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THE UNIVERSITY OF HULL Student Administrative Services Instructions to Invigilators at University Examinations – May/June 2009

SECTION I General definition of invigilators’ responsibilities SECTION II Procedure BEFORE the examination SECTION III Procedure DURING the examination SECTION IV Procedure at the END of the examination SECTION V Emergency Regulations EXAMINATIONS OFFICE TELEPHONE NUMBERS Examinations Office : 5380 or 6816 Derek Ord : 5980 (Examinations Officer)

May/June 2009 Examinations Office

SECTION I : General definition of invigilators’ responsibilities
1. Duties
Invigilators are responsible for the conduct of the examination in accordance with instructions issued by the Chief Invigilator.

2. Venue of Examinations
The following venues will be used as Examination Halls during the examinations period :
Ferens Building (comprising Leslie Downs lecture theatre);
Staff House (comprising Lindsey Suite and Room CR3- (First Floor))
Sports Hall
Gymnasium (first floor in the Sports & Fitness Centre)
B.J. Library (Teaching Room 4 for Alternative Examinations);
B.J. Library (Teaching Room 8 for PC room)

3. Number of Invigilators
Invigilators are allocated as follows :
- TWO in the Ferens Building (ONE Chief Invigilator and ONE additional Invigilator);
- FOUR in Staff House (ONE Chief Invigilator and ONE additional Invigilator in each of the rooms);
- SIX in Sports Centre (THREE in Sports Hall and TWO in Gym and ONE Chief Invigilator)

• 
  ONE in the Alternative Examinations Room;
  

- ONE in the PC Room

These numbers may be reduced if there are only a small number of candidates.

4. Period of Invigilation
In accordance with the Senate Resolution of 24 June 1987, the normal period of invigilation is FOUR hours, from 9.00 am until 1.00 p.m. and from 1.00 p.m. until 5.00 p.m. This includes the time required for the Invigilators to put out the question papers and for scripts to be collected.
Invigilators are asked to be present in the examination hall at least HALF AN HOUR before the scheduled start of the examination to ensure there is plenty of time to prepare the room.

SECTION II : Procedure BEFORE the examination
1. Delivery of Examination papers
Examination papers will be delivered to Chief Invigilators in each Examinations Hall (except for the Alternative Examinations Room) at 9.00 am for morning examinations and 1.00 p.m. for afternoon examinations.
The Chief Invigilator will allocate responsibilities to each invigilator and distribute examination papers accordingly.

2. Invigilators’ Attendance Sheet
Invigilators are required to sign the pink attendance sheet kept by the Chief Invigilator.

3. Examination stationery
It is the responsibility of the invigilators to place the examination papers on each desk before the examination begins.
All desks will already be set up with the examination stationery required. All candidates are provided with one or more answer books before the examination starts. Supplies of answer books and other stationery are available in the examination room.

4. Opening of doors
The doors of the examination room should be opened to candidates, on the instruction of the Chief Invigilator, no later than FIVE MINUTES before the scheduled beginning of the examination.

5. Candidates who do not appear on seating plan
A seating plan for the relevant part of the hall will be supplied to invigilators by the Chief Invigilator. The invigilator should admit to an examination any student whose name does not appear on the list of candidates, provided that an examination paper and a place are available, or unless previously advised otherwise by the Examinations Office. The student should be allocated one of the spare seats (do not use the seats allocated to candidates who are absent) and be provided with an examination paper together with all the required stationery. The Invigilator must add the student’s name and seat number to the seating list and registration number to the script packet front.

6. Late arrivals
Any candidate who arrives within the first 30 minutes of the examination should be permitted to start without any report being made, BUT NO EXTRA TIME SHOULD BE ALLOWED.
No candidate will be allowed to enter the examination room after the end of the first HALF HOUR of the examination.
Only in exceptional circumstances can special arrangements be made for a candidate arriving after the first half hour of the session to take the examination elsewhere. Such students should be told to report immediately to the Department setting the examination and the Chief Invigilator should be informed straightaway.

7. Start of the Examination
Students are not allowed to start the examination until directed to do so by the Chief Invigilator. No writing of any kind is permitted before the official start announcement.
As soon as the Chief Invigilator is satisfied that all students are seated and ready to start, s/he will make some announcements, and start the exam.


SECTION III : Procedure DURING the examination

1. Beginning of Examination
At the commencement of the examination Chief Invigilators will make a number of announcements.

2. Anonymous marking
Chief Invigilators will announce that students must write their student registration number in the space provided; if a student has forgotten their student card, they should ask the Invigilator to provide them with their registration number. When a request for supplying the registration is made, Invigilators should check first the seating plan; if the student is not listed, the Chief Invigilator should telephone the Examinations Office which will provide the number by checking the Student Record System.

3. Food and Drink
Eating and drinking is FORBIDDEN in all examination rooms, with the exception of small packets of sweets and small cans or bottles of drink.

4. Early departures
No candidate may leave the examination room during the first half hour or the last quarter hour of their examination. The Chief Invigilator will remind candidates of this at the commencement of the examination.

5. Queries on Examination papers
The Chief Invigilator will inform candidates at the commencement of the examination that any suspected error or other query on the question paper should be reported immediately. If it should appear that there is an error on an examination paper, the Chief Invigilator should inform the Examinations Office immediately for the problem to be referred to the examiner responsible for the paper. No alterations should be made without the examiner’s authority. The Invigilator shall, but only on the authority of the examiner, announce any alteration or correction in the examination paper.

6. Attendance cards
After the first 30 minutes of the examination the Invigilator should start collecting the attendance cards (pink cards) from the candidates’ desks and then complete the attendance register (a green card for each examination, not for each student) which should be attached to the relevant set of pink cards.

7. Seating Plan
The Invigilator should then check the name and desk number of each candidate with the seating plan. The first column of this list should be marked to indicate whether or not the candidate is present. The second column should be completed when the Invigilator collects the scripts at the end of the examination.
8. Absentees
Any candidates absent after the first half hour of the exam must be marked as absent on the seating plan, and their registration number written on the script packet front. There is no longer any need to report absentees to the Chief Invigilator, as these are no longer reported to the Exams Office. It is, therefore, essential that the correct information regarding absent candidates is written on the script packet fronts.

9. Candidates temporarily leaving the room
Candidates will be allowed to go to toilets. Invigilators should ensure that the candidates leave their answer books on their desks and should make a note of the desk number and time of leaving and returning to the room. This information should be marked on the covers of the scripts when these are collected.

10. Candidates taken ill
The invigilators should inform Chief Invigilators if any candidates are taken ill. Where necessary, the Chief Invigilator will telephone the Examinations Office. Examinations Office staff will arrange for a first aider to attend immediately.

11. Information to be written on envelope
The examination papers will be supplied in an envelope marked with a list of the desk numbers of candidates who are taking that paper. The Invigilator should note on the envelope the registration number and desk number of any absent candidate and those who leave exceptionally early (within the first half of the exam), so that the examiner also has a record of these. The registration number and seat number of any additional candidates should also be written on the packet front.

12. Oversight of candidates
Invigilators should give their SOLE ATTENTION to the conduct of the examination. No other activity should be undertaken during the examination period. Invigilators must maintain oversight of the candidates in the examination room and are advised to walk quietly around the room from time to time.

13. Examination material
Where candidates are permitted to use materials which they bring with them into the examination hall or which are already there, e.g. books, notes, tables or slide rules, this will be explicitly stated in the rubric. However, the use of calculators and own language (translation to English) dictionaries is permitted in the examinations unless the contrary is clearly specified in the rubric of a question paper. Departments setting papers where calculators (or dictionaries) are not permitted have been reminded of their responsibility for making this clear to students and to the Examinations Office in advance of the examination. Invigilators must check the dictionaries for unauthorised notes. A copy of the English Concise dictionary is available on each invigilator’s desk. Mobile phones, electronic dictionaries and other forms of electronic storage or communication are not allowed in the Examination Hall. Invigilators should check that no devices are in view.
14. Procedure to be followed in case of Cheating
If a candidate is suspected of cheating in an examination, there is a set procedure which MUST BE FOLLOWED.
(i) if an invigilator suspects a candidate of cheating, their first action may be to seek a view from another invigilator. This has the effect of doubling the witnessing of the event.
(ii) the candidate should be calmly and quietly told that they are suspected of cheating, and that the matter will be reported to their relevant department. It is the department’s decision as to whether the matter is referred to the Examination Board, and whether further action is taken against that candidate. The invigilation team is not entitled to make a decision as to the seriousness of the case. If cheating is witnessed, the student MUST be challenged, and the full incident MUST be reported. How the matter would then be taken forward is a matter for the relevant Examination Board.
(iii) the candidate’s script must be endorsed with a note of the event, giving brief details of the nature of the occurrence, e.g. “found with extraneous material”, “found to be in communication with another candidate”. The time of the event must also be given.
(iv) the candidate should normally be allowed to complete the examination, unless, in the opinion of the Chief Invigilator, they are causing a disturbance to other candidates.
(v) Any materials brought into the examination room without permission should be confiscated immediately and a full written report should be made on the circumstances.
(vi) IMMEDIATELY after the conclusion of the examination, the Chief Invigilator must report the full matter to the Examinations Officer, and hand in any confiscated material at this stage.
(vii) Invigilators may be asked to give evidence at a subsequent Investigation.
SECTION IV : Procedure AT THE END OF the examination
1. End of Examination
The (Chief) Invigilator should announce the end of the examination session and remind candidates to seal the top-right corner of the anonymous marking answer books. Candidates must leave their answer books on their desks, but are permitted to take their question papers away with them.

2. Checking scripts
Invigilators should check the anonymous marking scripts for unsealed corners before placing them in the examination envelopes.

3. Collecting scripts
The invigilator should collect the scripts from the desks and check these with the seating list provided (marking column two of the list). All scripts must be accounted for and placed in the correct envelope. Should any discrepancy be found, an immediate search should be made before the packets are sealed and the desks cleared and prepared for the next examination. If the problem is not resolved, the Chief Invigilator should be informed immediately, together with Derek Ord or the Examinations Office. When the Invigilator is satisfied that all scripts are accounted for, they should seal the packets. (Attendance cards should not be put into these packets). The envelopes containing all scripts for that paper, seating plan and attendance cards should be handed to the Chief Invigilator. Any unusual circumstances should be reported to the Chief Invigilator.

4. Clearing up
Invigilators are asked to leave their desks clear, ready for the next examination session.

Invigilators are requested to deal with circumstances not covered by these notes as they see fit, bearing in mind both the requirements of a formal examination and the necessity for ensuring the best possible conditions for candidates.

SECTION V : EMERGENCY REGULATIONS

Should an emergency situation arise during the examination which warrants evacuation of the premises, the fire alarm will activate (the sound is a persistent electronic warble type or siren noise). The Chief invigilator should ask candidates to leave the premises immediately. Candidates have to STOP what they are doing, LEAVE their answer books, papers and possessions on their desks and LEAVE the premises via the marked fire exit doorways provided. (Invigilators should point these out to candidates).

All students are to assemble at the recognised assembly points (see Fire Action Notice at Chief Invigilator’s desk) where a roll call will be taken. Re-entry will only be permitted after approval has been given by either the Fire Brigade or Safety Office staff.
A copy of the Fire Action Notice for each building used as Examination Halls upon which is identified the designated assembly point(s) will be placed near the Chief Invigilator’s desk.
Should an emergency occur which warrants evacuation, invigilators are to assist in the evacuation and roll call. The result of the roll call are to be passed on to the duty Safety Officer attending the incident

Instructions to Invigilators at University Examinations QH F1

Student Administrative Services Annexe 4b :

Version 1 01 – May 09