We understand that the marking boycott is a cause for concern for many students and we want to support you to make sure that you can continue to learn and thrive. Please speak to / email us if you have any questions or concerns about the marking boycott and we will try to provide advice and support.
The boycott entails not giving feedback in the form of a mark / grade. If you are unsure as to whether or not your teachers are participating in the marking boycott and what the boycott will mean for your course, you can ask them to clarify this or ask your student reps to ask them.
We will be asking SOAS management to request that mitigating circumstances panels treat the marking boycott as a mitigating circumstance, for example in relation to second or third essays where the student has not received feedback from the first essay due to the boycott. However, we cannot guarantee that this will be accepted. We advise students to try to submit their work as usual.
Here is information about the Academic Development Directorate and Student Advice and Wellbeing that can provide academic and welfare support:
https://www.soas.ac.uk/add/
https://www.soas.ac.uk/studentadviceandwellbeing/
The Students’ Union is supporting UCU and SOAS UCU branch in calling on the universities employers body (UUK) to withdraw its proposed changes to the pension scheme, and in calling on SOAS management (which is a member of UUK) to oppose the current proposals within the employers body. The dispute, and thus the marking boycott, could be ended now by UUK withdrawing its proposed changes and agreeing a fair settlement.
Please read our statement on the marking boycott here, including information about what students can do to campaign on this issue:
http://soasunion.org/news/article/6013/Students-Union-Statement-on-UCU-Marking-Boycott/
More information:
What does an assessment boycott mean?
While the boycott is going on, UCU members are asked to not take part in any marking or administration that contributes to students' final grades or classifications. This means assessed coursework as well as exams. We do regret the impact that this has on students because we are very strongly committed to your education. We nonetheless feel that it is not right for employers to impose these changes on us which will have very serious negative effects on staff for years to come. This also has costs for staff - industrial action may also mean that staff lose pay for days in which they refuse to undertake duties. In last year's pay dispute union members lost 3-4 days' pay whilst defending a fair pay award.
What are SOAS UCU doing?
We are calling on our management to support our position, acknowledge the overall health of the pension fund and push for changes in the way the USS trustees are valuing it. We wrote an open letter to SOAS Director Professor Paul Webley on October 27th 2014, the text of which is here: http://soasucu.blogspot.co.uk/p/news.html
What can students do?
We encourage students to support staff in their fight for fair pensions and to work with staff to end the dispute as soon as possible.
Please support staff and help to end the dispute by:
1. Signing this petition http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/soas-community-calls-on-management-to-oppose-uuk
2. Writing to Professor Webley, SOAS Director, expressing your concern over the industrial action and your support for the SOAS UCU’s position
3. Writing to your teachers and course convenors to let them know that you understand and support the reasons for the action
4. Asking your student representatives to raise the issue and express support within Departmental meetings, Faculty meetings and Heads of Department and Faculties.
5. Raising awareness amongst other students about the assessment boycott (please forward this information to your fellow students)
6. Helping us develop a day of action and awareness on 12th November and joining in other actions in the student solidarity campaign.
What if we have questions?
The national union has produced a briefing for students which is attached to this email. However, we at SOAS UCU are more than happy to answer more questions about the pensions dispute, and its impact on students in our own institution. Please write to UCU branch Chair, Professor Nadje Al-Ali (na@soas.ac.uk) with any questions.
SIGN THE PETITION HERE - http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/soas-community-calls-on-management-to-oppose-uuk