March 19, 2021, by UoN School of English

Fighting Covid-19 in the time of assessments

Three modules, three assessments, all due on the same day. The Autumn term ended, and students dispersed for the upcoming Christmas season. I work as hard as I could in between the festivities we were allowed to have among the current climate. I took a break for Christmas Day, Boxing Day, and let’s be real, a few days after that. Suddenly, it’s the first of January and my assessments were due in less than two weeks.

Panic ensued. I buckled down and focused completely on putting the finishing touches on each nearly completed assessment. A couple of days later, something wasn’t quite right. I’d begun coughing, I spiked a fever, and I felt totally drained of energy. A week away from submitting my assessments and I was getting sick. I couldn’t believe it. I told myself I could fight through it, that I had to fight through it, and finish.

The first day I literally couldn’t get out of bed, I knew the worst was true. I knew I had come down with COVID. I ordered a test, and anxiously waited two days to get my results back, all the while feeling sicker and sicker. It came back as expected. I now had only a few days left to get my assessments submitted on time.

I knew there were grace periods offered, but I had worked so hard and come so far, I was determined to submit each assessment on time. I took each short moment of clarity I was allowed, and I worked. I typed for five minutes and then rested. I read over my work for ten minutes and then rested. The day before my assessments were due, I logged onto Moodle. I went into each module in turn and hit the submit button.

As I sat back, resting, after finally completing my assessments I breathed a sigh of relief. I would’ve felt relieved in turning them in no matter what but having fought through the fog of Covid to finish and submit my assessments I was even more proud of my accomplishments. Being a Master’s student is tough in any circumstance, but it is even harder in the current climate, especially when you find yourself fighting Covid in the time of assessments.

Amanda Baker is a Creative Writing MA Student at the University of Nottingham.

If you are a student who is struggling to meet assessment deadlines, please contact your personal tutor or the Student Support and Wellbeing Officers for support. Click here for more information about student support.

Image credit: Kelly Sikkema

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