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Unisa’s decision to take digital open book exams as part of assessments this semester has sparked outrage among some students
City Press understands that the decision has not been well received by several students, who raised various problems.
This includes the possibility that the large volume of exam scripts clogs the system, and the poorest students complained about the lack of data to download the exams and then upload their answers. Other students were concerned about their “online typing skills”.
Some students were concerned that they would be stigmatized for scoring when they passed open book exams.
However, Unisa defended the decision last week, saying the online exams were in line with the Covid-19 coronavirus blocking social distancing regulations. He said that despite the students’ concerns, the exams would continue as scheduled this month.
Unisa said the open-book exam option was one of the methods in the university’s assessment policy that had been approved by all relevant stakeholders.
In addition, the National Council of Student Representatives [NSRC] He was also consulted on the decision, “said the university.
Those students who chose not to take their exams during the May to June session will automatically be deferred to the October to November session.
But NSRC general secretary Amukelani Ngwenya said they had only proposed non-place-based exams to the university administration, which had accepted this but not the open book option.
“But as to whether it will be an open book or a closed book [exam] it will be entirely an academic decision, “said Ngwenya.
“Ours is to make sure that our students are evaluated during this blockade because we know that the university has the ability to conduct online evaluations; He’s been doing it for many years. “
Unisa said she was always concerned about the reputational risk of exams, “however, the open book exam format is a very common form of assessment and is widely used. This type of examination is established in a different format than the place-based variety and requires marking and quality assurance of a different nature.
“Quality assurance includes the use of plagiarism tools and virtual monitoring. As is always the case, there will be zero tolerance for any form of irregularity identified in the marking process, “said Unisa.
The university added that various formats would be used, including timed, virtual-supervised, and multiple-choice exams.
“The open book exam format is one of the options, but it will not be used exclusively.”
Unisa said that any student who is unable to sit for an exam this month and next month, for whatever reason, may defer their exams. Unisa, Unisa said, was also formed with significant input from the university’s information and communication technology (ICT) department to ensure that the online platforms used were robust enough.
“The times scheduled for loading and unloading the exams have been considered in relation to the number of students who will take the exams. The university has successfully conducted high-volume exams of this nature before, and academic, exam, and ICT staff will oversee the systems.
In addition, modules will be assigned to one of five sessions per day to manage online activity and spread the load. The university is aware that it does not necessarily have control over all parts of the system environment, for example, internet availability and day speeds, as well as electricity supply. And so, as noted, students can choose to take the exams in the October-November session in the event of failures. “
Unisa defended the decision, saying that the online tests were in line with the Covid-19 coronavirus blocking social distancing regulations.
Unisa said many of her exams required only low-tech Internet access, and that students could download questions and upload answers using their phones.
Those students who chose not to take their exams during the May to June session will automatically be deferred to the October to November session. Unisa said the intention initially was to defer the exams to later in the year, when, hopefully, the country would be at a lower blockade level.
But this was rejected by the NSRC, which argued that students should be able to decide when they wanted to sit for exams.
Ngwenya confirmed that the student union had vehemently rejected this management proposal.
He said they had many reasons for making the decision, including the fact that students completing their studies this semester should have the opportunity to do so. They also didn’t want other students to miss a semester by not writing exams.
