The University, like all institutions, is passing through a difficult time, brought about by on-going COVID-19 pandemic.  This has placed enormous stress on staff and students, with the sudden shift to online delivery of learning.  We appreciate the efforts of our staff and the resilience of students to adapt to these changes.

The University recognises the fact that assessments are not a punitive element in education but a means to measure students’ understanding.  I encourage students to continue to study as hard as they can.  At the end of it, a graduate’s real knowledge is more important than a paper certificate.

All Colleges and Centres at FNU decided to apply some assessments so that our graduates can defend their qualifications long into the post-COVID-19 era.  However, the assessment items have been developed in line with the current situation.  The plans submitted by Colleges and Centres have been approved by the Senate of the FNU.  The following resolutions were made by the Senate:

1. There will be no traditional supervised examination at the end of Semester 1 / Trimester 1 / Quarter 1 / Quarter 2.  Rather, Colleges and Centres will apply a range of online and sometimes offline (unsupervised) assessments.
2. Assessments will be formative rather than summative, i.e. they are meant to gauge understanding and direction, rather than measure absolute performance.
3. We call on staff to apply flexibility and compassion in the administration of the assessment items.
4. Assignment submission dates should be flexible, and students should not be penalised for the reasonable delay in submission.
5. Lecturers should clearly specify on Moodle the types of assessments that will be done for their courses.  This is very important because the nature of the assessments vary.  Deans should ensure that this information is visible to the students.
6. Attendance requirements should be relaxed, as some students do have problems with connectivity.
7. Students who fail should be supported to attain the right level of achievement, including fee waiver where special assessment is required.
8. The approved plans will remain in place until the end of Semester 1 / Trimester 2 / Quarter 2, or amended by the Senate.

All Colleges and Centres should ensure compliance with these guidelines.  It is important not to present different plans to the student.

Wishing everyone all the best.

Professor Paul Iji
Acting Pro-Vice-Chancellor Learning and Teaching