Under the direction of leaders at all levels of the Open University of China (OUC), with the collaboration of branches, colleges and examination venues, and the cooperation of all teaching departments, as well as the relevant management departments of the headquarters, the final examination for the spring 2022 semester was smooth and orderly. It included two major sections: one unified national written examination on 2 & 3 July, and one online examination lasting from 7 May to 3 July.
3.49 million students sat for the unified examination in 2,955 test centres at 54 branches or schools, while the online examination was given through the "One Platform Examination System" and "Online Summative Examination System", covering respectively about 480,000 examinees in 2,703 test centres and 3.08 million examinees in 2,882 test centres at 56 branches or schools.
OUC leaders, branches and schools attach great importance to examinations, and the top leaders of each branch and school issued guidance on front-line work. The examination focuses on further strengthening “examination governance” through digital reforms of its management: strict precautions against surrogate exam-takers through a pilot face-recognition programme; intensified inspection and monitoring of precautions both remotely and in-person; and enhanced risk prevention and management, emphasising integrity and discipline. The identities of examinees are verified again post-examination, and their feedback is solicited to help optimise technology and management.
During an examination, all stakeholders are required to focus on risk prevention and management, coordinate Covid-19 measures, and work to ameliorate the effects of extreme weather.
The humane care of the OUC for its students is shown in the organisation and services it provides. One Qingdao-branch student had been partially paralyzed in an accident. Since he needed to complete two more courses in order to graduate, he wished to take the regular examination. With the approval of the OUC headquarters, the staff of the test centre at the Qingdao branch set up an examination room for him in the hospital. Similar services are offered to students with mobility difficulties in the X i'an, Liaoning, and other branches; students are escorted to their seats, and out of the building once they have completed the exam. Moreover, the needs and anxieties of the examinees are kept in mind. For example, the Jiangxi branch prepared summer drinks for waiting students, and the Shandong branch printed admission cards for students who had failed to bring them.
By OUC Academic Affairs Department