SCHOOL OF MECHANICAL, AEROSPACE & CIVIL ENGINEERING

Marking Scheme and Guidelines for Individual Projects 2011-12

A - Initial Written Report: 1. Summary: A brief statement of objectives, methods, and results to be achieved. 2. Introduction: A clear statement of the problem or task, specific objectives, and the method or methods to be used in achieving the objectives. Preparatory work: 3. A good review of the literature or state-of-the-art. 4. An introduction to the theory, practices, and processes currently in use, a review of the students own knowledge in the area, and an examination of the rationale for the project topic in terms of the current field of knowledge, theory and practice. 5. Methodology, e.g. design procedure, experimental rig design, theoretical background, basis of computational or mathematical modelling related to the project. Planning and Management: 6. A specific plan showing use of available resources, time plan, co-ordinating various aspects and co-operating with others e.g. academic staff, technicians, and industry and the student's own requirements remaining for personal study, skills acquisition and execution of the work. 7. Details of any Risk Assessment carried out in the case of experimental projects involving the design manufacture or use of new equipment. This element is weighted at 10% of the overall mark. The report must be submitted via the coursework boxes in GB/B7 by 4:00 pm on 16th December 2011 (Friday of Week 12, Semester 1). The report will be assessed by your Supervisor. Penalties for late submission are detailed in Appendix 1. B Poster Presentation: Project posters are to be prepared and presented at a full-day meeting to be held on 14th March 2012 (Wednesday of Week 7, Semester 2). The meeting will take the form of a School-wide Open Day and the event will therefore provide a good opportunity to showcase your work. Refreshments will be provided for all attending. Prizes are to be awarded for the best posters submitted. The poster will be assessed by the Supervisor and another academic staff member (unless the Supervisor is unavoidably away from the School). The final mark for the poster will be the average of those individual marks. In preparing a poster, it is important to remember not to overburden it with detail; in-depth information can be given in response to questions. Posters are to be prepared as A1 pdf files and will be printed and laminated by Mr. Lawton in the School. Posters should be submitted to a dedicated e-mail address: poster.request@manchester.ac.uk. Please give your name and programme area (Mechanical Engineering, etc.) in the subject line of the e-mail. Also, your name should appear in the title of the pdf. The posters must be in landscape format and should not have coloured backgrounds because of the excessive printing demands this imposes. The posters themselves should include your name (in the top left hand corner), programme area, and e-mail address. Only posters received on or before 24th February 2012 (Friday of Week 4) will be printed.

SCHOOL OF MECHANICAL, AEROSPACE & CIVIL ENGINEERING

Marking Scheme and Guidelines for Individual Projects 2011-12

Posters that do not conform to the directions above will not be accepted and therefore the poster marks component will be forfeited. Students may not undertake their own printing. This element is weighted at 10% of the overall mark and is based on the average of the marks of two members of staff. C - Final Written Report: 1. Summary: A brief statement of objectives, methods, and results obtained (1 page max.). 2. Introduction: A clear statement of the problem or task, specific objectives, and the method or methods used to achieve the objectives. Preparatory work: 3. A good review of the literature or state-of-the-art (updated from the initial report). 4. Methodology, e.g. design procedure, experimental rig design, theoretical background, basis of computational or mathematical modelling refined following the initial report. Main part of the report describing the work done: 5. Details of the work undertaken, e.g. planning and management, design concepts, analytical development, computer programming or modelling, results, assessment of alternative solutions, data analysis and interpretation, graphical representations and drawings. Discussion, Conclusions, and Recommendations: 6. The discussion should reflect on your work, the main issues and outcomes, and should summarise your results clearly. Conclusions are summarized judgements based on the evidence arising from your work. They should be soundly based and not simply statements of personal opinion. You may wish to include recommendations for future work where there is a need for further development, or where your work shows that areas of uncertainty continue to exist. Guidelines for markers of with-Management projects are included in Appendix 2. This is weighted at 80% of the overall final mark and is based on the average of two assessments by the Supervisor and a specified second marker that may then be adjusted following assessment by a further independent marker and a review panel as set out in the notes for moderation. The quality of the report is crucial. It will be assessed for the structure and logic sequence of contents, quality and clarity of graphs, diagrams and photographs etc, quality of language e.g., grammar, use of appropriate terminology, referencing, use of appendices and lists of nomenclature. Reports must be presented to an acceptable standard, as well as demonstrating the quality of your investigative work. Two paper copies and an electronic version on CD are to be submitted to the Administration Office (GB/B15) by 4:00 pm on 23rd April 2012 (Monday of Week 10, Semester 2). The electronic version will be used to check for any cases of plagiarism using the Turnitin plagiarism-detection software package. Penalties for late submission are detailed in Appendix 1.

SCHOOL OF MECHANICAL, AEROSPACE & CIVIL ENGINEERING

Marking Scheme and Guidelines for Individual Projects 2011-12

SECTION A - SUPERVISOR'S ASSESSMENT OF INITIAL WRITTEN REPORT
Students name: Project supervisor:

Project title: --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Please use this marking scheme for the assessment of your individual project student's initial report. The marking scheme is intended to help you ensure that the marks awarded under any heading conform to the overall assessment criteria given at the top. The format is similar to that of the marking scheme for the Final Written Report and includes credit to be given for the quality of initial work carried out. It is intended that issues of presentation style, referencing, rigour and analysis are drawn out early so that the final report avoids common errors and improves on style. Level of Performance Outstanding 85-100% Satisfactory 40-49% Very Good 60-69% Excellent 70-84% Mark
Use decimal values when needed

A brief statement of: objectives and scope, abstract of the problem, methods to be used. Should introduce the main aims of the project and its relevance to industry or the research community. Should also include a brief description of the specific problems involved and the tasks to be carried out. Preparatory Work 10 Literature review and development of necessary background information, appropriate references, the strategy and techniques to be used to achieve the aims of the project, (e.g. methodology of experimental work, design of experiments or experimental rig, computational or mathematical modelling, etc.). Initial work 10 Details of initial work carried out in examining theory, constructing experiments or models, examining or producing data etc. Quality of report 10 Quality of the report, its structure and organisation, quality of the English, clarity of graphics, adequate lists of contents, nomenclature and glossary, appropriate use of appendices and good referencing. Planning and management A time chart to show the project plan and monitor progress. Has a of the project to date 10 risk assessment been carried out for lab or industry based projects? To what degree has the student shown self-reliance and been proactive in carrying out the work to date? * SECTION A TOTAL Summary and Introduction 10

Good 50-59%

Poor < 40%

A- Initial Written Report and Planning of Project 10%

/10

/10

/10 /10

/10

/50

* Supervisors are advised that, if requested, they should provide comment on a draft of the report. Students taking advantage of this review should not lose marks under 'self-reliance'. Summarize here the rationale for the construction of your mark, highlighting points of good/poor performance

Supervisor's Signature:

Date:

Please return to GB/B15 by 16th January 2012 (Monday of Week 13, Semester 1). Please attach as a separate sheet your detailed comments that will provide feedback to the student and return to GB/B15. (Your students should be given a copy of this feedback.)

SCHOOL OF MECHANICAL, AEROSPACE & CIVIL ENGINEERING

Marking Scheme and Guidelines for Individual Projects 2011-12

SECTION B - POSTER PRESENTATION ASSESSMENT
Students name: Assessor:

Project title: ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The assessment of the poster presentation is concerned mainly with how well the student has understood and presented their project. The posters should be pitched at an appropriate level (some of the audience may not be familiar with the field) and technical competence must be demonstrated when answering questions.
Level of Performance Outstanding 85-100% Satisfactory 40-49% Very Good 60-69% Excellent 70-84% Mark
Use decimal values when needed

QUALITY OF POSTER (10 marks): Layout of the poster; appropriate combination of diagrams, text, and equations. Legibility and clarity.

Poor < 40%

Good 50-59%

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
PRESENTATION STYLE TECHNICAL CONTENT (10 marks): Level and subject matter Was the technical level appropriate (neither too high nor low)? Was the poster understandable in itself (without necessitating verbal explanation)? B-Poster Presentation 10% /10

5 4 3 2 1 0
Questions Did the presenter answer the questions as put or avoid them? Were the answers accurate, clear, and to the point?

5 4 3 2 1 0
TECHNICAL CONTENT SECTION B TOTAL /10 /20

An average result will be taken from two members of staff assessing the student's poster; this will form the input to the overall project mark.

SCHOOL OF MECHANICAL, AEROSPACE & CIVIL ENGINEERING

Marking Scheme and Guidelines for Individual Projects 2011-12

SECTION C - ASSESSMENT OF FINAL WRITTEN REPORT AND STUDENT'S INDUSTRY
Students name: Project supervisor: Second marker: Project title: --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Please use this marking scheme for the assessment of an individual project student's written report. The marking scheme output should also relate to the overall assessment criteria given below. Level of Performance Mark A brief statement of: objectives and scope, abstract of the problem, /10 Summary and methods used, outline of results and conclusions. Covering main Introduction 10 contents briefly is the key requirement. Should introduce the main aims of the project and its relevance to industry or the research community. Should also include a brief description of the specific problems involved and the tasks to be carried out as well as an introduction to the report and its structure. /20 Preparatory Work (10) and Literature review and development of necessary background Planning & Management information, appropriate references, the strategy and techniques used of the Project (10) to achieve the aims of the project, (e.g. methodology of experimental work, design of experiments or experimental rig, computational or mathematical modelling, etc.). Did the student use available resources (library, staff, technicians, etc), appropriately and their time chart to monitor progress, was the original plan updated as and when necessary? To what degree has the student shown self-reliance and been proactive in carrying out the work? * Details of theoretical, experimental or other work, presentation and interpretation of results, drawings, graphs, programmes etc. Clearly review the data, order the results and link theory and practice. Lead logically to the discussion, conclusions and future work ideas. It is important that the students original contribution is identified in this section. Quality of the report, its structure and organisation, quality of the English, clarity of graphics, adequate lists of contents, nomenclature and glossary, appropriate use of appendices and good referencing. SECTION C TOTAL

C-Written Report and Planning of Project 80%

Main work 50

/50

Quality of report 20

/20

/100

* Supervisors are advised that, if requested, they should provide comment on a draft of the report. Students taking advantage of this review should not lose marks under 'self-reliance'. On a separate sheet, please detail your thinking behind the marks above. This rationale should be of 150-200 words in length and will be made available to the External Examiner.

Name:

Signature:

Date:

Please return to GB/B15 by 18th May 2012 (Friday of Week 13, Semester 2).

SCHOOL OF MECHANICAL, AEROSPACE & CIVIL ENGINEERING

Marking Scheme and Guidelines for Individual Projects 2011-12

OVERALL ASSESSMENT INCLUDING 2ND MARKER'S ASSESSMENT AND ANY MODERATION ADJUSTMENTS
Students name: Project title: --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Supervisor: 2nd Marker:

SECTION A TOTAL (weighting 10%) SECTION B TOTAL (weighting 10%) Supervisor's Section C mark (out of 100): /100 2nd Marker's Section C mark (out of 100): /100 SECTION C TOTAL (weighting 80%) This mark should be the average of the Supervisors and 2nd Markers assessments OR the 3rd Markers assessment

/50 /20 N/A N/A /100

Identify if the result has been adjusted following a 3rd Marker's assessment in accordance with the moderation guidance below: YES/NO If 'Yes', the final section of this page should be completed. OVERALL TOTAL (weighting 100%) /100

Moderation Guidance
If the difference between the Section C assessments of the Supervisor and 2nd Marker is 8 marks or fewer, then the average of these will be used. If there is a difference of more than 8 marks between the assessments then the Undergraduate Project Co-ordinator (Dr M. A. Cotton) will identify an independent 3rd Marker who will make a further assessment and recommend a final mark to the Programme Project Panel. The 3rd Marker will take account of the comments of the original markers and will also make an independent assessment of the report. The Project Panel will confirm a final mark for all reports (whether referred for 3rd marking or not). Each Programme Project Panel will consist of at least three members to staff (to include the Project Co-ordinator).

3rd Marker's comments (if needed):

Final Section C mark as determined by the 3rd Marker: Name: Signature: Date:

/100

Confirmed by the Programme Project Panel: Name: Signature: Date:

SCHOOL OF MECHANICAL, AEROSPACE & CIVIL ENGINEERING

Marking Scheme and Guidelines for Individual Projects 2011-12

Appendix 1. Penalties for late submission of the Initial Wrirtten Report/Final Written Report Late submission will incur a penalty of 5% for missing the original deadline and a further 5% for each additional day late. Appendix 2. Additional Guidelines for Markers of with-Management Project Reports The main characteristics of a with-Management project report should be as follows: It is a continuous piece of academic writing which is clearly structured and arranged into chapters, sections and paragraphs as appropriate for the topic. Its purpose is to develop a reasoned argument, or a series of related arguments, to address the aims and supporting objectives which the student has selected for their withManagement project. The arguments presented in a with-Management report should be set within an appropriate context which is derived from a review of published literature relevant to the project topic. The literature review should encompass current knowledge and understanding of a particular topic area, together with its background and other related factors such as context and established theory. This should provide the basis for a critical evaluation and analysis of the literature. It is important that students develop the capability of synthesising what they have read into coherent themes. The arguments developed within the report must be supported by evidence which is obtained through the analysis of material gathered during the investigation. The various arguments, perspectives and evidence debated in the main body of the report should result in conclusions and recommendations which are appropriate to the original aims and objectives of the project. Critical analysis is a core activity when undertaking a literature-based project. It should therefore be remembered that critical thinking and writing are crucial to developing a reasoned argument and underpin the activity of critical analysis. The quality of any literature-based project will depend on the level of critical thinking and the clarity of communication. Appendix 3. Undergraduate Projects involving Experimental Work The following guidelines apply to 3rd (and 4th) Year Individual Projects involving experimental work: Any new rig required for an undergraduate project must be completed by the end of September. If the rig is not available by then, the project cannot run and an alternative must be found by the start of Semester 1. Minor modifications to an existing rig or sample must be completed by the end of Semester 1. The allocated technician time for such work is 3 days. All experimental projects are to have the involvement of an Experimental Officer. The EOs are to be assigned by Mr Paul Nedwell.