Student Absence From Assessment Due to Illness: Are They Entitled to a Retake?

With the arrival of winter and weather fluctuations, what happens to a student’s grade if they miss an assessment, and will they be reassessed?

Amid upcoming weather changes and the onset of winter—the period when children are most vulnerable to viruses—a very important question comes to my mind. Since assessments have become essential for passing, with a specific percentage required to take final year exams, what is the fate of a student who misses an assessment for an acceptable reason, even if it is a medical one? Does the student have the right to be reassessed, or do they get a zero?!

What Happens to a Student Who Misses an Assessment Due to Illness?

I am not speaking with absolute certainty here, nor do I know whether this actually happens or whether all schools comply with it. This is what I am drawing attention to: if the instructions exist, are they implemented?? Does the student have the right to be reassessed or not? If they do have the right to be reassessed, I hope the instructions will be clearly and publicly emphasized to ministries, administration offices, and teachers. If we do not allow reassessment, what will be the result? A parent will bring their sick child to school—suffering from a cold or something similar—out of fear that the child will get a zero on the assessment. This exposes the rest of the students in the classroom, and perhaps the teachers themselves, to infection. Do we want an educated classroom or a sick classroom, and do we want a fair assessment or one that pressures a child?

Flexible Assessment Protects Student Health and the Right to Learn

Here I say that a bit of flexibility regarding this matter may allow a sick student, especially one with an acceptable excuse, to be reassessed without worry, fear, or psychological pressure on the family. Flexibility here is not laxity; rather, it is protection for public health. I also hope there will be flexibility regarding medical certificates, so that a certificate from school health insurance is not mandatory. Why can it not be from any doctor or any external clinic, given that the Ministry of Health is the entity that licenses doctors to examine people? When a doctor gives me a medical certificate, I believe the school should accept it as a medical excuse. Trust in the doctor is trust in the entire health system, not trust in a specific stamp.

flexible assessment, meaning a system that takes into account a student’s health and psychological circumstances and allows a second chance for assessment without the student losing their right to learn, while keeping the classroom safe from infection. Flexible assessment balances discipline and mercy, commitment and humanity, and the law with circumstances.

How Does a Sick Child Feel When Receiving a Zero?

Have we considered how a sick child feels when seeing a zero in their notebook because they were absent with an excuse? Have we asked a teacher how they teach a lesson when half the classroom is sick out of fear of absence? Have we placed the child’s health before the assessment paper, or the paper before the child?

A Proposal to Open a Reassessment Window for Students Absent with an Excuse

I hope we will adopt the idea of a reassessment window based on three steps: first, allowing a student absent with an acceptable excuse to be reassessed within a week of returning; second, accepting medical certificates from any licensed doctor without complications; and third, circulating clear instructions to all schools that assessment is a right for learning, not a punishment for illness, so that the classroom does not turn into a place of infection instead of a place of learning.

Mercy and Discipline in the Educational Process

Can we teach our children that illness is an excuse, not a fault? Can we teach them that mercy is part of the law, that firmness does not mean cruelty, and that discipline does not mean intimidation? I hope we restore the true meaning of assessment. An assessment that makes a child sick is like a lamp that burns its oil, and education without flexibility is like a plant without water that neither grows nor bears fruit.

Written by Rody Nabil

Published by Hany Sallam

Hany Sallam, Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Scientific Magazine Ahram
An independent Arabic science magazine operating since 2008, dedicated to simplifying science, technology, space, natural phenomena and scientific stories for Arabic readers. The magazine includes sections such as “Zodiac Group” and “Stories and Tales”, alongside science topics that combine knowledge with a spirit of discovery. It operates independently and is not affiliated with Al-Ahram Press Foundation or any governmental body.