Sometimes you just want to add one comment or fix one heading. Each feedback box has its own microphone button that types exactly what you say, live, into that box. Steps On the marking screen, click into the feedback box you want, under a heading or in General feedback. Click the 🎤 microphone button on that box. Start talking. Your words appear in the box as you speak. When you've finished, click the red stop button next to the timer. Check the text and correct anything that was misheard. Click Save. Good to know This types exactly what you say. It isn't rewritten or sorted into headings. For that, use Talk it through. Your words are added after anything already in the box. Starting the microphone on a different box stops the first one and keeps what it heard.

If the built-in styles aren't quite how you write feedback, make your own. Describe in plain English how you want your spoken feedback written up, and MarkMate follows it every time you use that style. Steps In the toolbar at the bottom of the marking screen, click the small arrow next to Talk it through. Click New style… In Style name, type a name, for example "Year 2 – short and simple". In What should it do?, describe how you want the feedback written. Save the style. It now appears in your list of styles. Example instructions "Write in short, simple sentences a 6-year-old can read. Speak to the child as 'you'. Keep each comment to one or two sentences." "Write in a formal tone for GCSE students. Use exam-board language where it fits what I said." "Start every comment with 'Next time, try…' for anything I say needs improving." Good to know MarkMate already knows your headings. If an instruction should only apply to one heading, name it, for example "For Presentation, keep it to one sentence." You can have up to 20 voice styles. To edit or delete your styles, click the small arrow, then Manage. You can also go to Settings → Voice styles. Voice style vs marking style A voice style is used when you talk with Talk it through. A marking style is used when MarkMate drafts feedback for you from the student's work.

MarkMate reads everything you said and works out which heading each comment belongs to. A few simple habits make it much more accurate. Do ✅ Say what you're talking about. "For question two…", "On the conclusion…", "Overall…". MarkMate uses these cues to place each comment, then takes them out of the final feedback. ✅ Talk about one heading at a time. Finish one point before moving on to the next. ✅ Speak normally. You don't need to talk slowly or say "full stop". Ums, ers and repeated words are tidied away. ✅ Fill in "What to look for" on your headings. MarkMate uses it to match comments, especially when headings have short names like AO1. Avoid ❌ Asides you don't want written down. Anything you say ends up somewhere. Notes to yourself, such as "I need to check this with their TA", go into General feedback, so delete them before saving. ❌ Talking over a noisy room. The microphone may pick up other voices. Record somewhere quiet if you can. ❌ Very long recordings. Do one student per recording. Good to know: MarkMate hasn't seen the student's work when it writes up your voice note. It only uses what you said. It never adds praise or criticism you didn't give.

Typing feedback for a whole class takes time. With MarkMate you can say your feedback instead, the way you'd talk to a student at their desk, and it appears as written feedback. Most teachers find it much faster than typing, and the feedback sounds more natural. There are two ways to use your voice Talk it through Microphone on a feedback box Where The dark toolbar at the bottom of the marking screen The 🎤 button on any feedback box What you say Everything about the student's work, in one go Feedback for that one box What happens MarkMate sorts your comments into the right headings and writes them up Your exact words are typed into that box as you speak Best for Marking a whole piece quickly Adding or fixing one comment What you need Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge or Safari. Firefox doesn't support voice. A microphone. Your laptop's built-in one is fine. An internet connection. Good to know: Voice feedback is never saved until you save it, so you can always check and change it first.

When a heading uses a grade set, the AI reads the student's work and picks the level that fits it best, the way an exam board marker would. Knowing how it decides helps you set up grade sets that give accurate results. How it decides It looks at your levels in order, from the top (highest) down. That's why the order matters. It uses best fit. It picks a level, then checks the levels just above and just below. One strong moment won't lift a student a whole level, and small slips won't drop them one. It uses the full range. Simple or mostly descriptive work goes in the lower levels, however long it is. It tells you when work is borderline, close to the next level up or down, so you know which ones to double-check. Get the best results Put your levels in the right order, with the highest at the top. If they're upside down, the grades will be too. Use descriptive names. The AI reads the level names, so "Secure: explains with accurate detail" gives it more to go on than "Level 3". Describe what each level looks like. Put it in the heading's What to look for box, or attach a mark scheme with level descriptors. This makes the biggest difference. Good to know: Students never see the level in MarkMate's written feedback. It only gives them strengths and next steps. The grade is for you.

I can't see a colleague's grade set Grade sets are private unless a school admin shares them. Ask your colleague to get it shared, or ask your MarkMate admin. See How to share a grade set. I can see a grade set, but I can't edit or delete it It's a shared grade set (it shows Shared with team). Only school admins can change shared grade sets, so that everyone's marking stays consistent. You can still use it in your assessments. I can't remove a level That level has already been used to mark work. Rename it instead, or leave it in place. My grade set isn't in the list when I set up an assessment Check that you switched to the right school and that the grade set was saved. Your grade sets belong to the school account you created them in.

If you no longer need a grade set, you can delete it. To protect your marking, MarkMate only lets you delete a grade set that isn't being used in any assessment. Steps Click the round button with your initials (top right), then Settings. Click Grade sets. Click ••• next to the grade set and choose Delete grade set. You can also open the grade set and click Delete grade set at the bottom. Click OK to confirm. Can't delete it? The grade set is still used by at least one assessment heading. To delete it: Open each assessment that uses it (the list shows how many: "Used in 3 assessments"). Edit the assessment and change the heading to a different grade set, Marks or Feedback only. Try deleting the grade set again. Warning: Changing a heading's grading clears the grades already given for that heading. Written feedback is kept. If you want to keep the grades, keep the grade set.

If your department or school marks to the same scale, a school admin can share a grade set so every teacher can use it. That keeps marking consistent and saves everyone setting up their own. Steps (admins only) Click the round button with your initials (top right), then Settings. Click Grade sets. Create a new grade set, or open an existing one. Under Sharing, turn on Share with your team. Click Create grade set or Save changes. Good to know Shared grade sets show Shared with team in the list. Your own private ones show Only you. Every teacher at the school can use a shared grade set, but only admins can edit or delete it. Don't see the Sharing option? You're not a school admin. Ask your school's MarkMate admin to create or share the grade set for you.

You can rename a grade set, rename or re-colour its levels, change their order, or add new ones at any time, even if you're already using it. Steps Click the round button with your initials (top right), then Settings. Click Grade sets. Click the grade set's name, or click ••• next to it and choose Edit grade set. Make your changes. Click Save changes. What's safe to change ✅ Renaming the grade set or a level. Marks you've already given are kept and show the new name. ✅ Changing a level's colour or abbreviation. ✅ Adding new levels. ✅ Reordering levels. What you can't change ❌ Removing a level that has already been used to mark work. MarkMate stops you, with a message naming the level. You can remove a level that hasn't been used yet. Tip: At the top of the edit page, MarkMate tells you how many assessments use this grade set. Changes apply to all of them.

When you set up an assessment, you choose how to mark each feedback heading. Choosing a grade set means MarkMate, and you, give that heading one of your levels. Steps Create a new assessment, or edit an existing one (Markbook → ••• → Edit). Under Feedback headings, find the heading you want to grade. Click the grading button on the right of the heading. It says Feedback only to start with. Choose your grade set from the list. If you have lots, type in Find a grade set… to search. Click Create assessment or Save changes. Good to know You can use different grade sets for different headings in the same assessment. Each new heading copies the grading from the heading above, so you only need to choose once. Can't see your grade set in the list? Check it's saved under Settings → Grade sets. If a colleague made it, they need to share it first. See Why can't I see or edit a grade set?