Teaching and learning lexicon

S

Second marker is the second marker to complete marks and feedback on a student assessment. Usually this is also blind to the first marker marks and feedback.   

Scaffolding is the process of providing support for students so that they are able to develop the necessary skills and capabilities for study. The aim is for scaffolding to be gradually removed so that eventually students are able to complete tasks independently. 

Scaling Is the adjustment of marks for an entire cohort carried out on an assessment task so that the marks better reflect the achievement of the students as defined by the Mark Descriptors.

School is a grouping of disciplines employing similar methodologies. There are four Schools within the Faculty of Humanities (Arts, Languages & Cultures [SALC]; Environment, Education & Development [SEED]; Alliance Manchester Business School [MBS]; Social Sciences [SoSS]).

Self-evaluation Document is written at discipline or School level and is discussed by a panel of peers, external to the School, as part of a periodic review. It is an evidence-based reflection of what the School believes to be working well and what they believe to be working less well. It should be full and frank, not attempting to hide problems; it should be balanced, not forgetting to cover strengths; and it should be developmental, offering thoughts on how to improve what the School does.

Semester is the defined period of time when teaching and examinations / assessment etc. are delivered / undertaken.

Seminars are smaller group sessions, designed to complement lectures. Seminars usually focus on an in depth discussion around a certain topic and provide a great opportunity for students to share their ideas and questions.

Senate is the principle academic authority of the University and is responsible for the promotion of research and for the regulation of the education and discipline of our students.

SharePoint is a web-based system which allows you to store, manage and share information with colleagues.

Site Manager is the University’s main web Content Management System (CMS).

(Teaching and Learning) Showcase is an event hosted by the Faculty to ‘showcase’ good practice and enhancement of teaching and learning. Find out more about the Teaching and Learning Showcase.

(Humanities) Social and Wellbeing Advisory Group brings together representatives from across the Faculty to consider all matters relating to wellbeing for staff.  These meetings enable members to work together to promote an inclusive and supportive community, underpinned by effective and timely mental health and wellbeing support systems that allow our staff to realise their potential and achieve success. 

Social responsibility describes how our research, teaching and external engagement makes a difference to our communities, both socially and economically.

(Humanities) Social Responsibility Operations Group (H-SROG) will lead on the implementation of the University’s strategic goal for Social Responsibility across the Faculty of Humanities. H-SROG will report to the Humanities Policy and Resources Committee (HPRC) and will also take reports from and report its activities to the Social Responsibility Governance Group (SRGG).

Special compensation can be given in the final year of a programme, due to the fact that referral/reassessment is not normally permitted in the final year. It can be given at FHEQ level 6 for up to 40 credits for the award of 2:2; 2:1 and 1st class degrees; and up to 60 credits for third class degrees or at FHEQ level 7 of an integrated Masters only.. For 2:2, 2:1 and 1st class awards, the student must have passed at least 80 credits at the level of the award and have achieved pass average overall. For the award of a third class degree, the student must have passed at least 60 credits at the level of the award. The original course unit marks are used to calculate the degree classification. Special compensation is for credit only.

Staff Development is the term used for staff members enhancing and furthering their skills set and / or career.

StaffNet provides information on University policies and procedures and services, as well as updates on news, events and current job vacancies. Visit StaffNet.

StaffNet News is the news section of Staff Net which delivers important University news, information to assist staff in their day-to-day jobs, events and activities organised by the University.

Staff Student Ratio (SSR) shows the total number of full-time equivalent taught students per the full-time equivalent teaching and research staff.

Staff Student Liaison Group is a sub-group of the Teaching & Learning Committee (TLC) which provide an opportunity for students to discuss with the Associate Dean (Teaching, Learning and Students) and Heads of Service provision across the University (e.g. Library, IT, Careers, eLearning, estates) those issues that affect their experience at the University of Manchester.

Standard Course Structure (SCS) is the standard content in a Blackboard unit. 

Standard Deviation A measure of how spread out numbers are. The higher the standard deviation for a set of marks the more spread out those marks are.

Standardisation is process where marks and feedback are checked to ensure that the range of marks and comments are correct across a cohort of learners (UKSCQA, 2022).   

Start of Year Fair is an activity held during welcome week to introduce students to the help and support available to them during their studies.

(Faculty) Strategic Plan informs everything the Faculty does until 2020; it outlines the Faculty’s key aims for the next six years. Each of the strategies is broken down into a core enabling strategy which outlines how these aims will be enacted across the Faculty. 

Student Charter sets out the University’s commitments to students, and students' commitments to their study. Read about the student charter.

Student Conduct and Discipline Committee is the University’s Committee which is responsible to Senate for the operation and review of all matters relating to student conduct and discipline.

Student Data, Analysis and Records has responsibility for the maintenance and development of the central student record system (Campus Solutions) and the base data it contains; for the provision of high quality student data to support a wide variety of academic and administrative business processes, monitoring procedures, and internal and external reporting requirements; and for the provision of advice to Faculties, Schools and other administrative offices on the structuring of records on the student records system.

Student Disciplinary Panels are the University Panels which investigate and hear allegations of misconduct against students and which have the delegated authority from Senate under Statute XXI to expel, suspend, exclude or impose other penalties on students.

Student Experience Action Plan (SEAP) a document which allows Schools to record the development and enhancement of teaching and learning activity throughout the year, which is submitted to the Faculty as part of the School’s annual report on continual monitoring. SEAPs must indicate what actions need to be taken, by whom, and in what timescale. The SEAP replaces previous Annual Monitoring action plans and should reflect the partnership between academic staff and PSS staff in delivering an excellent student experience. Only one School level SEAP is required to be submitted to the Faculty.

Student Experience Internships are fully-funded summer internships for Schools and other areas of the University. The scheme offers penultimate year undergraduates the opportunity to undertake an internship within the University or with a local charity/not-for-profit organisation. All SEI internships will be paid, full-time and last up to eight weeks.SEI internships are carried out through a mixture of in-person and hybrid working. Further details of the mode of working for each internship are available on each individual SEI advert.

Student Experience Programme (SEP) is a major change initiative for our University, introducing new technology and processes to improve the experience for our students and staff. In tandem, it is supporting the development of people and structural changes, namely a revised staffing model and new ways of working together. See SEP website.

Student Occupational Health Service promotes the physical, mental and social well-being of students and aims to reduce the incidence of ill-health arising from exposure to work place hazards. Visit The University of Manchester Occupational Health Service website.

Student Records Maintenance is an area of Campus Solutions covering many different aspects of managing student records.

Student Representation is a partnership between the Students' Union and the University, recognising that representation is the core purpose of the Students' Union, and that student representatives are a key part of the University's quality assurance processes.

Student Self-Service is an area of Campus Solutions available to students.

Student Services Centre (SSC) is a single point of contact for students to carry out most of the administrative tasks they need to when they interact with the University's central administration, such as registration, payment of tuition fees, obtaining all sorts of official documents, collecting loans, grants and other awards, everything to do with examinations, and graduation ceremonies and degree certificates.

Students’ Union is a charity and a company limited by guarantee, which is overseen by its Board of Trustees and is a democratically run membership organisation, with over 40,000 members. Every student at The University of Manchester is automatically a member of the Students’ Union. The Students’ Union exists to support and represent all students of the University.

Student System Office (SSO) Bulletin is an email bulletin providing information and operational / developmental updates in relation to the central student records system (Campus Solutions). To be included on the mailing list you need to email sso-bulletin@manchester.ac.uk.

Study Abroad and exchange programmes allow international undergraduate students to spend time in Manchester, and Manchester students to experience life at an overseas university. Find out more about Studying Abroad.

Study Skills are sets of skills associated with a student's ability to learn, including note taking, time management, and study planning etc.

Subject Benchmark Statements set out expectations about standards of degrees in a range of subject areas. They describe what gives a discipline its coherence and identity, and define what can be expected of a graduate in terms of the abilities and skills needed to develop understanding or competence in the subject. Read more about Subject Benchmark Statements on the Quality Assurance Agency website.

Summative Assessment is assessment that contributes to the final mark of a unit. Summative assessment can include both coursework and examinations. The completion of all required elements of summative assessments normally indicates the end of a unit of study.

Summative feedback is feedback given on work which counts towards the final assessment. It evaluates students’ learning.

Suite of programmes are related programmes with separate titles that share the same pool of course units and that are managed by the same programme committee. A suite of programmes could have a substantial number of course units in common, though there may also be some which are specific to a subset of the programmes and there may also be variation as to which course units are obligatory and which are optional between the programmes.

Supervised time in studio / workshop is the time in which students work independently but under supervision, in a specialist facility such as a studio or workshop.  Examples might include time spent in an art or design studio, or in a rehearsal space such as a workshop theatre.

Swipecard is a term used for the staff / student card issued by The University of Manchester which allows access to buildings and car parks.

Syllabus is the 'content' of a programme or unit; the topics, issues or subjects that will be covered as it proceeds.

Syllabus Plus (S+) is the University’s timetabling system.