Assessment

Continous Assessment Activities

Title	Weighting	Hours	ECTS	Learning Outcomes
Activities	10%. No minimum mark is required for this part	2	0.08	1, 7, 8, 6, 10, 9
Final validation test	40%. The minimum grade required by this part is 5 out of 10	2	0.08	1, 8, 4, 6, 10, 9, 11
Knowledge and skill controls	15%. No minimum mark is required for this part	0.5	0.02	1, 8, 6, 9, 11
Laboratory work validation	15%. The minimum mark required by this part is 4 out of 10	1	0.04	5, 2, 3, 9, 11
Practical case	5%. No minimum mark is required for this part	0.5	0.02	1, 8, 6, 9, 11
Practical laboratory session follow up, with the possibility of undertaking a test during the session	15%. The minimum mark required by this part is 5 out of 10	2	0.08	5, 2, 3, 9, 11

 

Assessment Criteria

Assessment will be continuous and formative, based on the learning evidence generated by students through class participation activities, tests and final exams for knowledge validation, and laboratory work validation.

Activities and tools used for assessment:

Classroom activities

These are activities carried out during theoretical and problem-solving sessions, without regular periodicity. As in-person activities, they are not mandatory (i.e., completing them is not required to pass the course, although they do contribute to the assessment). Examples include: a comment on a short documentary shown in class, a description of a role-played activity conducted during the session, multiple-choice questions on the just-completed theory or problems session, analyzing the functioning of a routing information exchange protocol, etc.

Tests and final knowledge validation exams

The knowledge and skills tests are individual written exams aimed at validating whether each student is progressively acquiring the subject’s content and skills. These tests do not eliminate material for the final exam, nor do they require a minimum passing grade. The final exams for knowledge and lab work validation are individual written tests designed to confirm whether the student has minimally acquired the subject's knowledge, skills, and competencies. These exams are crucial due to the importance placed on the correct mastery of concepts in engineering-related subjects.

Passing both the final knowledge validation exam and the lab validation exam is essential to pass the course.

Practical case

A short test will be given in which the student must individually resolve a practical scenario, applying the skills acquired during the course. This exercise evaluates how well the student has integrated their learning to solve a plausible case theymight encounter in their future professional career.

Laboratory sessions

Lab work will involve a set of predefined sessions in which students, working in teams, will solve specific challenges aimed at developing knowledge, skills, and competencies related to the subject. Specific details about the organization of these sessions (challenges, groups, calendar, weighting, etc.) and their tracking (reports, attendance requirements, etc.) will be available on the Virtual Campus.

Attendance to lab sessions is mandatory (closed format). To be assessed, students must attend at least 80% of the lab sessions.

There will be one or more written tests to validate, individually, the learning outcomes. These validations must be passed to pass the course.

Indicators used to assess learning

For problem-solving and guided work, the indicators used will include individual consistency in the work, cooperation among team members, quality of the output, and participation in the overall learning process. Indicators of quality also include correct use of technical terms, proper paragraph writing, and well-structured content. Consistency in work will also be valued. Well-argued and, if necessary, revised problem solutions will be appreciated.

In class activities, student participation and submitted reports or documents will be assessed. In the practical part, indicators will include preparation (e.g., preliminary reports), active participation in lab sessions, and performance in the final evaluation. In tests and final validation exams (knowledge and lab work), the main indicator will be the correctness of answers to the posed questions.

 

Note on cheating, plagiarism, and other irregularities

Without prejudice to other disciplinary measures that maybe taken, and in accordance with current academic regulations,any irregularities by a student that may alter the grade of an evaluable activity will result in a zero (0) for that activity. These activities cannot be recovered. If the failed activity is necessary to pass the course, the student will automatically fail the course, with no opportunity for recovery in the same academic year.

These irregularities include, but are not limited to:

• Total or partial copying of a lab assignment, report, or any evaluable activity;

• Allowing someone else to copy;

• Submitting a group project (from this or previous years) that was not entirely produced by the group members (this applies to all members, not only those who did not work);

• Presenting third-party material as one’s own, even if translated or adapted, and in general, submitting non-original or non-exclusive work (including content generated with AI tools such as ChatGPT, Copilot, etc.);

• Having communication devices (phones, smartwatches, pens with cameras, etc.) accessible during individual assessments;

• Speaking with classmates during individual assessments;

• Copying or attempting to copy from others during assessments;

• Using or attempting to use unauthorized written materials during assessments.

The final numerical grade in the academic record will be the lower value between 3.0 and the weighted average grade if the student has committed irregularities (i.e., passing by compensation will not be allowed). In future editions of the subject, no assessments will be validated for students who committed such irregularities.

In summary: copying, allowing copying, or plagiarizing (or attempting to do so) in any assessment activity means a FAIL, withno possibility of compensation or validation.

Use of generative Artificial Intelligence tools

This course acknowledges the increasing use of generative AI as a support tool and allows its limited use.In general, thesetools may be used to improve formal aspects of work such as writing style, clarity, grammar, or translation, and to receive occasional assistance with technical aspects.

It is not acceptable to use generative AI tools to generate content that is subject to assessment, such as methodological approaches, design, execution of experiments, analysis or interpretation of results, idea development, or drawing conclusions. These must be carried out entirely by the student, as they form the core intellectual and creative work required to pass the subject.

Given the diversity of assignments, students are advised to consult their instructor in case of doubt.

In any case, students must explicitly declare in each report or deliverable whether AI tools have been used, specifying which ones, for what purpose, and to what extent. Irresponsible, excessive, or unnecessary use may negatively affect the final grade. Undeclared or inappropriate use may result in failing the course. 

Final grade

The final grade, which reflects knowledge, skills, and competency acquisition, will be calculated as the weighted average of the assessment components as follows:

• 40%: Final knowledge validation exam (minimum grade required: 5 out of 10).

• 15%: Laboratory sessions (minimum grade required: 4 out of 10).

• 15%: Lab validation test (minimum grade required: 5 out of 10).

• 15%: Knowledge and skillstests (no minimum grade required).

• 5%: Practical case (no minimum grade required).

• 10%: Class activities (no minimum grade required).

The final score for the 20% corresponding to the tests (15%) and the practical case (5%), referred to as CSP, will depend on the grade obtained in the final knowledge exam. If the CSP grade is equal to or greater than 1.5 and the final exam grade is at least5, then CSP will beraised to the higher of its actual grade or 5. This is because the final exam evaluates the full theoretical content of the course.

If the student does not pass the course because one or more components did not meet the required minimum grade, the final transcript grade will be the lower of 4.0 or the weighted average of all grades.

Exceptions:

• A “Not Assessed” (NA) grade will be given to students who do not participate in any assessment activity.

• If the student commits irregularities, the final grade will be the lower of 3.0 or the weighted average, meaning compensation will not be allowed.

Awarding distinctions (honours) will take into account active participation, contributions to problem-solving in the course forum, completion of optional challenges announced during the course, the final course grade, and the grade of the final exam.

Only students who have not taken part in any assessment activity may receive a "Not Assessed" grade.

Assessment calendar

• Ongoing: Class activities and lab sessions, including required reports.

• During lab sessions: Assessment of preliminary or foundational aspects.

• Throughout the term: Knowledge tests and practical case.

• End of term: Final knowledge validation exam and lab validation exam.

Dates will be posted on the Virtual Campus and may be rescheduled due to unforeseen circumstances. Any changes will be communicated via the Virtual Campus, which is the primary communication tool between instructors and students.

A make-up session will be scheduled for students who fail the final knowledge validation exam or the lab validation exam on their first attempt.

Classroom activities, tests, and the practical case cannot be retaken, as they do not require a minimum grade and are part of continuous assessment (they make no sense outside theiroriginal context).

All assessment activities can be reviewed.

Validations

There will be no automatic validations, and repeating students will not receive any special treatment. Validations must be explicitly requested, following the procedure explained on the first day of class.

Single assessment

This course cannot be assessed using the single-assessment procedure.