Student Attendance Monitoring
(SAM) Flash Guide
Introduction
What is SAM?
SAM is a system that records student attendance for their course. All students are required to record
their engagement with their studies using the SAM system. Card readers are located in all of the
timetabled teaching rooms and lecture theatres, and students are required to 'touch-in' with their UWL
Student ID Card at each scheduled teaching session on their timetable. As a member of the teaching
staff, you use SAM Flash to ensure that the information that is captured by SAM is accurate for your
class. The University uses the data provided by SAM to monitor student attendance. For further
information on SAM and attendance, please click here.
Accessing SAM Flash on a PC
1. Either: Double click the SAM Flash Screen icon on your desktop.
2. Or: In your browser address bar, enter the following address:
https://sam.uwl.ac.uk/SAM/views/ClassSearch.aspx?
3. When prompted, enter your normal username and password (that you use to log into your PC).
If you are logged in to your own work pc/laptop you will not be prompted to log into SAM.
Accessing SAM Flash on an Apple Mac
1. In your browser address bar, enter the following address:
https://sam.uwl.ac.uk/SAM/views/ClassSearch.aspx?
2. When prompted, enter your normal username and password (that you use to log into your PC).
3. To bookmark SAM Flash drag the address onto the bookmarks bar.
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4. Rename the bookmark to SAM.
You will need to enter your username and password whenever you use SAM on an Apple
Mac.
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Navigating around SAM Flash
SAM Flash Home Page
The SAM Flash home page provides details of scheduled lectures on a day to day basis. You can
also search for past lectures from the Filter and Date fields at the top of the SAM Flash home page
by:



Module name
Module ID
Date of Lecture
To display the contents of a module, click anywhere in a row.
The Module content page
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Tabs
There are several tabs that appear at the top of the module content window:
Tab Name
Description
Scheduled
Displays details of students scheduled to attend and will count down as students
touch their Student ID cards on the reader as they arrive.
Attending
Displays the names of the students who have attended the lecture.
Late
Displays the names of the students who have attended but arrived late.
Absent
Displays the names of the students who are scheduled to attend but did not touch
the reader.
Unexpected
Displays the names of the students who touched in for the lecture but are not
scheduled for it.
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Updating student attendance in SAM Flash
Making changes in SAM Flash
You can make changes to multiple students or a single student – e.g. if a student forgets to touch
their card on the reader but have attended the lecture or a student leaves 10 minutes after the lecture
commences
To select multiple students, click the tick box next to their name.
To select a single student, click the student name:
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Absent page
Within the absent page, you can mark a student as attending if they forget to touch their card on the
reader.
To mark a student as attending:
1. Select the student(s).
2. Select Attending from the drop down list.
3. Click Change.
The student name moves to the ‘Attending’ page.
Unexpected page
Students not scheduled for your lecture but have touched in, can be added to your class for that day
only.
To add a student to the class:
1. Select the student(s).
2. Select Add to Class from the drop down list.
3. Click Change.
The student name moves to the ‘Attending’ page.
Please contact your SAO or Timetabling to permanently add the student to your class.
Attending page
Within the attending page, you can mark a student as absent – e.g. if a student touches their card on
the reader, but leaves the lecture early.
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To mark a student or students as absent:
1. Select the student(s).
2. Select Absent from the drop down list.
3. Click Change.
The student name moves to the ‘Absent’ page.
Late page
Within the late page, you can mark a student as absent or attending - e.g. if a student arrives to the
lecture promptly, but forgets to touch their card on the reader and does so 30 minutes after the lecture
commences, you can then mark them as attended.
To mark a student as attending or absent:
1. Select the student(s).
2. Select Attending or Absent from the drop down list.
3. Click Change.
The student name moves to the relevant page.
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Updating class/classroom information in SAM Flash
Move a class
If you have to move the class due to unforeseen circumstances, you need to move rooms in SAM
Flash.
Before you move to a new room please ensure that your cohorts have touched the
reader in the originally scheduled room. Students who are late will have to touch the reader in the
new location.
To move rooms temporarily in SAM Flash:
1. Click Move Class.
2. Click Select Room next to the room that you are moving your class to.
The new room is updated for your class in SAM.
Permanent changes should be discussed with Timetabling.
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Merge Classes
If you need to merge two or three groups of the same module on the same day:
1. Click Merge Class.
2. Click Select Room where the other group you are merging with are scheduled.
Cancel a class
You may need to cancel the class due to unforeseen circumstances.
To cancel a class:
1. Click Cancel Class.
2. Click Yes when prompted. The module will be removed from SAM.
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Useful information about SAM Flash
To exit SAM Flash
Close your browser window or the SAM Flash window if you accessed SAM Flash from the desktop.
SAM Support
If you encounter any problems with SAM Flash please email or call the IT Service Desk:

Email: [email protected]

Internal phone: 2222

External phone: :0300 1114895
Please remember:

At the start of the lecture please ask your students to touch in on the card reader.

Advise them not to use the keypad.

Please advise your students they can touch in up to half an hour before the start time and up to
ten minutes after the start time to be shown as attended
Touch-in times:
CLASS TIME 9.00-10.00
CLASS TIME 9.00-11.00
CLASS TIME 9.00-12.00
Touch-in
Touch-in
Touch-in
8.29
Absent
8.29
Absent
8.29
Absent
8.30
Attending
8.30
Attending
8.30
Attending
9.10
Attending
9.10
Attending
9.10
Attending
9.11
Late
9.11
Late
9.11
Late
9.29
Late
10.29
Late
11.29
Late
9.30
Absent
10.30
Absent
11.30
Absent
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