Super Grader Audio Categorization Guide

IMPORTANT: if you have not been contacted by Literably about being a super grader, you can skip this section.

As a super grader, you are entrusted with marking problematic audio files as unscorable for particular reasons using the checkboxes at the top of the page. You must click the "Mark as Unscorable" button to do this. (Clicking the = sign will submit the recording as a regular recording.)

Audio Categorization Checkboxes:

Line noise: microphone hum or buzz that obscures the student's reading out loud. Typically a microphone or headset problem. This does not mean background noise.
Low volume: the microphone volume is set so low that you can't make out what the student said.
Excessive background noise: there is so much background noise, relative to the volume that the student is reading at, that she can't be understood.
Whispering: a significant fraction of the student's words are whispered. This is problematic because even if the words can be made out, whispering makes it hard to tell whether vowels are pronounced correctly.
Disconnected mic: the microphone is disconnected for more than a very small amount of time, leading to zero or very low volume for a chunk of the recording.
Scrambled audio: audio is distorted to the point where it cannot be understood. Typically a microphone or headset problem.

Additional Reasons:
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There could be additional reasons for marking a recording unscorable (applies ONLY to full-length recordings which are generally longer than 15 seconds).
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If a recording is unscorable for some other reason, you can also mark it as unscorable without checking one of the above checkboxes. You would want to do this, for example, if:

• The student does not start reading within the first 15 seconds of the recording.
• The student fails to read the story (e.g., reads in a different language, or tells a story about the pictures, etc.).
• It is very clear that the recording is of an adult (such as a teacher or parent) giving instructions for how to use the Literably program.
  

Notes about short recordings:
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If you receive a problematic audio file that is a short recording (typically less than 20 seconds), please follow the rules regarding short recordings in the main transcription instructions:

• Unless the above audio categorization checkboxes (e.g., line noise, whispering, etc.) apply, the recording should NOT be marked unscorable. In other words, you should be able to score the recording.
• If no words are uttered in the recording, and you see text displayed, you will mark all words as unsaid using the E button. (As an example, Screenshot A in the regular grader directions show you how you would transcribe Recording A.)
• If no words are uttered in the recording, and you do not see text displayed, press = to submit.
• If words are uttered in the recording, transcribe the short recording as you normally would (i.e., by marking insertions, substitutions, omissions, etc.).
• If you don't see text displayed for a short recording, you can still transcribe the recording and NOT have to mark it as unscorable. For example, if you hear the student read "we like to climb" but you see no text on your screen, please use the "A" button to add "we like to climb" and then press = to submit. (As an example of this, Screenshot B in the regular grader directions shows you would transcribe Recording B.)

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