Trinity moves to ease pressure on students in assessments
Posted on: 08 April 2020
Trinity College Dublin’s Academic Council has today approved a series of measures to alleviate the stresses facing students as they approach their Semester 2 assessments.
Trinity is acutely aware of the concerns of students who are approaching their assessments at a time of serious disruption as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The university has already made comprehensive changes to the manner in which assessments are undertaken with final examinations converted to assignments, take-home examinations or real-time online examinations. These changes are aimed at facilitating students to complete their assessments even under the present extraordinary circumstances while maintaining academic integrity.
Professor Kevin Mitchell, Senior Lecturer/ Dean of Undergraduate Studies, said:
“Our goal has been to do all we can to ensure that every student can complete their studies for this year and either graduate or progress to the next year as normal.
“However, we recognise the unprecedented levels of stress that many students are under and the challenges they will face in completing these assessments to the best of their abilities. These additional measures will, we believe, provide a safety net for students affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. The health and wellbeing of our students is paramount.”
Additional measures agreed are as follows:
- Deferral: Students who feel unable to attempt their assessments can apply through their Tutor for a deferral until the reassessment session at the end of the summer (the precise timing cannot be specified at this time due to the Covid-19 situation). Such assessments will be treated as a first attempt and accommodations will be made to offer a second attempt, if necessary, prior to the start of the next academic year
- Retrospective deferral: Students who attempt assessments but find that they are not able to perform as expected can also apply for a deferral to the reassessment session
- Aggregation: Students will not be denied progression on the basis of failure in modules in this assessment session, provided they meet the overall pass mark for the year (this does not apply to modules failed in the first semester)
- Discretionary powers to boards of examiners: Where final year students pass but feel unable to achieve the kind of results they would have hoped for under normal conditions, Trinity will instruct boards of examiners to consider a student’s overall profile of marks. Where significantly lower grades are attained on modules in the final assessments, they are asked to adjust a student’s overall mark in a manner they deem justified
- Permission to resit passed modules: Students in their junior sophister or senior sophister year (or fourth and fifth year for integrated programmes) may apply to re-sit any second semester assessments in the reassessment session to try to improve results. These re-sits will follow the same mode of assessment as the current second semester assessments. Requests to do so can be made after exam marks have been published
- Student transcripts: Trinity will identify on students’ transcripts any modules taken in the time of the Covid-19 crisis. This will flag exceptional circumstances to any prospective employers
These measures are designed to alleviate pressure on students while preserving the integrity of the academic qualifications Trinity students can expect to hold on graduation. Assessment systems and degree awards are, and remain, subject to rigorous quality control, both internally and externally, including by professional accreditation bodies.
In relation to the ‘no detriment’ request put forward by some students, of which Trinity is aware, the College believes that the measures outlined offer the best way to offset the consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic, in a manner compatible with its progression and award regulations and assessment practices.