their Access course? Should i be annoyed about thins? Am i within my rights to speak to the course co-ordinator or is it the college that sets their own guidelines regarding remarking of coursework?

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Reply 1
I've had this happen as well. Two of my teachers have it so that if you have to do corrections you can only get a pass grade in that essay or exam while the marking has always seemed fair. While two others allow for some mistakes and allow to do corrections and be able to attain M/D still. Though only if they don't meet a criteria on the front of the booklet. If they've not done well but met everything they can't do anything. That bit to me sounds a little unfair, knowing people who got quite a few corrections to do yet earnt a higher grade that someone who didnt get anything wrong but lacked detail on a couple of questions..
(edited 13 years ago)
Reply 2
I know what the both of you mean... We have had many "exceptions" on our Access Course and some people seem to be getting way too many second chances or extra time. My hope is that their Reference will be writte accordingly as that is one of the things that counts most on an Access Course.

It has also happened that I have answered a question the same as another student, whereby I was the only one to receive critisism and told that it could be expanded upon. Of people get into the habit of thinking they don't have to work to the deadlines, I'm sure theyll struggle to reach the grades they need for Uni. Either way the marking isn't always fair, but I guess as long as it gets us into Uni thats all I'm looking for. I have considered complaining, though Im sure it wouldnt get me very far and is more likely to reflect badly on me infront of tutors/teachers.

Hang in there!
Reply 3
I have been less than impressed with some of the marking on my course as well.

The biggest issue for me is getting feedback on any work...... The guidelines state 14 day turn around for tutors to give feedback on work, however, I have submitted some work at the start of December and still not got a grade. Other people have also had to wait 6+ weeks for grading.

The number of deadline extensions given is also worrying me quite a lot. Myself and a few others get work done early (often before deadline), other people who aren't getting things done moan at the tutors and get a week extension and help on things they are 'stuck' with. (unfair advantage IMO).

The other problem is of course that the tutors cannot move on and teach new stuff if people are still working on assignments................ I can now see work seriously backing up towards the end of the course - of course that adds to the stress because nobody will have any idea of they are going to achieve the required number of distinctions / meet their offers until the last moment!

I can only hope that the references given by tutors reflect the fact that some people nail a merit or distintion first time around where as others need 1...2...3 submissions and a lot of help.

I probably sound really arrogant or nasty.... but I'm not, I like everyone on my course, we are a small group and get on well....... I just think it is unfair that the marking/deadlines are not consistent.
(edited 13 years ago)
Reply 4
Are you paying for your course BigV?

4-6 weeks for a result would infuriate me. Compared to the problems that youre having i suppose my course is actually not that bad!

I am now atleast one lesson behind in statistics because she couldnt move on because people were not capable of doing the coursework.

Do you think that there is any way to resolve these problems?
Reply 5
Original post by josh_v
Are you paying for your course BigV?

4-6 weeks for a result would infuriate me. Compared to the problems that youre having i suppose my course is actually not that bad!

I am now atleast one lesson behind in statistics because she couldnt move on because people were not capable of doing the coursework.

Do you think that there is any way to resolve these problems?


I did not have to pay because it is my first level 3 qualification.

To be honest I don't think there is anything we can do apart from keep working hard to produce high quality work....... everything else is our of our control so....

I do appreciate that the tutors have a lot of work to do.... but it does get frustrating... hence coming on here to have a moan about things :redface:
Reply 6
Original post by BigV
I have been less than impressed with some of the marking on my course as well.

The biggest issue for me is getting feedback on any work...... The guidelines state 14 day turn around for tutors to give feedback on work, however, I have submitted some work at the start of December and still not got a grade. Other people have also had to wait 6+ weeks for grading.

The number of deadline extensions given is also worrying me quite a lot. Myself and a few others get work done early (often before deadline), other people who aren't getting things done moan at the tutors and get a week extension and help on things they are 'stuck' with. (unfair advantage IMO).

The other problem is of course that the tutors cannot move on and teach new stuff if people are still working on assignments................ I can now see work seriously backing up towards the end of the course - of course that adds to the stress because nobody will have any idea of they are going to achieve the required number of distinctions / meet their offers until the last moment!

I can only hope that the references given by tutors reflect the fact that some people nail a merit or distintion first time around where as others need 1...2...3 submissions and a lot of help.

I probably sound really arrogant or nasty.... but I'm not, I like everyone on my course, we are a small group and get on well....... I just think it is unfair that the marking/deadlines are not consistent.


With the exception of a couple of people with learning difficulties, at my college if you miss a deadline you can only get a pass grade for your work, and only if it's submitted within the two weeks following the deadline. If someone hands in a piece of work that won't pass, they can re-submit it, but can still only obtain a pass.

The access courses seem to vary widely across the country. I'm wondering what the national guidelines are for late work/re-submissions.
Reply 7
Original post by ½+½
With the exception of a couple of people with learning difficulties, at my college if you miss a deadline you can only get a pass grade for your work, and only if it's submitted within the two weeks following the deadline. If someone hands in a piece of work that won't pass, they can re-submit it, but can still only obtain a pass.

The access courses seem to vary widely across the country. I'm wondering what the national guidelines are for late work/re-submissions.



I get the feeling that many colleges fudge the guidelines when it comes to late work / re-submissions. You are supposed to only get 3 days to correct any referred work but I hear that some places are more lenient than others.

(although in fairness I have not seen any rule bending at my college. )
At the college where i went the tutors gave so much extra help to people that wouldn't have passed the course, just so they could bump up their "# of students who passed the course". I think if they were fair then lots of deadlines wouldn't have been handed out, some people wouldn't have had things explain over and over to them. This was because my college needed to pass a certain amount or they'd have their funding cut, or something like that :/

My college was a complete joke. I attended from 2008-2009, the last year they marked with a pass or fail, so no distinctions then.
Reply 9
Original post by ½+½
With the exception of a couple of people with learning difficulties, at my college if you miss a deadline you can only get a pass grade for your work, and only if it's submitted within the two weeks following the deadline. If someone hands in a piece of work that won't pass, they can re-submit it, but can still only obtain a pass.

The access courses seem to vary widely across the country. I'm wondering what the national guidelines are for late work/re-submissions.


This is supposed to be the same as my course. Just a shame its not implemented properly as it is in yours.

Original post by BigV
I get the feeling that many colleges fudge the guidelines when it comes to late work / re-submissions. You are supposed to only get 3 days to correct any referred work but I hear that some places are more lenient than others.

(although in fairness I have not seen any rule bending at my college. )


We are allowed 1 week, although i think 3 days is much fairer.
Reply 10
Original post by Carlito o.O
At the college where i went the tutors gave so much extra help to people that wouldn't have passed the course, just so they could bump up their "# of students who passed the course". I think if they were fair then lots of deadlines wouldn't have been handed out, some people wouldn't have had things explain over and over to them. This was because my college needed to pass a certain amount or they'd have their funding cut, or something like that :/

My college was a complete joke. I attended from 2008-2009, the last year they marked with a pass or fail, so no distinctions then.


In some ways pass or fail would be a lot less stressful.... but obviously merit and Ddstinction grades were developed to give better students the opportunity to make their application stand out more............ it is just a shame that the grades don't seem to be applied consistently across all colleges.


I find at my college that everyone (including me) needs everything explaining 2...3...4 times...... but only because many of the assignment briefs are badly worded and ambigous.... much time is wasted trying to establish exactly what is required to meet the standard expected for top grades.
(edited 13 years ago)
Original post by BigV
In some ways pass or fail would be a lot less stressful.... but obviously merit and Ddstinction grades were developed to give better students the opportunity to make their application stand out more............ it is just a shame that the grades don't seem to be applied consistently across all colleges.


I find at my college that everyone (including me) needs everything explaining 2...3...4 times...... but only because many of the assignment briefs are badly worded and ambigous.... much time is wasted trying to establish exactly what is required to meet the standard expected for top grades.


For each module we had criteria sheets, so for each subject we knew what had to be done. Take random subject...human biology. We'd look at out criteria sheets and know we have x amount of essays and a short exam (fill in the blanks on this diagram). For each essay we'd know what to put in it as we only had to look at the criteria sheet. If we included all that then we'd pass. Well, as long as we put it in a clearly understandable format, didn't just copy paste, etc etc.

I'd be more specific but i blanked out my Access course as it was such a waste of time, plus i threw out all my paperwork and stuff :smile: I suppose the only thing my Access taught me was to be self reliant and how to do essays better.
Reply 12
Original post by BigV
I find at my college that everyone (including me) needs everything explaining 2...3...4 times...... but only because many of the assignment briefs are badly worded and ambigous.... much time is wasted trying to establish exactly what is required to meet the standard expected for top grades.


This is my main problem with the Access course - this is an example of the "criteria" that we're having to achive in order to get the various grades:

Pass - The learner will demonstrate a good understanding and application of the assignment topic

Merit - The learner will demonstrate a very good understanding and application of the assignment topic

Distinction - The learner will demonstrate an excellent understanding and application of the assignment topic

Now how ambiguous can you get? And who is it that gets to decide whether something is "good", "very good" or "excellent"?
Reply 13
Original post by TomU
This is my main problem with the Access course - this is an example of the "criteria" that we're having to achive in order to get the various grades:

Pass - The learner will demonstrate a good understanding and application of the assignment topic

Merit - The learner will demonstrate a very good understanding and application of the assignment topic

Distinction - The learner will demonstrate an excellent understanding and application of the assignment topic

Now how ambiguous can you get? And who is it that gets to decide whether something is "good", "very good" or "excellent"?


That is exactly what we get as well. It is massively broad marking criteria and each tutor will have a different opinion on what is good or excellent.

To be honest I feel a bit fed up with the whole organisation of my course at the moment........ so I just want to crack on and get the required distinctions ASAP.
Reply 14
Original post by BigV
I just want to crack on and get the required distinctions ASAP.


Just be sure that the quality of your work is "excellent" and you'll be fine :wink:
Reply 15
We have similar problems with grading, and also some odd situations.

For example, one teacher failed to produce either a written assignment description or grading descriptors for a recent L3, 3 credit end of unit assignment.
Several different groups of students were set the same assignment - with verbal instructions only and just 7 days to complete the assignment - during different teaching sessions.
The teacher concerned then failed everyone who was set the assignment on one particular day saying they hadn't adhered to the assignment brief as they had all missed the same element from their written analysis.
The students all swear that their brief did not mention this missing element - and certainly their notes seem to prove it.
They have been told that they are permitted to re-submit this work including the missing element for a pass at level 3 AS LONG AS THEY DON'T TELL ANYONE ELSE what is happening.
Of course they haven't got a leg to stand on as they stand to fail a Level 3, 3 credit unit if they mention this to any other staff or lodge an official complaint.

Thankfully I am not part of this debacle, but have completely lost faith in the teacher involved as a result. (By the way, I hope that all made sense!)
Reply 16
Original post by k8k
We have similar problems with grading, and also some odd situations.

For example, one teacher failed to produce either a written assignment description or grading descriptors for a recent L3, 3 credit end of unit assignment.
Several different groups of students were set the same assignment - with verbal instructions only and just 7 days to complete the assignment - during different teaching sessions.
The teacher concerned then failed everyone who was set the assignment on one particular day saying they hadn't adhered to the assignment brief as they had all missed the same element from their written analysis.
The students all swear that their brief did not mention this missing element - and certainly their notes seem to prove it.
They have been told that they are permitted to re-submit this work including the missing element for a pass at level 3 AS LONG AS THEY DON'T TELL ANYONE ELSE what is happening.
Of course they haven't got a leg to stand on as they stand to fail a Level 3, 3 credit unit if they mention this to any other staff or lodge an official complaint.

Thankfully I am not part of this debacle, but have completely lost faith in the teacher involved as a result. (By the way, I hope that all made sense!)


I wouldn't stand for that..... I would be going to the college principal or complaining to the OCN (or whoever is in charge of moderating / awarding the Diploma for that particular course.)

A whole class vs one teacher cannot be wrong, obviously the teacher has not done his job.
Reply 17
Original post by BigV
I wouldn't stand for that..... I would be going to the college principal or complaining to the OCN (or whoever is in charge of moderating / awarding the Diploma for that particular course.)

A whole class vs one teacher cannot be wrong, obviously the teacher has not done his job.


You are quite right, but it is not my argument to have as I wasn't directly involved.
Tbh the whole course seems to be disorganised and has delivered much less than was promised so far. Fingers crossed uni will be better - that's if we make it that far.
Reply 18
Original post by k8k
We have similar problems with grading, and also some odd situations.

For example, one teacher failed to produce either a written assignment description or grading descriptors for a recent L3, 3 credit end of unit assignment.
Several different groups of students were set the same assignment - with verbal instructions only and just 7 days to complete the assignment - during different teaching sessions.
The teacher concerned then failed everyone who was set the assignment on one particular day saying they hadn't adhered to the assignment brief as they had all missed the same element from their written analysis.
The students all swear that their brief did not mention this missing element - and certainly their notes seem to prove it.
They have been told that they are permitted to re-submit this work including the missing element for a pass at level 3 AS LONG AS THEY DON'T TELL ANYONE ELSE what is happening.
Of course they haven't got a leg to stand on as they stand to fail a Level 3, 3 credit unit if they mention this to any other staff or lodge an official complaint.

Thankfully I am not part of this debacle, but have completely lost faith in the teacher involved as a result. (By the way, I hope that all made sense!)


This is very shocking.

Im glad that my teachers are not that unprofessional.

I think that the worst part is telling them to keep it a secret. Im sure people wouldnt begrudge them a few extra days if they knew that they had not been given the correct assignment brief.
Original post by TomU
This is my main problem with the Access course - this is an example of the "criteria" that we're having to achive in order to get the various grades:

Pass - The learner will demonstrate a good understanding and application of the assignment topic

Merit - The learner will demonstrate a very good understanding and application of the assignment topic

Distinction - The learner will demonstrate an excellent understanding and application of the assignment topic

Now how ambiguous can you get? And who is it that gets to decide whether something is "good", "very good" or "excellent"?


all that stated above doesnt make a lot of sense TomU to me.I know at the moment where exactly i stand to acheive a Pass on my Pre-Access course but when i come to do the next level 3 diploma that is graded pass,merit and distinction.How can i expect to achieve Merits and the like if the criteria is like above.How will i know i have achieved a Merit or Distinction:eek:I take my hat off to you and the rest who are achieveing these grades.I dont know how you do it.:smile:
(edited 13 years ago)

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