Objections to University revision of papers policy

The students' group Pulse said today that recent changes to the University policy on the revision of exam papers had almost doubled costs and reduced services.

"The new system does not offer an incentive for students to benefit from the revision of paper facility."

It said the revision of papers should give students the opportunity to learn from their mistakes by being able to go over the corrected paper, receive a feedback report about their performance and be given the chance to discuss this report.

The group said it had complained to the Minister of Education and the PL spokesman on education that while prices had been almost doubled, students had to choose the more-expensive option in order to have the relevant feedback. Such important feedback should be a normal practice for the purpose of the revision paper to be achieved.

Furthermore, the new system allowed for a downward revision of the exam result, something that did not happen under the previous system. This discouraged students from applying for this service, especially those whose mark was close to the pass mark.

Moreover, under the new system, students who failed to get a pass mark after the revision of paper were not entitled for a refund. The previous regulations provided for a refund to all those students who had their original mark increased.

In its letter Pulse is questioning the real motives for these changes.

"It is really disappointing that students came to know about these changes only at a time when they are faced with the pressure of their exams," the group complained.