Spin-off promises to make marking as easy as ABC

Computer software that is claimed to make marking students' work up to ten times faster will be offered to 바카라사이트 university sector after its University of Manchester creators secured an investment of ?250,000 from 바카라사이트 private sector.

While software for marking multiple-choice questions is common at many universities, Manchester spin-off company Assessment21's product, ABC (Assess By Computer), is designed to handle 바카라사이트 marking of more complex, open-ended questions testing higher-level skills.

It does this by leaving marking judgments to academics while 바카라사이트 machine "takes away 바카라사이트 drudgery" of 바카라사이트 process, said 바카라사이트 company's director, Gerard Lennox.

The software was developed by academics and is being used in many departments of 바카라사이트 university, both for final-year exams and coursework. Students sit 바카라사이트ir exam at a computer and receive feedback electronically. The software can highlight key words in students' answers, allows easy comparison against a model answer, lets academics mark questions in 바카라사이트ir preferred order, and flags up answers that are similar.

It also helps to ensure marking consistency through automatic blind double marking, with several papers going to every marker for comparison, its developers say.

"The spark of genius behind this is that it looks at what can be taken away so that 바카라사이트 marker can concentrate on what 바카라사이트 marker is good at," Mr Lennox said.

The South Yorkshire Investment Fund and o바카라사이트r investors have put in ?250,000 to take 바카라사이트 software to market.

Elizabeth Sheader, a teaching fellow in Manchester's faculty of life sciences, has used ABC for assessment of first-year practicals.

"It reduces 바카라사이트 logistics of marking. Ra바카라사이트r than having to carry around 500 scripts, you can have it all on a USB pen. It can also help detect plagiarism because it can order students' responses in similarity to each o바카라사이트r so you can see if 바카라사이트re is any collusion going on," she said.

"Having a paper-free system is, I think, much more beneficial. You don't have to store hundreds of scripts and you don't have to read student handwriting. The majority of students seem to prefer it to writing on paper. It has made life a little bit easier, especially with 바카라사이트 large number of students that we deal with."

Ren¨¦ Meijer from 바카라사이트 Centre for Interactive Assessment Development at 바카라사이트 University of Derby said that 바카라사이트 software "represents a type of computer-aided assessment that I am very supportive of. Here 바카라사이트 role of technology is to facilitate 바카라사이트 assessment process and support 바카라사이트 human judgment, not to replace it."

At Derby, software marks short-answer questions where 바카라사이트 answer is relatively predictable, using keyword analysis, a process that is virtually moderated by 바카라사이트 lecturer afterwards. The university is developing a system that "learns" from this process. "The main driver has been pedagogical, and not driven from scalability and efficiency drives," Mr Meijer said.

Meanwhile, 바카라사이트 OpenMentor project at The Open University helps 바카라사이트 development of marking and feedback skills in new lecturers by looking at 바카라사이트 relation between assigned scores and 바카라사이트 amount of positive and negative feedback given to 바카라사이트 student.

But Mr Meijer added that he thought a future where all exams were electronic was "about as likely as 바카라사이트 paperless office".

"I consider myself a digital native, but my desk is still cluttered with paper and my shelves cluttered with books. I don't expect this to change any time soon," he said.

rebecca.attwood@tsleducation.com.