Make the retained grade match the intended attempt rule

Separate an attempt from a visit

Moodle 5.2’s SCORM settings documentation, checked on 7 November 2026, provides first, last, average and highest attempt-grading choices. It also distinguishes settings that force a new attempt from ordinary access and scopes its attempt-count control to SCORM 1.2 and AICC. This lesson uses the SCORM 1.2 case, not a universal LMS rule.

Ask the learning administrator to define when a learner is continuing existing work and when a genuinely new attempt begins. Record the chosen attempt policy beside the grade-selection rule. A second visit is not sufficient evidence of a second attempt, and a retry button inside the authored quiz may operate differently from the LMS’s new-attempt control. Trace which layer owns each action.

Choose results that distinguish the selection rules

Create a synthetic sequence with deliberately unequal results, such as 40, 80 and 60 on an agreed common scale. State the expected selected value before testing. In this fictional example, first, last, highest and average do not all produce the same outcome, so the sequence can reveal which rule is actually applied. Avoid using repeated perfect scores, which would make several wrong configurations appear correct.

Add an interrupted visit within one attempt. Record whether it resumes that attempt and whether its partial state is eligible for the gradebook under the actual configuration. Do not assume that an unfinished attempt should be averaged, ignored or treated as zero. Ask the owner for the documented behavior and preserve the distinction between a missing result and a genuine low score.

Reconcile the three places a result can appear

Compare the authored quiz result, the LMS attempt record and the selected gradebook value. Identify the attempt reference for each observation so that a score from an older attempt is not compared with the latest screen by accident. If several learning objects exist within a package, keep their within-attempt aggregation separate from the rule selecting across attempts.

When the gradebook differs from expectation, inspect the configured selection rule and the set of attempts it considered. Do not delete an inconvenient attempt or change a score to make the comparison pass. A request to clear an attempt is a separate consequential administrative decision with retention and learner implications. QA should use isolated synthetic records and describe the correction needed without modifying actual learning histories.

Explain the rule before the learner retries

Review the instructions presented before starting another attempt. A learner should understand whether a later result can replace an earlier one and whether the number of attempts is limited. Avoid promising that the best result will be kept when the configured rule selects the last attempt. Equally, do not describe every reopening as consuming another attempt unless that is what the implementation does.

Retain the ledger with the package, LMS version, attempt policy and grade-selection setting. Include a returning visit and a new attempt, not just three completed scores. Recheck the ledger when the course administrator changes attempt limits or the authoring package changes its internal retry behavior. The acceptance result is a reproducible explanation of the retained grade, not a judgment about the educational merits of unlimited retries or a claim that the selected score proves professional competence.

Make the reasoning concrete.

A fictional copy-review course allows three attempts. Its instructions promise that the highest score is retained, but the configured gradebook selects the last attempt, replacing an earlier stronger result.

The team reconciles the policy and wording in a test environment and does not alter real attempt records to conceal the discrepancy.

Take the questions into your next brief.

Use these prompts in your own notes. Nothing is submitted from this page.

1. Boundary

   What creates a new LMS attempt rather than another visit?

2. Sequence

   Which synthetic scores distinguish the possible selection rules?

3. Partial

   How does the configured system treat an unfinished attempt?

4. Selection

   Which attempt set and rule produce the retained grade?

5. Promise

   Do retry instructions describe that rule before the learner acts?

Watch for the wrong conclusion.

• Equating each launch with a new attempt.
• Using identical scores that cannot distinguish grading rules.
• Deleting an attempt to make a report match expectations.

Sources & scope

Workflows, worksheets and fictional examples are original editorial analysis, not supplier implementation instructions or measured business results. Sources support only the specifically attributed platform facts. Supplier controls, contracts and local requirements can change; verify the actual placement and current provider guidance before implementation.

• MoodleDocs5.2: SCORM settings →Primary platform documentation · Supports: Supports scoped attempt-grading choices and new-attempt controls; the synthetic ledger and separation from within-attempt aggregation are editorial.