Assessment

1. Continued evaluation of students enrolling this module for the first time

All the students who are taking the module for the first time will follow the continued evaluation system: two tests (test type) + individual work project + participating on the seminars

1.1 Tests (having a 30% value each of the final grade), which will be about the theories and debates given in the lectures and about the content of the module’s mandatory readings. The aim of these tests is to prove the students’ knowledge on communication theories, conceptual definitions, theoretical approaches and social communication analysis.

1.2 Fulfilment of an individual project (30% value of the final grade) within the module’s seminars. The project will be an academic essay about a current topic brought up by the communication media only after the date this module started on. The aim of the project is to evaluate the comprehension, the analysis capability, structuring and systematization of knowledge acquired during the module and applied to a case or situation.

It will have to be carried on from the perspective of the analysed theories in the lectures work of frame. The seminars’ teachers will decide if the essay topic suggested by the student is appropriate or not. If necessary, the teachers will give the indications for the students to reformulate the project. The same teachers will be doing a follow up and tutoring on the student’s project.

The individual project will be evaluated using a scoring rubric that will be based on:

• Introduction (up to 1 point);
• Appropriate usage of the theoretical frame (up to 2 points);
• Argumentation (up to 1 point);
• Conclusions (up to 2 points);
• Writing style (up to 1 point);
• References (up to 1 point);
• Citations (up to 1 point);
• Originality (up to 1 point).

 1.3 Seminar participation (10% value of the final grade). In the seminars there will be discussions and debates about the mandatory readings. These readings are planned to provide knowledge about the usage of the communication theories within the analysis of reality and news. The readings will be mandatory and, together with the content of the lectures, they are part of the module’s core.

Final qualification 

Each student will have to take, at least, the two tests and the individual project. In order to pass the course, each of the two tests (multiple-choice) must be passed with a minimum mark of 5 points each. If one of the tests is failed, the final mark of the module will be the same one of the failed test. Given the case the student doesn’t take one of the tests, the final grade will be “not evaluable”. If the student has failed both of the tests, the final grade will be the average of both tests.

As to the project, in case the student doesn’t have an appropriate topic suggestion, or in case he or she doesn’t do it at all, the student will be “not evaluable”. Because the module has a continued evaluation, if a student is “not evaluable” on the project, he/she will also be “not evaluable” on the module’s final grade.

Because of this, the result would be:

• Test 1: 30%
• Test 2: 30%
• Individual module’s project: 30%
• Seminar’s participation: 10%

2. Evaluation of students enrolling this module for the second time or more

Students enrolled  for the second time or more will be able to follow one of thesetwo evaluation options:

2.1 Continued evaluation – two tests (test type) + individual work project + participating on the seminars. The student will follow the same procedure of evaluation as explained in the section 1 and will have to inform the teacher. The requirements to pass the module are the same as the ones specified in the section 1.

Final qualification. Same procedure as section 1.

2.2. Final test (test type) the students taking the module for the second time or more will also be able to be evaluated only by completing a test, according to the article 117.2 of UAB’s Academic Regulation, applicable to all the university students regulated accordingly to the Royal Decree 1393/2007, of 29^th of October, modified by the Royal Decree 861/2010 of the 2^nd of July. The students who choose this evaluating option will be welcomed to join he lectures and the seminars, as long as they are aware that the only evaluated activity they will take will be this test. They will not be evaluated within seminar participation nor the fulfilment of the project.

Final qualification. The final grade of the students who choose this evaluation will be the same as the one they get in the test they’d take.

3. Second-chance exam:

According to the UAB’s Academic Regulation, students will have the chance to make up for the evaluation activities.  The students who will be able to take them are:

3.1 Students taking the module for the first time or more (as long as they chose this evaluation option) – two tests + individual project + seminar participation.

Students will be entitled to the revaluation of the subject. They should present a minimum of activities that equals two-thirds of the total grading.

Students who took the tests and failed them will have the right to retake one or two of the tests failed.

 It will not be possible to retake the individual project. The aim of the project is to evaluate the comprehension, the analysis capability, structuring and systematization of knowledge acquired during the module and applied to a case or situation. It is the result of a continued evaluation started at the beginning of the semester and it will not be able to redo it within a short time.

 It will also not be possible to retake the participation in the seminars for obvious reasons.

 3.2 Students taking the module for the second time or more who chose to follow the one final test evaluation. The students who did this exam and failed will be able to retake a new test.

4. Chances to get a higher qualification 

4.1 The students who have followed the continued evaluation and passed the exams can take the make up exam to get a higher grade. They can do it either with both exams or only one. In any case, the student will have to accept the results they get, even if they are worse than before. If one od the make up exams is failed, then the final grade of the module will be the same as the one in the test.

4.2 Students taking the module for the second time or more who choose the final test evaluation system and have passed, will also have the chance to take a make up exam to get a higher grade. In any case, the student will have to accept the results they get. The final grade will be the same as the one in this exam.

5. Ordinary revision of the evaluated activities:

Given the case the student is not satisfied with the grades of his or her different evaluated activities, there will be an option for revising these activities, In the case of the tests and final exam, the ordinary revision will be carried bytheteacher in the lectures. The individual project and the seminar participation will be revised with the seminar teacher. The dates and times of the ordinary revision will be made public through UAB’s Virtual Campus.

6. Extraordinary revision of the module’s final grade:

In case of not agreeing with the final qualification of the module, the student will have the right to ask for an extraordinary revision. He or she will have to fill a reasoned request to the Communication Sciences Faculty office within the fifteen days following final mark publication. 

PLAGIARISM: The student who commits any irregularity (copy, plagiarism, identity fraud, ...) that may lead to a significant variation in the grade of an assessment act, will be graded with 0 this assessment activity. In case of several irregularities, the final grade of the subject will be 0. 

NOTE: The teaching methodology and assessments proposed may be subject to changes depending on the attendance restrictions imposed by health authorities.