As the fourth week of industrial action started, multiple departments across the university sent out emails pertaining to the future of assessments on courses affected by the strikes.
These messages were varied, with some major departments such as HCA and SPS leaving the communication to course organisers rather than a department-wide framework.
LLC (Literature, Languages & Cultures) sent out an email on Friday 17th October where the department assured that “Schools will need to ensure they do not assess students on content that a course has not covered adequately due to the industrial action.”
The email detailed that in the case of no communication being made with students “the guidance we have received makes clear that mid-semester coursework should not proceed.”
Furthermore, the department encouraged students to “attempt mid-semester coursework essays” when (and if) available for the chance of potential feedback.
Similarly, ECA (Edinburgh College of Arts) sent out an email stating that “mitigations” would be applied to assignments affected by industrial actions in which lower marks would be disregarded so the “overall grade” does not suffer.
When speaking to several students across departments, it is clear that the responses to disruptions by the industrial action have been varied.
One fourth-year Physical Geography student stated that “across my three courses including my dissertation, only one was not affected.
“Communication has been really great in the department, with professors letting us know that they were striking on week one and organising teach outs to make sure we are supported with our assignments and dissertations.”
Many students have taken to alternative teaching methods to still benefit from discussion-based activities.
When speaking to a fourth-year History and Politics student whose classes have all been cancelled due to strikes, alternative teaching seemed crucial as “humanities degrees in particular rely on being able to discuss different interpretations with other people.
“Trying to organise independent teaching has been a mixed bag…when it’s not even a real class and we’re just in a cafe, very understandably that’s not going to be people’s priority.”
A fourth-year Chemistry student told The Student that there had only been a couple of professors striking and that their content had already been taken out of exams.
Communication across schools has differed and remains incohesive, and it is unclear as midterms approach how students will be affected academically — especially as some departments have given no communication at all.
Image by Albane Mbow for The Student
