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MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE CARDIFF UNIVERSITY ACADEMIC STANDARDS AND QUALITY COMMITTEE HELD ON WEDNESDAY 28 JANUARY 2015 IN THE COUNCIL CHAMBER, MAIN BUILDING AT 10.00 AM.

Present: Professor Patricia Price (Chair), Ms Claire Blakeway, Professor Martin Coyle, Professor Paul Dummer, Dr Jo Hunt, Dr Brian Jenkins, Mr Rhys Jenkins, Professor Martin Jephcote, Dr Alan Kwan, Professor Robert Lark, Ms Claire Morgan, Professor Roy Evans, Dr Zbig Sobiesierski, Professor Ken Wann and Mr Oliver Wannell.

In attendance: Mr Rhodri Evans, Ms Tracey Evans, Dr Joanna Hall, Mr Andy Lloyd, Mr David Lloyd, Dr Chris Turner, Dr Sarah Williamson and Ms Martine Woodward.

905 MINUTES

The Minutes of the meeting of the Academic Standards and Quality Committee held on 8 October 2014 (paper 14/298) were confirmed as a true record and signed by the Chair.

906 MATTERS ARISING

Received and considered paper 14/381, ‘Matters Arising’.

Arising therefrom:

906.1 Moderators for Collaborative Provision (Minute 891.2)

NOTED

.1 that the process for appointing moderators would be considered as part of the review of the Collaborative Provision Policy Framework as detailed in the Minutes of the Collaborative Provision Sub-Committee.

906.2 Contextual Admissions (Minute 891.4)

NOTED

.1 that the Chair of the Admissions Sub-Committee had received and approved for use statements from ARCHI, MUSIC and the BLS College to vary the University’s Contextual Admissions Policy.

906.3 Academic Standards and Quality Committee (Minute 892.1)

Received and considered paper 14/240R, ‘Academic Standards and Quality Committee: Constitution and Membership Session 2014-15’.

NOTED

.1 that Section A “Constitution – Ordinance 10” of paper 14/240 had been corrected in accordance with Minute 892.1;

.2 that references to the ‘University Management Board’ in Sections 2.2.3 and 2.2.6 should be amended to read ‘University Executive Board’;

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.3 that following the introduction of the College structure, the end of terms of office coincide for many members, and that this would also be an issue for other Committees, and to request Senate to consider staggering the terms of office of Committee members when next appointed;

.4 that the issue of terms of office be raised as a general issue with the Governance Committee to consider asking parent committees to stagger terms of office.

906.4 Institutional Review 2014 (Minute 894)

NOTED

.1 that the Institutional Review Steering Group held its final meeting on 20 January 2015 and would report to the next meeting of the Committee on 11 March 2015.

906.5 Annual Report on the Operation of the University Quality System: Session 2013-2014 (Minute 895.1)

NOTED

.1 that Senate, at its meeting on 15 October 2014, received an updated Annual Report on the operation of the University’s Quality System: Session 2013-2014 (paper 14/256R) and endorsed the view that Senate can have confidence in the operation of the University’s quality and standards processes, as overseen by the Committee, and, in particular that:

- they are meeting their stated purposes;- they are operating within their stated cycle of activity; and - there are appropriate plans for their future development.

906.6 Annual Report on Enhancement: Session 2013-2014 (Minute 895.2)

NOTED

.1 that Senate, at its meeting on 15 October 2014, received and endorsed an updated Annual Report on Enhancement 2013-2014 (paper 14/255R).

906.7 Periodic Review (Minute 895.3)

NOTED

.1 that the Periodic Review Task and Finish Group considered and approved minor amendments to the Periodic Review process and related documentation as detailed in Minute 895.3.1.

906.8 Recognition of Placement Learning (Minute 895.4)

NOTED

.1 that consultation with academic staff and students on a core set of nomenclature for recognising placement learning and study abroad in programme titles would be undertaken this session, in alignment with the review of the Code of Practice on Placement

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Learning and the developments to the Collaborative Provision Policy Framework and Programme Approval processes.

906.9 Module Evaluation (Minute 895.5)

NOTED

.1 that the outcome of the consultation on the development of a standardised approach to Overview Reports for Module Evaluation would be presented to the Academic Standards and Quality Committee at its meeting in May 2015;

.2 that the Education and Students Policy Network, at its meeting on 4 February 2015, would consider an institutional approach for collecting and analysing outcomes of Module Evaluation activity and the Academic Standards and Quality Committee would be asked to consider any policy decisions in due course.

906.10 Recognition of Prior Learning (Minute 895.6)

NOTED

.1 that the composition of a Working Group to produce a draft Recognition of Prior Learning Framework for consideration by the Committee had not been finalised;

.2 that the Working Group should produce a schedule of work indicating when it would report to the Committee.

906.11 Review of Joint Honours (Minute 895.7)

NOTED

.1 that a Working Group to undertake a review of the experience of Joint Honours students and ‘jointly taught’ students had been established with the below membership:

Martin Jephcote (Chair)

Acting Dean of Education (AHSS College)

Laura Carter Students’ UnionMartin Coyle School of English, Communication, and

PhilosophyLaura Davies Head of Communications (AHSS College)Heiko Feldner School of Modern LanguagesKate Gilliver School of History, Archaeology and ReligionLucy Hammond School of Law, Politics, and International

RelationsRhys Jenkins Students’ Union[A.N. Other] College of Physical Sciences and

Engineering[A.N. Other] College of Biomedical and Life SciencesAndy Lloyd (Secretary)

Registry and Academic Services

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.2 that the Group had its initial meeting on 13/01/15 and endorsed a project plan designed to enable recommendations to be made to the Committee in May 2015.

906.12 Examination Paper Errors (Minute 896.5)

NOTED

.1 that the issue was being considered by the College Deans and a report would be submitted to the next meeting of the Committee.

906.13 Incoming Study Abroad / Exchange Students Autumn Semester Assessment Arrangements (Minute 896.6)

NOTED

.1 that advice and guidance for Schools on the structure of modules to be made available to Autumn Semester International Exchange and Study Abroad Students would be finalised and issued to Schools in due course.

906.14 PGR Student Engagement in Teaching Activities (Minute 897.1)

NOTED

.1 that work had commenced to establish current practice of PGR student engagement in teaching activities and proposals would be brought forward to a future meeting of the Committee.

906.15 Other Matters Arising

NOTED that other matters arising would be considered elsewhere on the agenda:

.1 Consideration of the Role of External Examiners (Minute 891.1)

See Minute 913.1.

.2 Regulations Sub-Committee (Minute 891.3)

See Minute 911.1.

.3 BIOSI (Minute 893.2)

See Minute 917.

.4 Implementation of New Award Rules (Minute 896.1)

See Minute 909.

.5 Review of the New Collaborative Provision Policy Framework (Minute 898.1)

See Minute 910.2.

.6 Joint PhDs (Minute 898.3)

See Minute 910.5.

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907 ITEMS FROM THE CHAIR

907.1 Review of Appeals and Complaints Procedures

NOTED

.1 that the Office of Independent Adjudicator (OIA) had released a Good Practice Framework for handling complaints and academic appeals;

.2 that the Chair had established a Working Group to ensure that the University’s procedures are appropriately aligned with the OIA Framework and the Quality Assurance Agency’s ‘UK Quality Code for Higher Education’.

907.2 ICCE Qualification

NOTED

.1 that the University was finalising a statement, to be made available to applicants, to confirm that the University does not, in isolation, accept the International Certificate of Christian Education (ICCE) qualification for entry onto its degree programmes; applicants holding the ICCE qualification would be expected to hold other relevant qualifications to support their application.

907.3 Examination Irregularity in Modern Languages

NOTED

.1 that there had been an irregularity relating to an examination in Modern Languages and that due process was being followed to investigate and address this matter;

.2 that the Head of School had met with the affected students and confirmed the action to be taken to address this matter.

908 ANNUAL REVIEW AND ENHANCEMENT (ARE)

908.1 ARE University Report 2014

Received and considered paper 14/383 ‘ARE November 2014: University Report’.

NOTED

.1 that each School had engaged positively and actively with ARE November 2014 and that the ARE process had been conducted according to the agreed procedure;

.2 that noteworthy practice had been identified by Schools, the College ARE Committees and the College Deans and priorities identified for the University;

.3 that whilst no significant changes to ARE had been proposed by the ARE Sub-Committee, a number of enhancements to the ARE Process had been identified by staff;

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.4 that the Pro Vice-Chancellor (Student Experience and Academic Standards) would discuss with the Deputy Vice-Chancellor the potential for overlap between ARE and Performance Review, particularly in relation to student recruitment;

.5 a proposal that, from the 2015 ARE cycle, School ARE Submissions would be shared within the Colleges to enable greater sharing of good practice and understanding of developments in other schools;

.6 that the ARE forms would be amended to ask schools to identify how they had responded to student feedback and confirm how the school response had had been communicated to students;

.7 that Registry and Academic Services officers would work with the PVC Advisory Group, the College Data Analysts, and Planning officers to determine the appropriate datasets required to support the ARE process and how these can be provided to Schools in an accurate and timely manner;

.8 that the Pro Vice-Chancellor (Student Experience and Academic Standards) and the Chief Operating Officer would take forward University-level issues, as appropriate, and provide a progress report for circulation to Schools by the end of September 2015.

RESOLVED

.9 to endorse the view that the ARE process remains fit for purpose;

.10 that College Deans ask College Boards to discuss whether the School 2014 ARE submissions could be shared within the College to enable greater sharing of good practice and understanding of developments in other Schools;

.11 to approve the outlined enhancements to the process, detailed in Section 5 of paper 14/383, which would be used to further develop the templates, guidance and operation of the 2015 ARE process.

RESOLVED TO REPORT TO SENATE

.12 that the University can continue to have confidence in the quality of learning, the opportunities provided for its students and in standards of its awards as confirmed by the ARE November 2014 cycle;

.13 the priorities identified from the ARE November 2014 cycle for the University as detailed in Section 3 of paper 14/383.

908.2 Progress on University Actions ARE 2013

Received and noted paper 14/373 ‘ARE 2013/14 – Priorities for the University and Professional Services arising from School and College Reports’.

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908.3 ARE Executive Sub-Committee Minutes

Received and noted paper 14/374, being the Minutes of the ARE Executive Sub-Committee held on 14 January 2015.

909 ANNUAL REPORT ON ASSESSMENT

Received and considered paper 14/380, ‘Annual Report on Assessment 2013/14’.

NOTED

909.1 the work being undertaken to:

support schools to reduce the errors in examination papers; implement the ‘feedback’ action plan agreed by University

Executive Board; develop proposals to integrate GradeMark and SIMS; implement the outcomes from the Assessment Matters project; develop new Regulations and processes to manage the

publication of results; develop new Regulations to manage re-assessments; and support Schools to further enhance assessment and feedback;

and that one of the key priorities for the Educational Change Portfolio Programme was assessment and feedback;

909.2 that the number of good degrees is well aligned with the data from other Russell Group institutions;

909.3 that the purpose of the data included within the assessment report was to inform the Committee in order that it could confirm its confidence in assessment and that further analysis of the data and analysis of disaggregated data should be undertaken within colleges and schools through quality processes, such as ARE, and Examining Boards;

909.4 that the new Generic Assessment Criteria Framework would provide a consistent University-wide approach whilst enabling schools to adopt school-based or discipline-specific criteria;

909.5 that online resources should be developed for the induction of External Examiners and that, if possible, such resources should be supplemented with an induction event at Cardiff University for new External Examiners to provide the opportunity to discuss practices and to meet colleagues from academic schools.

RESOLVED

909.6 to submit to Senate a revised version of paper 13/429, to confirm that:

confidence in assessment within the University is well-founded; considerable enhancement of practice has been undertaken; further improvement of assessment and feedback continues to

be a priority for the University.

909.7 that officers produce a business case for the Educational Change Portfolio Steering Group to develop management information reports to

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look at ‘added-value’ and degree outcomes for specific disciplines in cognate institutions;

909.8 to request the College Deans to work with officers to undertake further analysis of the reasons for the varied performance of different student groups – i.e. ethnicity, age, disability, and gender;

909.9 that Registry and Academic Services officers develop resources to support the induction of newly appointed External Examiners.

910 COLLABORATIVE PROVISION SUB-COMMITTEE

Received and considered paper 14/385, being the Minutes of the Collaborative Provision Sub-Committee held on 12 January 2015.

Arising therefrom:

910.1 Hochschule Fresenius Review and Extension (Minute 174.5)

NOTED

.1 that a final extension had been granted to cover only full time students for the 2015/16 academic year;

.2 that Registry and Academic Services would work with the School to ensure an appropriate ‘Teach Out’ agreement is in place and that quality assurance processes continue to be observed in the final two years of the programme.

910.2 Review of the Collaborative Provision Policy Framework (Minute 176.1)

Received and considered paper 14/386, an update on the Review of the Collaborative Provision Policy Framework.

NOTED

.1 that the Framework was being reviewed and updated in conjunction with a review of the Programme Approval processes in order to combine and streamline procedures;

.2 that the outcome of the Review, including a revised Policy and associated documentation and processes, would be presented to the Committee for approval in May 2015.

910.3 The Collaborative Provision Register (Minute 176.3)

NOTED

.1 that the content of the register and the categorisation of agreements was being reviewed.

910.4 Code of Practice on Placement Learning (Minute 176.4)

NOTED

.1 that the Code of Practice on Placement Learning would be reviewed and revised as appropriate this session;

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.2 that the Code of Practice would include a policy on tobacco firms as follows:

“Cardiff University does not actively promote placements with BAT or other tobacco firms through our channels as this could result in a breach of our research policy on the tobacco industry. If students do wish to take up a placement on their own initiative we will look at this on a case by case basis".

910.5 Joint PHDs

Received and considered paper 14/378, Guidance and Procedures for Collaborative Research Degrees.

NOTED

.1 that Guidance and Procedures for Collaborative Research Degrees outlined the process for approval and actions to be taken post-approval for the following types of collaboration:

Joint degrees; Split-side degrees; Collaborative supervision;

.2 that the Guidance and Procedures would be integrated into the Collaborative Provision Policy Framework following the completion of the current review of the Framework;

.3 that the review of the Collaborative Provision Policy Framework should consider the annual monitoring processes for the range of current and potential collaborative agreements as the current Annual Review and Enhancement (ARE) in its current form may not be sufficient;

.4 that development of a Joint PhD would be a significant undertaking, potentially requiring bespoke regulations and approved adjustments to the Code of Practice, and consequently would be initiated following confirmation by the University Executive Board that there would be a strategic alliance with the institution;

.5 that it was not the intention to limit joint PhD provision to only the two international strategic partners referred to in the ‘The Way Forward 2012-2017’;

.6 that the term phrase ‘Strategic Partner approved by the University Executive Board’ included on pages 1, 6 and 7 (paper 14/378) would be replaced by the phrase ‘The University Executive Board had confirmed a strategic alliance with the institution’.

RESOLVED

.7 that, subject to the amendments detailed in Minute 910.5.6 above, the Guidance and Procedures for Collaborative Research Degrees be approved with immediate effect.

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911 REGULATIONS SUB-COMMITTEE

Received and considered paper 14/384, being the Minutes of the Regulations Sub-Committee held on 7 November 2014.

Arising therefrom:

911.1 External Examiner Engagement with Students (Minute 300.2)

NOTED

.1 the Regulations Sub-Committee advised that no further clarification was required in the articulation of the Senate Assessment Regulations (clause 13.2.14, “Inappropriate Contact from Students”) and associated Guidance on External Examiner “Meetings with Students”.

911.2 Student Attendance and Academic Progress Requirements and Absence Procedures (Minute 303)

Received and considered paper 14/387, ‘Student Attendance and Engagement Procedures’.

NOTED

.1 that, following the meeting of the Regulations Sub-Committee, the Student Attendance and Academic Progress Requirements and Absence Procedures had been significantly revised and updated to take account of feedback received from members of the Sub-Committee and subsequent consultation with colleges and schools;

.2 that the Attendance and Engagement Procedures identify the minimum requirements students must comply with to satisfy University requirements for attendance and engagement and, where appropriate, Professional, Statutory and Regulatory Body requirements, and that schools could specify other academic requirements for their programmes in order that students could demonstrate they were making satisfactory academic progress;

.3 that it would be helpful to clarify in the Code of Practice for Personal Tutors the responsibilities for arranging meetings between personal tutors and students;

.4 that the text on page 3 (paper 14/387), in the Guidance box under Contact with Personal Tutor, should be amended to read ‘… a student should meet or make contact with his/her Personal Tutor …’ to ensure consistency;

.5 that support and guidance would be made available to schools to assist with the implementation of the Student Attendance and Engagement Procedures under the aegis of the Educational Change Portfolio.

RESOLVED

.6 to review the Code of Practice for Personal Tutors to clarify the responsibilities of Personal Tutors for organising meetings with

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students and to ensure consistency with the requirements of the Student Attendance and Engagement Procedures.

RESOLVED TO RECOMMEND TO SENATE

.7 that the Student Attendance and Engagement Procedures, as detailed in the Appendix to this Minute (paper 14/440), be approved with effect from Session 2015-2016.

911.3 Senate Regulation for the MRes (Master of Research) (Minute 306)

RESOLVED TO RECOMMEND TO SENATE

.1 that the new Senate Regulations for the Award of the Degree of MRes (Master of Research), as detailed in the Appendix to this Minute (paper 14/440), be approved with immediate effect.

.2 that the consequential adjustments to Senate Regulations for Modular Postgraduate Taught Programmes, as detailed in the Appendix to this Minute (paper 14/440), be approved with immediate effect.

911.4 ‘Secondary Rule’: Application to Intercalated Degrees (Minute 307)

RESOLVED TO RECOMMEND TO SENATE

.1 that the amended Senate Regulations for Modular Undergraduate Programmes, to clarify the application of the ‘secondary rule’ to Intercalated Degree programmes, as detailed in the Appendix to this Minute (paper 14/440), be approved with immediate effect.

911.5 Chairs of Examining Boards – Executive Action (Minute 308)

RESOLVED TO RECOMMEND TO SENATE

.1 that the amended Senate Assessment Regulations for Taught Programmes, to make explicit the range of Executive Action that may, and may not, be undertaken by Chairs of Examining Boards, as detailed in the Appendix to this Minute (paper 14/440), be approved with immediate effect.

911.6 List of Awards of Cardiff University – Professional Doctorates and the SPDD Doctor of Social and Public Policy (Minute 309)

RESOLVED TO RECOMMEND TO SENATE

.1 that the amendments to the Senate Regulation for Awards of Cardiff University and associated removal of the list of Awards detailed in the Senate Regulations for the Award of Doctoral Degrees by Examination and Thesis (Professional Doctorates), as detailed in the Appendix to this Minute (paper 14/440), be approved with immediate effect.

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911.7 Frequency of Staff-Student Panels (Minute 310)

RESOLVED TO RECOMMEND TO SENATE

.1 that the amended Annex to Senate Regulation for Awards of Cardiff University: Academic Management and Decision Making – General Principles, as detailed in the Appendix to this Minute (paper 14/440), be approved with effect from Session 2015-2016.

911.8 General Entrance Requirement and English and Welsh Language Policies (Minute 311)

RESOLVED TO RECOMMEND TO SENATE

.1 that the amendments to the Annex to Senate Regulation for Awards of Cardiff University relating to the English Language Policy and Welsh Language Policy, as detailed in the Appendix to this Minute (paper 14/440), be approved with immediate effect.

911.9 Cardiff University Procedures for the Conduct of Research Degree Examinations – Appointment of External Examiner (Minute 312)

RESOLVED TO RECOMMEND TO SENATE

.1 that the adjustments to the Procedures for the Conduct of Research Degree Examinations, as detailed in the Appendix to this Minute (paper 14/440), be approved with effect from Session 2015-2016.

912 ADMISSIONS SUB-COMMITTEE

Received and considered paper 14/379, being the Minutes of the Admission Sub-Committee held on 5 December 2014.

Arising therefrom:

912.1 Deposits (Minute 210)

NOTED

.1 proposals to introduce a consistent policy for payment of applicant deposits which would be implemented on a pilot basis in the 2015-2016 entry cycle with a view to extending the pilot in the 2016-2017 entry cycle.

RESOLVED

.2 that the terms and conditions of the proposed deposit scheme, as detailed in paper 14/379, be approved.

912.2 Review of the University’s Entry Requirements for the Advanced Welsh Baccalaureate Qualification (Minute 212)

Received and considered paper 14/388, ‘Review of Entry Requirements for the Welsh Baccalaureate Advance Diploma (WBQ)’.

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NOTED

.1 that the current policy, which required applicants to achieve an ‘A’ grade in the Welsh Baccalaureate Core, was agreed when limited information was available regarding anticipated grade outcomes and was out of line with competitor universities;

.2 that consultation had been undertaken with Admissions Tutors on the Sub-Committee’s preferred new policy for the graded Welsh Baccalaureate Core to ensure that it was acceptable across the University;

.3 that applicants would be expected to offer at least two A levels in addition to the Welsh Baccalaureate Core;

.4 that it was necessary to consider and approve the policy for the Welsh Baccalaureate Core in order that it could be detailed in the 2016-2017 prospectus.

RESOLVED

.5 that for the 2016-2017 entry, the Welsh Baccalaureate Code grade would be recognised as equivalent to an A level grade;

.6 that the entry requirements for the Welsh Baccalaureate qualification be reviewed annually and an analysis of the Welsh Baccalaureate Core grades should be undertaken at the end of the 2015-2016 entry cycle in order to inform a review of entry requirements for the 2017-2018 entry cycle.

913 EDUCATION AND STUDENTS POLICY NETWORK

Received and NOTED papers 14/376 and 14/375, being reports of the Education and Students Policy Network held 16 October 2014, and 25 November 2014 respectively.

Arising therefrom:

913.1 Assessment and Feedback

NOTED

.1 that the Education and Students Policy Network, at its meeting on 25 November 2014, considered the impact of using multiple External Examiners to cover one programme and explored whether External Examiners are being used in an appropriate moderation role and suggested that guidance and training available to External Examiners and Schools be enhanced.

914 UNIVERSITY GRADUATE COLLEGE BOARD

Received and considered paper 14/403, being the Notes of the University Graduate College Board held on 23 January 2015.

Arising therefrom:

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914.1 PhD Students Engaged in Teaching (Minute 2.5)

NOTED

.1 that work had been carried out to survey both research students involved in teaching and School staff responsible for its administration to ensure that a range of views could be captured and feed into the ‘PGR Teaching Review’;

.2 that the College Deans would be asked to contribute to the development of the proposals which would be presented to the PVC Advisory Group prior to consideration by the Academic Standards and Quality Committee.

914.2 Supervisor Training and Development (Minute 4.1)

NOTED

.1 that the University Graduate College had purchased a suite of eight online training modules and that there had been reasonable uptake of the early modules.

RESOLVED

.2 to ask the College Deans to flag the online training modules to the Directors of Learning and Teaching and Directors of Research in Schools and encourage the dissemination of the information to other members of staff.

914.3 Full-Time Submission Rates (Minute 6)

NOTED

.1 that a University-wide clear, consistent and more rigorous approach to reviewing extension requests would likely have a beneficial impact on the submission rate;

.2 that it would be appropriate to review the locus of approval for a variety of changes detailed in Senate Regulations, including postgraduate research extensions, to establish whether they be assigned to a Committee or to the Colleges;

.3 that it would be helpful for the PVC Advisory Group to be informed of the changes which Senate Regulations specified required University approval;

.4 that the introduction of a continuation fee for postgraduate research students would require careful consideration taking into account the need for clear communication with students.

RESOLVED

.5 that proposals be brought forward via the PVC Advisory Group to establish the locus of approval for a variety of changes detailed in Senate Regulations, including postgraduate research extensions, and proposals to introduce a continuation fee.

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915 ASSURING AND ENHANCING A QUALITY EXPERIENCE PROGRAMME TEAM (AEQEPT)

Received and considered paper 14/368, being the notes of the Assuring and Enhancing a Quality Experience Programme Team (AEQEPT) held on 29 October 2014.

Arising therefrom:

915.1 Remit and Membership (Minute 2.2.4)

RESOLVED

.1 to approve the nomination of Ms Claire Morgan, as the Academic Standards and Quality Committee’s representative, to the Assuring and Enhancing a Quality Experience Programme Team.

916 EASTER VACATION DATES

Received and considered paper 14/377 ‘Easter Vacation Dates’.

NOTED

916.1 a summary of the current practice with regard to Easter vacation dates and the implications if the University were to move to a fixed Easter vacation calendar;

916.2 that other universities had recently undertaken a similar review and had decided not to fix the Easter vacation calendar;

916.3 that there was not a strong case for change at present and that the University should continue to monitor developments at other universities.

RESOLVED

916.4 to continue to apply the current principles, as detailed in paper 14/377, for setting the dates of the Easter vacation.

917 SCHOOL UPDATES

Received and considered paper 14/401 ‘School Updates’.

NOTED

917.1 that the School of Biosciences had an agreed action plan and had provided the College of Biomedical and Life Sciences a detailed update on progress, confirming that the changes to assessment and marking processes had resolved the major problems relating to the lateness of return of marks and feedback encountered last Session;

917.2 that for the November 2014 progress test, the School of Medicine had used the Cohen standard setting method for the year 2 formative test and the Angoff standard setting method for the year 5 summative test and found that the Cohen method was not necessarily robust with a distribution of very low marks;

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917.3 that the School of Medicine would need to confirm and communicate to year 2 students the method for calculating and standard setting the year 2 summative test in May 2015.

918 ACCREDITATION BY PROFESSIONAL BODIES

Received and NOTED paper 14/367, ‘Accreditation by Professional Bodies’.

919 ANY OTHER BUSINESS

919.1 Dr Chris Turner

NOTED, on the occasion of his last meeting, the Committee’s appreciation of the contribution made by Dr Chris Turner to the work of the Committee and to the preparations for and conduct of the 2014 QAA Institutional Review.

920 WELCOME TO CARDIFF

Received and NOTED paper 14/372, ‘Welcome to Cardiff Survey 2014’.

921 STUDENT SURVEY TIMELINES 2014-2015

Received and NOTED paper 14/371, ‘Student Survey Timelines 2014-2015’.

922 THE FUTURE OF QUALITY ASSESSMENT IN HIGHER EDUCATION - DISCUSSION DOCUMENT

Received and NOTED paper 14/382, ‘Consultation on the Future of Quality Assessment in Higher Education’.

Further NOTED that members were invited to submit comments to Mr David Lloyd by Monday 16 February 2015.

923 QAA CONSULTATION ON FOUR QUALIFICATION CHARACTERISTICS STATEMENTS

Received and NOTED paper 14/370, ‘Consultation on four Qualification Characteristics Statements’.

924 ACTION TAKEN ON BEHALF OF THE COMMITTEE

NOTED a summary of executive action taken by the Chair on behalf of the Committee since the last meeting as detailed on the Agenda sheet (paper 14/366).

925 DATE OF NEXT MEETING

NOTED that the date of the next meeting will be Wednesday 11 March 2015 at 10.00 am.

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