HANDBOOK FOR EXTERNAL EXAMINERS

2015/16

ACADEMIC REGISTRY

CONTENTS

Section 1NOMINATION AND APPOINTMENT

Section 2ROLE AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Section 3REPORTS

Section 4‘CAUSES FOR CONCERN’ PROCEDURES

Section 5TERMINATION OF APPOINTMENT

Section 6FEES AND EXPENSES

Appendix 1EXTERNAL EXAMINERS FEE/EXPENSE CLAIM FORM

Appendix 2STATEMENT OF FEES PROFORMA

Appendix 3ROLE AND REMIT OF EDGE HILL ASSESSMENT BOARDS

Appendix 4ON-LINE REPORT GUIDANCE

Appendix 5CONTACTS LIST

INTRODUCTION

Degree-awardingbodies are responsible for the quality of their educational programmes and the standard of the awards to which they lead and the external examiner system within UK higher education is one of the principal means for assuring both. External examiners are expert witnesses whose authority is derived from their knowledge of the subject discipline and experience of assessmentat higher education level. The external examinerisalso an independent witness who will not compromised by a prior association with the programme team or by some reciprocal arrangement with their home institution.

Edge Hill University’s external examiner system addresses the Expectation of UK Quality Code for Higher EducationChapter B7 on External Examiningthat “Higher education providers make scrupulous use of external examiners”[1]. It also takes account of Expectation A5 of the Code which states that “Higher educationproviders ensure independent and external participation in the management ofthreshold academic standards”[2].

External examiners are appointed by the University in accordance with the criteria set out in UKQCHEChapter B7 and provide informative comment and recommendations on:

  • Whether the University is maintaining the academic standards it has set for its awards in relation to the national threshold standards defined by the Framework for Higher Education Qualifications (FHEQ) and subject benchmark statements and Edge Hill’s own Academic Regulations[3][4].
  • Comparability of academic standards and student achievement with other UK higher education providers.
  • The rigour, equity and fairness of assessment of intended learning outcomes.
  • The quality of summative written feedback to students.
  • The conduct and transparency of assessment processes including internal moderation and the operation of assessment boards.
  • Evidence of good practice and innovation in learning, teaching and assessment and opportunities to enhance the quality of learning opportunities provided to students.

External examiners are appointed to all Edge Hill University modules that lead to the award of credit at Level 5 and above (and also at Levels 3 and 4where prescribed by professional bodies or otherwise approved at validation[5]).With the exception of dissertation, project and ‘shell’ modules where varying subject expertise may be required, no module is normally assigned more than one examiner except where the number of students makes sampling too large for one individual and in such cases examiners will work together to ensure parity and consistency in moderation. Provision delivered across multiple sites, e.g. by collaborative partner organisations, is normally assigned a single examiner.Examiners produce an annual report to the University on the provision to which they have been assignedandattend the relevant assessment boards[6] where access to complete student profiles enables confirmation of standards at qualification award level.

This chapter provides guidance on:

  • The nomination and appointment of external examiners (Section 1);
  • Their role and responsibilities (2);
  • The production and consideration of external examiner reports (3);
  • Access to internal and external ‘causes for concern’ procedures (4);
  • Arrangements for the termination of external examiner appointments (5).

1. NOMINATION AND APPOINTMENT

UK-wide criteria for the appointment of external examiners (QAA)

The national criteria set outin UKQCHE Chapter B7 ensure that external examiners are capable of exercising impartial, independent and expert judgement to secure the standards of provision against national reference points[7] and institutions’ own regulations, and comparability with the standards ofother higher education providers. Individualsseeking appointment as Edge Hill external examinersare expected to demonstrate appropriate evidence of the following:

  • Competence and experience in the fields covered by the module/ programme of study.
  • Sufficient standing, credibility and breadth of experience within their discipline to be able to command the respect of academic peers and, where appropriate, professional peers.
  • Knowledge and understanding of the UK sector-agreed reference points for the setting and maintenance of academic standards (Framework for Higher Education Qualifications, Foundation Degree Qualification Benchmark, Master’s Degree Characteristics and subject benchmark statements) and familiarity with the standard to be expected of students in relation to their award.
  • Competence and experience relating to the design and operationof assessment tasks appropriate to their subject.
  • Awareness of current developments in the design and delivery of programmes in their subject.
  • Competence and experience relating to the enhancement of the student learning experience in their subject.
  • Fluency in the English language[8].

The individual’s ‘standing, credibility and breadth of experience’ may be indicated by:

  • Their present post and place of work;
  • The range and scope of their experience across higher education/professions;
  • Their current and recent active involvement in research/scholarly/professional activities in the relevant field of study.

The appointment of external examiners at Edge Hill University

External examiners are appointed from among academic staff of UK higher education institutions and are academically qualified to at least the level of the qualification in the subjectto be examined. While a nominee’s standing and credibility may be determined in part by their seniority within their home institution, this does preclude the nomination of other appropriately-qualified individuals and the nomination form[9]shoulddescribe the individual's suitability for the role. Where possible, appointees without previous external examiner experience join an experienced team of examiners or work initially alongside an experienced examiner on a related module/programme. If the individual has no previous experience of external examining their nomination should be supported by evidence of:

  • Other types of ‘externality’[10]; or
  • Extensive experience of internal moderation or verification of assessment within their home institution; or
  • Other relevant and recent experience likely to support them in the examiner role, e.g.participation in their home institution’s validation, monitoring and review processes.

The appointment of external examiners from outwith the higher education sector may be appropriate in certain circumstances,e.g.to provide specific industrial or professional expertise. In such cases nominations will describe the extent and relevance of the individual’sknowledge and experience, including any professional recognition, and their familiarity with the design, delivery and assessment of higher education programmes. Where an individual from industry is nominated to work in tandem with an academic examiner from a higher education institution this is taken into account when considering the former’s application. External examiners should normally hold no more than two external examinerships concurrently and an individual who already holds two such positions would require special justification for appointment to an Edge Hill examinership.

Nomination

Faculty Quality Officers alertacademicdepartments/areas whenan external examiner nomination is required for new provision or where an existing examiner’s term of office is about to end[11].Heads of department complete and submit to their Faculty a nomination formaccompanied by an academic curriculum vitae detailing their nominee’s employment history, roles and responsibilities and previous and current research and scholarly activity. The essential requirement of an external examiner nomination is that it provides sufficient information to enable a judgement to be made against the criteria for appointment and where this is incomplete it may delay the nominee’s approval.Nominationsare approved in the first instance by the PVC Dean or Associate Dean of Faculty before being submitted to the Academic Registry[12] which logs their receipt and forwards them to the Academic Quality & Development Unit for consideration by the next meeting of the External Examiners Sub-Committee

(EESC)[13]. EESC ensures that the University’s criteria for the nomination and appointment of examiners are observed and that nominations are assessedconsistently and rigorously.

Restrictions and ‘conflicts of interest’

External examiners should not be involved in delivering modules or programmes at the University, advising students about them, their examination and assessment, or have been a consultant to Edge Hill validation[14] within the last three years. Higher education institutionsdo not appoint as external examiners anyone in the following categories or circumstances:

  • A member of a governing body or of a committee or a current employee of the appointing institution or one of its collaborative partners.
  • Anyone with a close professional, contractual or personal relationship with a member of staff or student involved with the programme of study.
  • Anyone required to assess colleagues who are recruited as students to the programme of study.
  • Anyone who is or knows they will be in a position to influence significantly the future of students on the programme of study.
  • Anyone significantly involved in recent or current substantive collaborative research activities with a member of staff closely involved in the delivery, management or assessment of the programme(s) or modules in question.

Other restrictions include:

  • A reciprocal arrangement involving cognate provision at another institution.
  • The succession of an external examiner by a colleague from the same department of the same institution.
  • The appointment of more than one external examiner from the same department of the same institution.
  • The appointment of former staff or students as external examiners until five years have elapsedsince their departure from the institution or after all students taught by or with them have completed their programme (whichever is the longer).

Whereexceptionallyany of these restrictions needs to be relaxed – for example, in the case of discipline areas that are small and specialist and where the pool of potential examiners is extremelyrestricted – this should be specified clearly in the nomination form andthe measures already taken to recruit a suitable individual described.Aformer external examiner may be nominated for re-appointmentonly in most exceptional circumstances and after at least five years have elapsed since the end of their previous term of office.

Appointment

EESC considers external examiner nominations and recommends appointments to the Academic Quality Enhancement Committee which are approved by Chair’s Action and reported to the next AQEC meeting. On the instruction of the University’s Directorate, all nominations must normally have been approved before the start of the academic session in which the appointee is due to commence their duties.Approved nominations are returned to the Academic Registry which sends the appointee a formal letter, copied to the Head of Department/Area and Faculty Office.Appointments normally commence in September although January commencement may be specified when seeking EESC approval.The standard term of office for an external examiner is four years although an exceptional extension of one yearispermitted by application to EESC[15], for example where a programme is in the process of closing and there is no more than one year of teaching remaining.

The University undertakes to ensure that all examiners are informed about organisational procedures and practices.New appointees receive written confirmation of the provision to which they have been assigned,in addition to:

  • A copy of the University’s Academic Regulations[16].
  • The External Examiners Handbook[17]incorporating guidance contained in this chapter with accompanying information on fees, operation of assessment boards and key institutional contacts.

Newappointeesare advised to inform their employer of their appointment and are invited to visit the University in advance of taking up their duties. An annual central induction event is organised by the Academic Registry in January and is video-recorded for subsequent viewing via the University’s website[18]. Students are informed[19] of the name, position and home institution of their external examinersin line with UKQCHE Chapter B7 butare advised that entering into direct correspondence with examiners is in all circumstances prohibited[20].

Module changes and extension of duties

Where an external examiner has been assigned to modules that combine to form a programme or ‘portfolio’ of cognate subject modules, the replacement or addition of modules does not require separate approval by EESC. However, the host Faculty will describe (in its Faculty Academic Quality Statement[21]) its process for approving such changes or extensions to an existing examiner’s duties, ensuring that:

  • Any new modules are within the individual’s subject expertise (where they are not, the Faculty will nominate an additional examinerfor approval by EESC in the usual manner);
  • Where modules are added, the examiner’s workload remains sustainable such that the totality of modules assigned to them receivessufficient scrutiny;
  • The Academic Registry and EESC are notified of the change or extension to the examiner’s duties.

2. ROLE AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Overview of role and responsibilities

The responsibilitiesof an Edge Hill University external examiner aredescribedin full below and the Academic Registry, Faculties, academic departments/areas and programme teams ensure that appropriate arrangements are in place to supportappointeesin discharging them. Programme teams provide their examiners with the information they need to perform their duties (see below).

Examiners normally visit the University at least once a year to moderateassessedcoursework and examination scripts although further mid-year visits may be required for programmes with a performance, practical or professional element or for cohorts withvariable/multiple or non-standardcompletion times. Module examiners attend module assessment boards where the detailed discussion of standards takes place. In the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Award Board Examiners ensure the rigour of the process underpinning the conferment of awards through the application of the Academic Regulations. In the Faculty of Education, Chief External Examiners represent module examiners at progression and award boards and ensure the rigour of the process underpinning the conferment of awards. In the Faculty of Health and Social Care where module and progression and award boards are combined, all examiners are in attendance and have access to complete student profiles to confirm process and standards at award level.

In producing their annual reports (see section 3) examiners comment on the fairness and consistency of assessment boards’ decisions and their adherence to the Academic Regulations including the use of discretion and treatment of extenuating mitigating circumstances claims and cases of academic malpractice. If in highly exceptional circumstances examiners are unable to attend any of the assessment boards at which their presence is formally required they are requested to be available by other means such as viateleconference or Skype.

Primary role of external examiners

Chapter B7 of the UKQuality Code for Higher Education requires higher education providers to communicate to external examiners their role, powers and responsibilities including the extent of their authority at assessment boards. The principal responsibility of examiners at Edge Hill University is to confirm that academic standards are appropriately set and maintained and therefore, their principal duties are to:

  • Review and approve examination papers that contribute to a student’s final award[22] and any other assessment material as agreed between the examiner and the programme team.
  • Moderate samples of work that have been marked and internally moderated[23]in order to be satisfied that students have beengraded fairlythrough the use ofmarking criteria and in accordance with the University’s Academic Regulations.
  • In their reports[24]:

Confirm that national threshold standards[25] are being met or exceeded and that students have achieved the intended learning outcomes for the award of credit and qualifications.

(Beyond threshold standard) Provide advisory comment on comparability of standards with other higher education programmes of the same subject/ level;

Provide advisory comment on the standard of marking and moderation and the quality of feedback to students for programme teams, departments and Faculties to act upon;

Provide advisory comment on assessment processes including the operation of assessment boards for the University to act upon.

In addition toprogramme and module handbooks[26]programme teams supply their examiners with examination papers and assignment specifications, marking criteria and a record of marks for each assessment item. Departments reach agreement with their examiners on the volume and range of student work to be externally moderated which should include representative samples of each grade/classification as well as borderline cases, cases of failureorsuspected academic malpractice[27]and any assessmentaffected by illness. However, all coursework and examination scripts must be available to the examiner on request. Where the examiner only visits the University forthe assessment boardthe programme team arranges for them to receive the samplesin good time beforehand. Any work likely to be the subject of discussion at amodule assessment board should be provided to the examiner in advance of the board having already been assessed by no fewer than two internal markers. Where there is a significant difference between first and second markers it is expected that programme teams should have taken steps to resolve this internally and examiners have the right to request additional samples of work where an equity issue has been highlighted. In exceptional cases, examiners may be asked to act as arbitrators on borderline cases or may seek to implement changes to marks, taking due account of the effect of such changes on an entire student cohort. They may also be invited to participate in decisions relating to cases of suspected or proven malpractice.

External examiners ofpractice-basedprogrammes, typically inInitial Teacher Education, may be required to visit placement settings (schools) to meet with students and mentors. Otherwise, there is no general expectation that examiners will meet with students although they may do so on specific request to the programme team. Faculties will determine the arrangementsby which examiners may engage directly with students, notifying these formally to EESC and to the Academic Quality Sub-Committee (AQSC)[28] and making sure that examiners are aware of them.

Faculties involve external examiners in sampling the assessment of portfolios that accompany claims for Recognition of Prior Experiential Learning (RPEL)[29]and inreviewing and approvingthe content, learning outcomes and assessment of negotiated learning modules leading to the award of Student-Initiated Credit[30].