Trinity College Dublin Students’ Union (TCDSU) have emailed members of Trinity’s University Council asking them to back a proposal to implement a “no detriment” policy for upcoming assessments.
The email says of the current proposals due to be brought for the consideration of the University Council that “students will perceive that academic integrity is being placed above their welfare”.
TCDSU Education Officer Niamh McCay released the contents of the email in a statement to students, to “give a greater insight” into the union’s “thoughts going into council”.
The email to council members further states that measures already implemented by Trinity “will make a significant difference to many students at this time” but that “the student ask is still not fulfilled” by these measures.
There is no indication of the “upfront safety net that students are asking for” and “no explicit confirmation that their grade will not be impacted by this crisis”, the email reads.
The email sets out that TCDSU had requested a “uplift” policy to be put in place, whereby the grade of final year students would not fall below the grade they had received in previous years, and also that students in all years who had completed more than 50% of their credits would not have to sit a final exam, but that neither of this requests are reflected in current proposals.
An emailing campaign lobbying for a no detriment policy to be implemented was launched by students last week, with the provost confirming that he must have received “200 emails” relating to the policy. Two petitions calling for the implementation of the policy have also circulated among students, with 4,200 and 1,100 signatures.
The no detriment policy is similar to measures taken by several UK universities in light of the coronavirus pandemic. Under the policy, if a student receives a mark higher than their average from previous assessments before the closure of college their average mark would go up, but if they received a mark lower than their average but high enough to pass, their average would remain the same.
Students received an email last Thursday signed by the senior lecturer and vice-provost informing them that semester two undergraduate assessments will be conducted through a mixture of online and offline exams and assignments.
