Academic Policies

Determination of Final Grade

1. A student’s grade in each course will be based upon the year’s work and the final examination;
2. The final examination will not make up more than 70% or less than 30% of the final grade in each course;
3. The instructor will discuss with the class the basis for assessment specifying the relative weight of each examination, test, in-class activity and written assignment;
4. The instructor will also specify which assignments must be completed in order to receive a grade in the course;
5. The method of determining final grades is to be discussed with students within the time frame Senate has approved for late course registration;
6. The instructor must inform students of their standing prior to the date for honourable withdrawal from the course. If no written term work has been evaluated by that date, the information shall be given in the form of a written statement of the student’s standing;
7. The instructor is required to return to students all written work, other than final examinations, which has been submitted for evaluation purposes. Students may discuss with their instructor the work presented, the comments made, and the grade assigned;
8. Final examinations are not returned to students but are kept on file by the Office of the Registrar for a minimum of 60 days after official notification of final grades;
9. For each course, a final marks sheet is completed, signed by the instructor and the Director of the Concurrent Education program and then submitted to the Dean of Education for approval within five calendar days of the exam. The Dean of Education’s signature indicates that the marks submission is consistent with existing practices and policies of the Faculty;
10. Revisions to any previously-assigned grade are submitted in writing for the approval of the Dean of Education, together with the reasons for such revisions. Grades are not official until they have been approved by the Dean of Education and released by the Office of the Registrar;
11. The final marks issued by Nipissing University are the only ones accepted as binding.

Letter Grades and Grading Standards

"A" – (80–100%)
"B" – (70–79%)
"C" – (60–69%)
"D" – (50–59%)
"F" – (0–49%)

"A"	indicates Exceptional Performance: comprehensive indepth knowledge of the principles and materials treated in the course, fluency in communicating that knowledge and independence in applying material and principles.
"B"	indicates Good Performance: thorough understanding of the breadth of materials and principles treated in the course and ability to apply and communicate that understanding effectively.
"C"	indicates Satisfactory Performance: basic understanding of the breadth of principles and materials treated in the course and an ability to apply and communicate that understanding competently
"D"	indicates Minimally Competent Performance: adequate understanding of most principles and materials treated in the course, but significant weakness in some areas and in the ability to apply and communicate that understanding.
"F"	indicates Failure: inadequate or fragmentary knowledge of the principles and materials treated in the course or failure to complete the work required in the course.
"I"	indicates Incomplete.
"W"	indicates Withdrawal with permission.

Final Examinations

Final examinations for each course are mandatory, except where otherwise approved by Senate, and are scheduled by the Director of the Concurrent Education Program. Final examinations for classes held at night will usually be scheduled during the day. Final examinations constitute a minimum of 30% and a maximum
of 70% of the final grade. Punctual and regular attendance is essential for the successful completion of a course. When absenteeism exceeds 20%, the student may be excluded from writing the final examination.

Academic Dishonesty

The University takes a very serious view of such offences against academic honesty as plagiarism, cheating, and impersonation. Penalties for dealing with such offences will be strictly enforced. The complete policy on Academic Dishonesty is in the Policies section of the Calendar.

Aegrotat Standing

Aegrotat standing (credit granted with incomplete course work) will be considered only in exceptional circumstances (usually only in cases of serious illness) and if term work has been of high quality.

Probation and Withdrawal

Students must maintain a 70% average in their Arts (WLU and NU) courses as well as a 70% average in their Education courses, and ‘pass’ their practicum to continue in the Concurrent Education program. Students who receive an average of 67% to 69% (or GPA of 6 in Laurier) are placed on probation and are given one year to raise their academic average to 70% in order to proceed in the Concurrent Education program. Nipissing averages are stated in ‘My Nipissing Web Advisor’ as percentages. Laurier averages are stated in ‘Loris’ as Grade Point Averages. A GPA from Laurier must state 7 to continue in the program. The GPA is calculated from the beginning of entry into the university and is adjusted with each course and each semester, i.e. accumulative.

If a student is placed on probation, the student is able to return to the concurrent program, on probation. In order to clear probation, a student must raise the Laurier Arts GPA to 70% (7.0 GPA) and the Education average to 70% by the end of the following academic year (April 30). A student must also at least receive’ Adequate’ (pass) in the practicum report.   If a student retakes courses between May and August and successfully raises their GPA to 70%, then the transcripts must be cleared by the Director and this information will be shared with the Nipissing Registrar’s Office to remove the probation designation. If a student is not successful in clearing probation (receives less that 7 GPA in the year of probation), only in extenuating circumstances, that student may appeal to the Director of the Concurrent Program and if denied an appeal, can seek a probation period fromNipissing Brantford’s Appeal Committee providing grounds and written documentationfor an appeal. Alternatively, if a student is not granted probation, and is asked to withdraw, a student can also appeal to the Appeals Committee and present documents of extenuating circumstances.

Clearing Probation

One method of raising an overall GPA is to retake the courses that may have significantly lowered the average and that could be improved.

Repeating Laurier Courses

When a course is repeated, the grade received in the last attempt will be used to calculate the GPA. Students in degree programs may repeat courses up to a maximum of 2.0 credits through Laurier. When a course is repeated, the first attempt will remain on a student's transcript. No course may be attempted more than twice.

The Probationary Period

While on probation, students can improve the GPA by significantly improving academic performance on the courses taken while on probation. As the overall GPA is cumulative, achieving higher grades in the courses taken during the probationary period will help to balance out lower grades. There will be a clear indication once a term has been completed during the probationary period whether or not the GPA is improving. If it is not, students can direct further questions to the appropriate office:

Course Area	Contact	For Appointments
Laurier Courses	Sara Neziol, Academic Advisor	Sara Neziol sneziol@wlu.ca
Nipissing Courses	Dr. M. Cantalini-Williams, Director	Irene Slack   irenes@nipissingu.ca

 

Calculating the Laurier GPA

 If GPA is less than 7 for first term, the second term averages must be much higher to achieve an overall GPA average of 7:

Overall GPA from First Term	Average Grade Needed in Second Term Laurier Courses	Letter Grade Equivalent	Percentage Equivalent
6.0	8.0	B	73 – 76%
5.0	9.0	B+	77 – 79%
4.0	10.0	A-	80 – 84%

NOTE:   This chart is a general guideline and is based on a course load of 2.0 Laurier credits (4 courses) per term.

LAURIER GRADING SYSTEM

Letter Grade	Mark	Grade Point Average
A+	90-100	12
A	85-89	11
A-	80-84	10
B+	77-79	9
B	73-76	8
B-	70-72	7
C+	67-69	6
C	63-66	5
C-	60-62	4
D+	57-59	3
D	53-56	2
D-	50-52	1
F	0-49	0

 

Appeals

BA courses from Wilfrid Laurier University will be appealed in accordance with the Wilfrid Laurier University policy available on the world wide web at http://www.wlu.ca. A copy of the appeal must be given to the Director of the Concurrent Education program. Education course appeals will follow the Nipissing University guidelines. (Student Appeals)

 

Attendance

Punctual and regular attendance is essential for the successful completion of a course. Students who do not demonstrate regular attendance may be required to withdraw from the Bachelor of Education program unless medical documentation or other authorized documentation, deemed appropriate by the Faculty, is received. This policy may be implemented if a student is absent more than the number of hours indicated (approximately 20% of the total hours) in connection with any one of the courses or course components listed below:

	Components	Hours Absent
	Curriculum Methods	5
	Education and Schooling	7
	Language Arts	7
	Special Education	3.5
	Education Psychology	3.5
	Mathematics (Primary/Junior)	7
	Mathematics (Junior/Intermediate)	5
	Art	5
	Music	5
	Health and Physical Education	5
	Social Studies	5
	Science	5
	Computers	2
	Each elective	7
	Each option course	7

Incomplete Grades

In exceptional circumstances, a student may request consideration for an Incomplete grade “I”. Such a request must be submitted in writing, through the instructor to the Dean of Education, together with reasons for the request.

Any student assigned an Incomplete grade must complete all course requirements within one month after the end of the examination period. If after that period the course is not completed or an extension has not been granted by the Dean of Education, a grade “F” will be recorded on the student’s academic record.

In order to be considered for an extension of the completion date beyond the normal one month period, a student must submit a written request to the Dean of Education, through the instructor, explaining the reasons for such an extension. Under no circumstances may a completion date exceed six months from the end
of the examination period.

Release of Final Grades

Final grades will be withheld from any student who has an outstanding account at the University or Library and such students will forfeit their right to appeal grades.

Review of Final Examinations

Students may request in advance to view their examination papers in the Office of the Director. Upon request by a student, and at a time mutually agreed upon by the instructor and student, the instructor shall review the examination paper in the presence of the student. The closing date to request reviews is sixty days after the release of marks.

Special Final Examinations

Students who are unable to write final examinations because of illness or other circumstances beyond their control, or whose performances on the examination has been impaired by such circumstances, may on application, be granted permission to write a special final examination. Such application must:

1. be made in writing to the Director of the Concurrent Education Program no later than one week after the date of the examination; and
2. be fully supported in the cases of illness by a medical certificate or by the appropriate documents in other cases.

The petition for such special examinations must be filed within a week of the day of the regular examination.

There will normally be a fee for special examinations.

Transcripts of Records

Graduates will be given one transcript of their academic record. Other requests for official transcripts must be made through the Office of the Registrar. The fee for transcripts is published in the Fee Section (see Charges and Fees in the academic calendar), and is due before the request will be processed. Transcripts must be requested in writing or in person; telephone requests will not be accepted.