Remote exam modalities
You are all questioning yourself about how the June evaluations will take place. We still cannot give a definite answer, as the potential dates and conditions of deconfinement remain undetermined. It is likely that we will be fixed in the following weeks. We thus need to maintain our position regarding the exams by considering various scenarios. This will enable everyone to prepare at best, whether it comes to teachers, administrative staff or students.
After concertation with the deans and the students’ representatives, here are two great principles on which we propose to lean in the preparation of the exams in June:
- Principle 1: Stick to the initial academic calendar. This means that the possibility of extending the academic year until 10 July announced by the Government should only be used in last extremity. As a reminder, it is also possible to use the 2nd session extensions, which will be necessary, notably for aggregations, to enable internships;
- Principle 2: Work with the hypothesis that the June session will exclusively happen remotely. All the teaching teams are invited to build an online modality for each teaching unit, amongst which those that need a priority in situ environment, if this turns out to be possible.
The TICE and PUNCH cells have considerably gone forward about the analysis of a wide range of remote evaluations. As all the faculties and departments are currently thinking about the subject, we are sharing this information, which can guide you in building remote evaluation solutions. The “Remote evaluation practical guide” is available on Webcampus, in the “Survival kit” section.
In order to enable our techno-pedagogical team to best support teachers, as much in the preparation of solutions than in the support during the session, it is essential that each programme team evaluate the adequate solutions with our experts, who must have the information about the modalities and different exam dates to schedule technical as well as pedagogical support. We thank you in advance for closely collaborating with the experts, whose names and competences are listed in the above-mentioned guide.
Finally, informing and preparing students about these unforeseen evaluation modalities is essential. From an administrative point of view, a message will be displayed on all the descriptive forms, to inform the students about the probable changes, sending them to the information displayed on Webcampus. This means teachers must inform the students about the modalities of their exam. Please refer to the email you received in order to select the appropriate information to give students as soon as the week of 20 April.
In order to prepare the students to the use of remote evaluation modalities but also to evaluate the potential technical problems they could face, the TICE and PUNCH cells are preparing a test, which will enable the students to explore the different online modalities. This will enable to support them in their preparation, but also to organize the logistics for students who would encounter technological problems. We are considering opening the pools exclusively for these students, and guarantee sanitary and social distancing conditions.
Naji Habra, Rector & Annick Castiaux, Vice-Rector to Education
