Single Marking: The Way Forward?

The Reliability of Markers

“…The results found in investigation one support this view and, as Newstead (1996, p546) stated, 'The more specific the marking scheme, the greater the reliability.' It seems that time spent in discussing the marking criteria before marking occurs is one of the most valuable and important strategies for markers to develop their reliability and is a simple way in which credibility can be given to the assessment procedure (Rouse 1996).…”

“…In reply to these criticisms, the author has carried out a further literature review (for a detailed review of the earlier literature see Rouse 1996) and undertaken three investigations to explore further the issue of the assessment of students' assignments.…”

“…However, if one wishes to change this common practice (Rouse 1996), there is a need to minimise the fears of staff and students (Newstead and Dennis 1994) by showing that the alternative proposal of single marking can be seen to be fair and can be supported by research. Therefore, the investigations were designed to answer these fears.…”

“…Literature reviewed since Rouse (1996) again highlights the lack of research in the area of marker reliability (Newstead 1996). Newstead's (1996) paper tackled a number of issues varying from reliability and marker bias to student fraud.…”

“…Due to the paucity of research in this area (Rouse 1996), three investigations have been carried out into the reliability of marking. Two of the investigations were based on the use of general criteria as their marking guidelines, while one used specific criteria to mark with.…”