Exams...To be or not to be at home

  

 

Last year was my first year as a distance student. I was surprised to learn that I had to pass most of my exams in person on my university campus. It is also the case this year. Some teachers also seemed surprised. They also thought that the evaluation would be through remote tests. We are very poorly informed as remote students because teachers think that it is the administration that gives us the information and the administration asks us to rely on our teachers. That’s why I had no idea about it and I must admit that I did not feel prepared at all.

I had a second surprise when discovering my exams timetable was quite complicated. I discovered the complexity of administrative decisions that is not based on human comfort. For example, an exam scheduled two different days in a row, just for forty minutes, for each semester of the same subject. I also discovered that when come the examination period I was in a kind of mixed situation with teachers who propose to exams at distance and other courses for which I had to go to university to sit theirs, and adding to that the timetable not taking into account the journeys between home and campus.

Still I can’t complain since some students live away from campus and had to book hotels and trains. For a remote student it is actually uncommon to live close to his/her university campus.

Last year as the campus was closed due to social movements, all the exams were finally taken at home and I felt very relieved.

But it was an exception and the question is still in my mind this year, except now I know better.

In fact, this situation which I find uncomfortable but not terrible made me think of my fear. I use that word because sometimes a situation which seems to be complicated makes us realize that the pretexts we invoke are based on other reasons. 

I feel I must explain here what scares me. For many students taking distance exams is a source of stress and not a chance. I realize right now that’s how I was caught up in a situation of leakage. What leak ? Well, it’s been a long time since I’ve been in an exam writing situation and not on a computer where you can correct and adjust your writing. Plus there is also the time limit issue for me who got used to being able to spend hours thinking about every word and arranging my text however long it takes me ! Moreover, I must say that being assessed in a context that is unfamiliar, without my courses next to me puts me under a lot of stress. I wonder if my memory would work. It’s a sort of exam I am not used to anymore.

I remember that we discussed with Catherine, my blogger-mate on this site, that our situation as a remote student can be an opportunity to overcome some difficulties and make things possible. But it also sometimes increase them, as for example the case of someone with social anxiety and who is ultimately more anxious about a situation that he never faces.

I must admit that this issue of face-to-face exam in a distance learning situation is still difficult to comprehend for me considering the difficulty of organization for people who most of the time work, have children, live in other cities, have a fragile financial situation… So, why is the exams in person? My hypothese is that it’s about cheating and fake identities, or something of that sort. This is probably the reason, otherwise how could I understand that this year I have to come to the campus to take my online exam with my own computer ...

Also this question is connected to the value of a degree and grades. Sometimes I tell myself that my (good) grades are not justified because I can spend so much time on a paper. I know that the evaluation is different because it is another way of working that requires a lot of autonomy, organization and research. However the exams issue makes me think that the situation of the remote student is still fragile and confused.

So I’m going to sit my exams in a month again. I’ll have to sit in a crowded hall, make spelling mistakes, write quickly with my pen, feel the flavor of the paper and those of the other students ! I am afraid but I’m wondering if it is not a good idea to face this situation since I will not spend my life behind my computer and I could even decide to continue studying on campus. I don’t want to be scared, and perhaps exams are set in person for students to experience such situation.

 Céline