Using multiple markers
When marking workflow, marking allocation, and multiple markers are enabled, different markers can be assigned to different students' submissions, with each marker grading independently.
Note: Only Simple grading is supported with multiple markers. When Rubrics or Marking guides used, you cannot assign a marker to the submission.
Key concepts
When multiple markers are in use, a distinction is made between a mark and a grade:
- A mark is the provisional grade submitted by an individual marker for a submission.
- A grade is the final value recorded in the gradebook, calculated automatically from the markers' marks once every required marker, and any optional marker that has been enabled, has completed marking, according to the Calculate grade setting.
Allocating markers to students
Markers must be allocated to students before they can begin marking. There are two ways to do this.
Allocating individually
- From the assignment, click Submissions.
- Locate the student and click the three dots icon next to their submission.
- Select Allocate marker and choose a marker from the list.
Bulk allocating markers
- From the assignment, click Submissions.
- Select the students you want to allocate using the checkboxes.
- From the With selected menu at the bottom of the page, choose Set allocated marker.
- In the Set allocated marker for X selected user(s) form, assign a marker to each Allocated marker slot and click Save changes.
Optional markers
An optional marker is off until a teacher enables it for a student by using the Enable checkbox in that marker's column on the Submissions page and choosing a marker. This is useful when only some submissions need an extra opinion.
If the submission already has a grade, enabling an optional marker clears it, and Moodle warns you before it does. Disabling an optional marker keeps their mark and feedback, but leaves them out of the grade calculation until they're enabled again.
The optional marker's column appears alongside the required markers' columns on the Submissions page (see Marking a submission).
Marking a submission
All markers can see all submissions and each other's marks. To go directly to the submissions assigned to you, click the Mark allocated submissions button.
- Open the submission to grade.
- Enter a mark in the grade field.
- Set your marker workflow state (Not marked, In marking, or Marking completed).
- Save changes.
The grading table shows a column for each marker (Marker 1, Marker 2, etc.) alongside the overall Status column. The overall workflow status updates automatically as markers progress.
Feedback from each marker
Each marker can leave their own feedback comments, feedback files and annotated PDF, alongside the overall feedback for the submission. Students see each marker's feedback as well as the overall feedback. If the offline grading worksheet is enabled, it has a separate marks column for each marker. Markers can give fully independent feedback, one marker can add an overall summary on top of the individual notes, or everyone can rely on a single overall comment.
Releasing the final grade
Once every required marker, and any optional marker that has been enabled, has set their workflow state to Marking completed, the grade is calculated automatically according to the Calculate grade setting. If Manual is selected, the teacher in charge must enter the final grade themselves.
To release the grade to the student, set the submission workflow status to Released.
Existing marks and feedback are kept if the number of markers changes later. See Assignment settings for how agreed grades are handled when marker settings change.
Site administration
In Site administration > Plugins > Activity modules > Assignment > Assignment settings, Maximum required markers limit and Maximum optional markers limit cap how many markers an assignment can have, and Number of required markers and Number of optional markers set the defaults for new assignments. Educators can change the numbers for individual assignments, up to the limits.
