MOTION: 

"That Senate establish a Senate Grade Appeals 

Committee with terms of reference, method of 

operation and composition to be as outlined 

in Paper S.71-41.T" 

.

a

To.......................... SENATE ................................... ... ? 

... ...................................... 

From.......J. . R.. McANINCH............................................................ 

SENATOR ........ 

.............. . GRADE-APPEALS ..................... ............... ....... ...... ..... .  

FEBRUARY. 11,197.1 ............... .......... ... ... .... ..... ........ 

SENATE GRADE APPEAL COMMITTEE 

Moved: ? 

"That Senate establish a Senate Grade Appeal 

Committee, whose terms of reference, method 

of operation and composition be as follows: 

1. Terms of Reference: 

To receive and pass judgment upon grade appeal submissions from students 

who believe that their academic work has been unfairly evaluated. 

2. Method of Operation: 

1.

Grade appeal requests must be submitted in writing to the office of 

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the Academic Vice-President; 

2.

Only those grade appeal submissions in which the appellant has previously 

made submissions to the professor involved in the dispute would be con- 

sidered by the Committee; 

3.

Upon receipt of an appeal the Committee is to seek evaluation of the 

academic work of the student whose grading is being challenged from two 

academics knowledgeable in the field covered by the work. The professor 

whose evaluation is being called into question is not permitted to be one 

of the evaluators; 

4.

Upon receipt of the two academic evaluations the Committee will make a 

decision. This decision must in all cases be based upon the findings of 

the two academic evaluations. The Committee is not empowered to make 

decisions which contradict the academic evaluations it receives; 

5.

All aspects of the Committee's operations are to be confidential. The 

identities of the academic evaluators are to be kept confidential - neither 

the student nor his professor can be informed of who the academic evaluators 

are; 

6.

Upon making a decision the Committee will inform the appellant in writing 

of their decision. If the decision is in favor of the appellant, the Com- 

mittee is to submit a change of grade directive to the Registrar's Office; 

7. Students with queries concerning the decision reached in their case can, 

if they, wish, seek clarification from the Vice-President, Academic. 

3. Composition: 

The Academic Vice-President 

One student appointed by the Student's Council 

One Faculty Senator." 

-2-

At the present time Simon Fraser University lacks a clearly defined 

and standardized procedure to deal with student grade appeals. In most Depart- 

ments it is up to the Chairman to cope with such requests. A few Departments, 

such as English and Philosophy, have Departmental Committees to handle any 

problems in this area. It is the contention of this paper that the area of 

grade appeals is an important one and that it should not continue to be dealt 

with in an essentially ad hoc way throughout the University. It is time to 

develop procedures available to students in all Departments which will deal 

with grade appeals in a uniform manner. 

By doing this the University will not only be providing students with 

equal access to academic justice, but will be recognizing the legitimacy of a 

student grade appeal. A student should not in effect have to plead with academic 

authorities, such as Department Chairmen, for a re-evaluation of a mark he has 

received. The granting of a grade re-evaluation should not be viewed as an act 

of benevolence on the part of academic authorities, but as a right possessed by 

the students of this University. 

This proposal recognizes the delicate nature of the problem under 

discussion. Clearly academics do not relish the prospect of meddling in the 

affairs of their colleagues. Altering a grade assigned by a professor implies 

a questioning of his competence to do his job. The potential ill will which 

could be created by such an action cannot be underestimated. Interference by 

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a Department Chairman or Committee in a professor's grading practices could well 

be the source of rancour within that Department. 

This is why a Department Chairman would seem to be ill-suited to cope 

with grade appeals. It is likely that Departmental Chairmen possess an in- 

built reluctance to involve themselves in grade disputes due to their sensitive 

nature. 

These aspects of the problem point to the desirability of a University 

Grade Appeal Committee, both in terms of effectiveness in doing the required job 

and in terms of preventing the sorts of internal problems which could develop if 

grade appeals were handled at the Departmental level. 

A Senate Grade Appeal Committee would provide a University-wide 

mechanism to ensure that fair grade appeals are provided to those students who 

desire them. The task of the Committee will not be to assess itself the appeals, 

but to ensure that the requests are assessed by qualified academics. 

The University has a responsibility to provide such a mechanism. By 

accepting this proposal, Senate will accept a responsibility it has shirked for 

too long. 