Table Of Contents
Course Structure
Given the size of the University, the range of options open to students in selecting their course units for any given semester, and the internal constraints of each specific unit, there is generally not a lot that can be done about the clusters of assignments that students encounter across their various subjects in the course of a semester.
However, where an awkward clustering of assessment deadlines within a particular unit is predictable, it is worth considering and discussing with colleagues whether some restructuring is possible. Where the clustering is inevitable, one would want to ensure that students have as clear an idea as possible of how the assessment relates to the structure of the unit, so that they can plan their work accordingly.
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How do you feel about the assessments you've had to do, overall?...
In this course, the final exam was worth about 80%, but there was an assignment scheduled very late in the semester. So for the first half of the semester the students felt quite relaxed, but the second half of the semester was very pressured, as the students tried to cope with new material presented up to week 12, writing an assignment, doing a final review of the subject in week 13, and an exam in week 14, which they felt they had had almost no time to prepare for.
What about other subjects?
Keith heard from his friends in other majors that they began writing assignments near the beginning of the semester, so the workload and the stress were more evenly distributed throughout the semester.
Did the lecturer give you enough information about the course structure at the beginning of the semester?
The lecturer gave them an outline of the lectures, assignments and exam, but didn't give them any guidelines about how to manage their time.
The lecturer assumed that we could work this out for ourselves, but I think it would have been useful if he had given us some past experience about past students.
The assignment was due in week 12, so Keith assumed that any knowledge up to and including week 12 would be relevant to it, and hence put off writing the assignment until too late. It would have been useful for him to know exactly what weeks' lectures the lecturer expected the assignment to be based on.
— Keith