Unfair pressure: DU students’ take on offline exams
Covid-19 cases in Delhi are on the rise again, and this has further fuelled Delhi University (DU) students’ existing demand for online open book (OBE) exams. Citing issues like fear for their health and being out of practice for pen-and-paper exams, youngsters rue the varsity’s firm stance on offline exams.
“I received email from the university which stated, ‘Not filling exam form in given time may cost you a year’, implying that nothing will change even with surging Covid-19 cases,” says Vishwas Saxena, final-year student of BA (Hons) Economics at Rajdhani College. He adds, “For most subjects, 70-90% of the syllabus was covered online... But after physical classes resumed, the teachers started revising the syllabus in much more detail. This has created anxiety... It feels unfair.”
Besides the fear of infection, Adesh Kumar, an outstation student of School of Open Learning, has other concerns against offline exams. “We haven’t got study material yet as most classes are online. There is no proper guidance from DU regarding exam prep. And PG rent has been hiked by about 100%. It’s very difficult to move to Delhi in a short span of time,” he laments.
And Prashant Tyagi, Zoology student at Hansraj College, mentions feeling “unnecessary pressure”: “Reopening of colleges was so sudden... Nobody is mentally ready for offline exams.”
“Everyone is scared about the rise in Covid-19 cases,” says Jayantika Rawat, second-year Political Science (Hons) student at Ramjas College. Tanushka Dev Chanyal, another second-year student from the same college, shares, “Some of our courses for the semester haven’t been completed yet. The whole idea of having offline exams so soon feels wrong. Additionally, there is a dearth in study material.”