Coronavirus: Oxford, Cambridge to do assessments online, says report

NEW DELHI: Coping with the coronavirus pandemic, Oxford University and Cambridge University are set to replace this summer’s written exams with online assessments.

The Guardian reported that thousands of students from Oxford, Edinburgh and University College London (UCL) and Cambridge have asked to be allowed to opt out of doing their final-year assessments or restart their final year, “warning that the worsening COVID 19 outbreak threatens their academic performance”.

Seven students at Oxford University have tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.

Cambridge University has made it clear that assessments cannot be deferred to the next academic year and that students will have to take them online. But the university has given students with “illness, caring responsibilities or technical difficulties” the option to take the assessment at a later date. The date will be announced once the university is fully operational again.

No conventional exams

The Guardian reported that Martin Williams, Pro-Vice Chancellor for education at Oxford told students in an email sent on March 20 that there would be “no conventional exams” next term. Also, he said the replacement assessment may include “open-book exams, taken remotely and submitted online”. The students can state their preferences in an online consultation.

The students have suggested being graded on the basis of previous grades, dissertations and other coursework, or even be awarded an unclassified degree. It may be noted that some “Oxford degree courses are normally entirely graded on final-year exams”, says the report.

Over 2,00,000 people have been infected with COVID-19 globally and the disease has claimed 10,000 lives worldwide.

As on March 20, over 3,900 people have tested positive for COVID-19 and 177 patients have died in UK as per data provided by the government.

Also read:

• Coronavirus: More states postpone exams as COVID-19 cases increase
• Coronavirus: Delhi University shuts for students and staff

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