Amidst concerns over disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic, Cambridge University is facing calls from more than 1,000 students to allow final year students to restart their final year this coming September. Students have expressed fears that the pandemic will adversely affect their exam performance, with challenges posed by self-isolation, quarantine, and restrictive firewalls in certain international students’ home nations during remote learning. The students are calling on the university to offer alternative modes of assessment, such as video vivas or coursework, and to postpone exams and dissertation deadlines until after the pandemic has passed or restrictions such as quarantining and social distancing have been relaxed. Furthermore, many degree courses are normally entirely graded on final-year exams. The letter warns that the situation could be detrimental both to students’ academic performance and to their well-being, particularly for marginalised and less privileged students.
The letter also points out that students have raised concerns about issues posed by studying at home, such as lack of desks, books, computers, and a stable internet connection. A director of studies at Cambridge, who is also a teaching officer in one of its faculties said that the students were “rightly concerned” about the situation posed by the summer exams as it posed serious challenges for the University, given that exams contributed to between 60% and 80% of a student’s grade – a higher proportion than at most other universities.
In response to the pandemic, the university’s Vice Chancellor, Stephen Toope, has asked all students to leave, with all teaching moving online with alternative assessment arrangements to be communicated by the end of March. The academic strongly supports the notion that a blanket policy will not work for all students, who face different challenges, hence he calls for students to be given a choice of options.
Altogether, the letter proposes an array of solutions such as assessments via video or coursework, postponing examinations and dissertation deadlines, while depending on previous grades, essays submitted in the future term or even an unclassified degree. Final year students would also have the option to restart their final year in September, or retake the Easter term in 2021.
