This policy outlines the internal monitoring and external moderation of grades allocated to ensure equitable and rigorous academic standards by comparison across units and Institutes of Higher Education.

Grades of student assessment are awarded by academic staff and differentiated in accord with the Student Assessment and Workload Policy. Unit Coordinators are to submit final grades by the date set by Examiners Committee (EC) at the end of each teaching period so that grades can be reviewed through the process of internal monitoring of grades and sent to students in a timely manner.

External moderation of grades is used to ensure that grade allocations to students are fair and reliable. The process ensures comparability in quality terms between other higher education institutions teaching comparable units. GLI requires that:

· Learning, Teaching and Curriculum Committee (LTCC) takes responsibility for appointing appropriate mechanisms for external moderation of grades. LTCC will determine each discipline to be moderated in a rotational basis. Each discipline being moderated will include a reasonable sample of units taught that semester within that discipline, across various delivery modes.

· LTCC will ensure that responses to recommendations arising from external moderation are implemented.

After each teaching period, EC reviews grades across all units completed in that teaching period. EC evaluates the grades awarded to ensure consistency of distributions of marks both within and between units. The monitoring shall include consideration of the distribution of grades within each unit and comparison across delivery modes for the same units. The monitoring of grades process will also note any students needing to be placed on intervention in line with the Progression and Exclusion Policy.

EC reports any matters of concern to Academic Board and propose changes to improve outcomes in assessment practice and equity. Following the internal monitoring of grades, the Chair of EC may authorise the official dissemination of grades to students.

LTCC appoints an external expert in the relevant discipline to undertake an external moderation of sample graded assessments to report on standards, fairness and consistency of marking according to Australian higher education benchmarks. The External Moderation Report informs subsequent assessment practices to ensure a continuous cycle of review and improvement.

Once the External Moderation Report has been received, it is forwarded to the appropriate Unit Coordinator for review and response to LTCC. LTCC is responsible to ensure that any required changes or improvements are actioned, including professional development activities if needed. All external moderation reports and responses are tabled at Academic Board by the Chair of LTCC.