Numerous third-year politics students were informed last week that they would be required to resubmit their essays after scripts were stolen from their tutor’s car.
Professor Matthew Festenstein, Head of the Politics department, sent an email to all students of the Politics of Latin America module, explaining that “a number of essays…went missing as a result of a break-in to a member of staff’s car.” Recipients were instructed that: “in order to ensure you receive a grade and feedback on this module, you will be required to resubmit your essay to the Politics office by Friday November 11.”
While it remains unclear how many students’ scripts were actually lost, Festenstein went on to explain that, following consultation with the University Standing Committee and course representatives, the department had decided that “all candidates who submitted an essay will be given the opportunity to resubmit…in order to ensure fair treatment of everyone.”
This extended deadline has been seen as excessive by some students, and has left individuals concerned that the overall standard will improve as some may take the extension as an opportunity to work further on the essay. One student, whose essay was not stolen, told Vision he was “worried that the marking will be harsher now. Everyone has an extra two weeks to reflect on what we wrote over summer, and beuing given the ‘opportunity’ to resubmit, even though mine wasn’t stolen, suggests I’m supposed to improve it somehow.” He went on to criticise the department: “The regulations regarding essay submission, mitigating circumstances and so on, are incredibly strict on all students. And yet these essays, which are intellectual property, were left in the back of a car? It seems like the department ought to have their own procedures on how safely they handle assessed essays.”
Academic Officer, Graeme Osborn commented, “The department must make it absolutely clear to all affected students that the marking criteria and expectations will not be changed or affected in any way. This is a problem which is to some extent beyond the control of the department, and as long as this is done, then there is little else that they can do, or indeed be reasonably expected to do.”
Concerns that the stolen essays could lead to plagiarism have largely been put to rest, after it was revealed that the scripts had been placed beneath a laptop, and so were likely to have been taken unintentionally during an opportunistic theft. A police investigation is ongoing, and the Politics department have assured students that the incident won’t be repeated, as a new electronic submission system is currently being trialled for first-year procedural essays, and is expected to be rolled out to assessed essays if successful.