The Students’ Union (SU) supports the cancellation of remaining final exams and continues to support health measures and other steps the university has taken to keep students and our campus community safe.
The omicron variant is serious and should be taken as such. The SU encourages all students and all members of our campus community to get fully vaccinated.
However, this decision was once again made at the last minute by university administration.
Senior administration asked for SU input into the potential cancellation or move to online exams last week. The SU was clear and suggested any cancellation or move to online exams should be made and communicated to students by Friday, December 17th. The SU also asked for consistency and equity as to how instructors would calculate final grades for students who experience a cancelled exam.
The university dithered and has presented no clear plan across the institution.
Similar to when classes were moved online in September, the university has waited until the last minute and, again, it is students who suffer as result.
After 22 months in a pandemic, it is unconscionable that the university does not have a campus-wide contingency plan for this situation or a quick pivot to online exams.
In addition, the university has committed to deciding on the nature of January course delivery on January 4th. This will be too late for many students and fails to allow them adequate time to plan. The university must be decisive in this matter.
Moving forward, the SU expects university administration to:
- Make a decision on January course delivery format prior to Christmas to allow students the opportunity to plan their return to Calgary.
- Oversee an equitable approach across campus for students who have had their exams cancelled.
- Honour what is written in course outlines and give affected students the option to write a final exam either online or in person at a later date, should they choose.
- Develop a contingency plan so that students know what will occur should in-person learning and exams be cancelled again in the future.