This is the INGOT markbook assessment page. Here you assign learner marks for a unit.

When you first view this page, if you are sure that the learners in this group will be taking this unit, click the SAVE button even if you have not yet entered any marks. This will link the learners in this group to this unit so that when they create accounts on the learning site they will automatically get a list of the units that have been assigned to them. Since there will be an increasingly large number of units available, we only want units that the learner will actually attempt to appear in their unit lists in their accounts on the community learning site.

What are the valid marks?

INGOT 1.0 Unit criteria receive numerical marks, where the criteria can have values 0, 1 or 2. This is an old legacy system and is being phased out so most people can simply ignore it. All other sectors use the values "N", "L", "S" or "H" (for "No Evidence", "Lower", "Secure" and "Higher"). Please consult the INGOT Handbook for details and www.theingots.org/community/handbook2. The Mark Book provides a simple way of entering marks against criteria in order to support a judgement about when the learner is ready for a certificate.

How do I enter marks?

There are various ways you can enter marks in the Mark Book:

1. You can upload a CSV file. Some assessors find it convenient to enter marks on a spreadsheet, off-line, and upload the spreadsheet later. To do this, first click on Download CSV. That will give you a CSV file in the right format for uploading later to the website. The main disadvantage of this is that the progress reporting and tracking facilities rely on assessments being entered at the time the learner demonstrates they have gained the specific competence associated with the criterion. If assessments are entered in a block, all at the same time, the progress graph will show a vertical line from 0 to 100%. Progress tracking is not mandatory so it is up to the user to decide whether or not this is important to them.
2. You can edit an entire row or column at once. Click on the learner's name or column header to select the row or column. Put a value on the text box and click Apply. Again the same implications apply in relation to the progress tracker as described in 1. above.
3. You can edit all criteria marks at once. Click on Select All. Put a value on the text box and click Apply. Again the same implications apply in relation to the progress tracker as described in 1. above.
4. You can edit one mark at a time:

• Standard mode: When you click on a mark, a text box appears. Enter the new mark on the textbox and click OK.

This is the safest way to operate if you want to use the progress tracking facilities.

• One-Click mode: Put a value on the main text box. When you click on a mark, the mark is updated automatically.

The one-click editing mode is most convenient when you want to give the same mark to several learners but don't want to select an entire row or column. Again be careful about the implications for progress tracking if this is important to you.

If you use the on-line evidence system on the learning site, and/or progress tracker, when you agree a grade for one or more criteria based on the evidence that the learner provides, the Mark Book will be automatically updated. The Mark Book will only show N, L, S, H even though the progress tracker will give a finer grading of the "L" mark as a percentage towards becoming secure in a particular criterion.  You can still edit grades manually but you should be sure that the grades in the Mark Book reflect the evidence provided by the learner.

Progress Tracking

There are two aspects to progress tracking. The first is to track progress through a unit, based on the number of criteria that are "S" or "H". If there are 10 criteria in a unit and the learner has achieved 5 of them they will have made 50% progress towards achieving the unit. The second progress measure is against an individual criterion. Moving from N through to S requires a period of time at "L". This could be zero if the learner immediately provides assessment evidence that demonstrates secure competence or it could be a year at "L" or more. On the Mark Book site we simply record L but for those that want a way or recording progress in finer detail, the learning site supports a system that allows the assessor to enter a percentage instead of L. This percentage is not shown in the Mark Book Site but it will be shown and used in learner and assessor accounts on the learning site for generating progress graphs, charts and reports should these be needed.

How do I save marks?

To save marks, click on the Save button. Note that you have to click Save even if you uploaded the marks via a CSV file. This is intended to give you an opportunity to verify that the marks were imported correctly before saving. "Save" copies the current marks for the learners in this unit to the server. If you switch off the computer or come out of the unit screen before saving you will lose the edits made in the current session.

What is the "Status" column?

The status column is information to help guide you through the certification process. It gives you an indication of where the learner is, and what he or she needs to get a certificate for this unit. In this column you can also see which learners have already received the award, and which learners have an award requested that is waiting for moderator approval. If there is any error in the marks entered  (e.g. a mark out of range) that will also appear here.

How do I request awards?

Once the status column says that the learner has passed the unit, you can click on Request awards. The Mark Book will automatically request an award for ALL learners who have demonstrated secure competence against all the criteria.

Note: You must have all the marks saved before requesting awards. So as a routine click the save button before requesting awards.

Notes

Notes are available so that the assessor can make any notes they want and link the note to the learner's record. This is not mandatory, it is simply provided as a convenience to assessors.

ID

The learner ID is important as it is the main way that the system links them between the Mark Book site and the Learning Site.

I have more questions

We are happy to help. If you have any questions, or need direct assistance, please don't hesitate to contact us: Phone: +44 (0)1827 305940 Email: support@theingots.org