Assessment and Marking in an Introductory Programming Course for Physics Students

What does a thoughtfully designed sequence of assessments actually look like, in full detail, for an introductory programming course? This chapter provides exactly that: an honest and detailed account of how assessment is implemented in a first-year computing course for physics undergraduates at UCL. The authors describe their full assessment framework (i.e., weekly programming tasks marked in person, online multiple-choice quizzes used as a pre-requisite for submission, take-home assignments, and a final computational physics project), and explain the reasoning behind each choice. They are honest about what has worked, what has not, and how the course has evolved year by year. The in-person marking model is particularly unique as it allows for immediate two-way feedback and, increasingly, offers a practical response to integrity concerns in an age of generative AI.

This chapter is for you if you are designing or revising an introductory programming course and want a detailed model to learn from. The authors do not claim to have found the perfect system. They share a system that has been tested, adapted, and improved. You will find practical insights on scaling feedback, managing marking workloads, and balancing formative and summative assessment in a course where programming is one component among several.