Anonymous marking

NUS has been campaigning for institutions to introduce anonymous marking of their assessments for several years. Over the course of the campaign, many students’ unions have been successful in winning the argument on their campus, but there are still several HEIs that still employ unfair methods of marking. Highlighting the broad scale of the problem, the 2007 results of the National Student Survey showed that 40 per cent of students were not satisfied with their assessment and feedback.

NUS has been successful in winning the support of The Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) and the Equality and Human Rights Commission; both of which consistently ask universities and colleges to use anonymous marking where fair and practical.

NUS’ position
Equality and fairness must lie at the heart of every aspect of the student experience, from admissions right through to assessment. NUS believes that where anonymous marking has not been introduced, institutions are leaving themselves susceptible to prejudice and perception of prejudice.

Wes Streeting, NUS Vice President (Education) said that; “Students have consistently been calling for anonymous marking, and the writing is on the wall for higher education institutions. For too long, LGBT, disabled, and black students have been unfairly discriminated against. This situation is unacceptable and we will continue our national campaign for anonymous marking.”

NUS Info

NUS' Anonymous marking briefing

To order materials to help support your local campaign, download the order form

Download a pdf of the ‘Mark My Words’ postcard campaign that can be adapted to use by your students' union

Further reading:

1. Belsey, C. (1988) Marking by Numbers, AUT Woman, 15
2. Bradley, C. (1984) Sex bias in the evaluation of students, British Journal of Social Psychology, 23,
3. Bradley, C. (1993) Sex bias in student assessment overlooked?, Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education
4. Dennis, I. and Newstead, S.E. (1994) The strange case of the disappearing sex bias, Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education
5. Francis, B., Robson, J. and Read, B. (2001) An analysis of undergraduate writing styles in the context of gender and achievement, Studies in Higher Education
6. Newstead, S.E. and Dennis, I. (1990) Blind marking and sex bias in student assessment, Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education
7. Steinberg, J. (1982) On examining blind, New Society, 16 September

Links to other relevant organisations:

Quality Assurance Agency

Higher Education Academy

QAA Scotland

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