2020 End of Year Assessments: Undergraduate and Postgraduate Students
At its meeting held on 19 January 2021, the Executive Committee of Senate (acting on behalf of the Senate) has decided as follows:
1 Final end-of year assessments
1.1 All final year students will sit for summative assessments (end-of year examinations) as indicated in the final examination timetable already published. In making this decision, the ECS took a view that these are final “high stakes” assessments, which will enable the students to demonstrate the competencies, programme requirements and critical learning outcomes achieved at the end of a learning cycle.
1.2 All post-graduate students (e.g. Honours, MMED, MPH, etc.) will sit for summative assessments/end of year examinations as per the final examination timetable released.
1.3 Similarly, the Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS) IV students will (although not final year students) also sit for summative assessments (end-of year examinations) as indicated in the final examination timetable. The view was informed by the reality that the design of the BDS curriculum is of such a nature that students are only assessed summatively at the end of 4th year of their programme. Seeing that there will be no end of year examination opportunity at year level V of BDS in 2021, the ECS resolved that these students should also sit for summative assessment/end of year examination in 2020. Simply put, the 4th year BDS end of year examination are also “high stake” assessments.
1.4 All students in the School of Pharmacy (BPharm I, II and III) will sit for end of year assessments as arranged. This decision was taken on the recommendation of the professional body, and the Problem Based Learning nature of the curriculum.
1.5 Students enrolled for clinical modules will also sit for end of year assessments as per the timetable published by their Schools.
1.6 The University General Rules; Schools Rules and Programme Rules relating to assessments, including end of year assessments (including standard summative, supplementary summative assessments, sub-minimum requirements), will apply in full.
2 Modules exempted from end of year assessments
2.1 The following categories of students enrolled for modules linked to the programmes indicated below will be exempted for final end-of year examinations if they obtain an average mark of 60% and above. Students will be deemed to have passed the module if they obtain an average formative assessment mark of 60% and above:
BSC I and II (including BSC ECP I, II & III)
Bachelor of Speech, Language Pathology and Audiology I, II & III
Bachelor of Nursing I, II and III
Bachelor of Science (Physiotherapy) I, II & III
Bachelor of Science (Dietetics), I, II & III
Bachelor of Dental Surgery I, II and III
Bachelor of Oral Hygiene I & II
Bachelor of Dental Therapy I & II
Bachelor of Occupational Therapy, I, II & III
2.2 Students enrolled for programme listed under 2.1 above, who obtain an average formative assessment mark of 40% to 59% will qualify to sit for a once-off supplementary formative assessment opportunity.
2.3 In order to pass a module after sitting for a supplementary formative assessment referred to under 2.2 above, a student must obtain a final mark of 50% and above, but the final mark to be reflected on the academic transcript will be limited to 50%.
2.4 Students enrolled for any of the modules for the programmes listed under 2.1, who obtain a mark of 0 to 49% after sitting for a supplementary formative assessment will be deemed to have failed a module.
2.5 Students who obtain an average formative assessment mark of 0% to 39% will be deemed to have summarily failed the module, and no further assessment opportunity will be granted.
2.6 No clinical modules will be exempted for end of year examinations, irrespective of the programme or year level.
2.7 For modules, other than clinical modules, linked to programmes referred to under 2.1, a subminimum mark of 40% will not apply.
2.8 The ECS further emphasized that these exemption decisions will only apply to the 2020 end of year examinations. All other General and School Rules will apply for the 2021 academic year, including for both formative and summative assessments.
The decisions related to exemptions from examinations (detailed under paragraph 2) do not apply to any of the undergraduate programmes offered in the School of Medicine, as a similar dispensation was already decided for those students in 2020. More information on the implementation of the decisions as indicated above can be obtained from the relevant Schools.
We call upon all students and staff to implement the decisions above. In a similar vein, we call upon all the University stakeholders, including the SRC to disseminate these decisions as correctly as reflected in this communique.
Yours sincerely
DR JM MABELEBELE
REGISTRAR
(sent out electronically and therefore unsigned)
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