If you've been given a mark that you think is unfair, what can you do?

• The first step is to have a go at sorting it out informally. Discuss the mark with the lecturer or tutor concerned.
  
  
• If you can't resolve the issue informally, check your institution's policies for having your mark reconsidered and what formal procedures you need to follow for this. The head of department (or equivalent) should also be able to provide advice on the steps to take.
  
  
• You can also make a complaint to the Office of the Ombudsmen if you feel you've been treated unfairly by a publicly owned tertiary institution (a university, institute of technology, polytechnic, wananga, or college of education). But you should try to resolve the issue with the institution first.
  
  
• Your complaint involves a private organisation? You can use the Quality Commission Scheme set up by the New Zealand Association of Private Education Providers. But you must first try to resolve the issue through the organisation's internal complaints process.

Our view

• Teaching quality has been the poor relation in tertiary reforms. The proposed quality-assurance system is a step in the right direction but more work is needed on the details of what constitutes good practice.
  
  
• Tertiary institutions can do a lot to improve teaching and assessment practices. Training for tertiary teachers needs to be a priority - being an expert on a subject is one thing; being able to teach the subject is something different altogether.
  
  
• To make the assessment process as transparent as possible, institutions need to give students good information on how their work is graded.
  
  

More information

• Institutes of Technology and Polytechnics Quality: www.itpq.ac.nz
• National Centre for Tertiary Teaching Excellence: www.akoaotearoa.ac.nz
• New Zealand Universities Academic Audit Unit: www.nzuaau.ac.nz
• New Zealand Qualifications Authority: www.nzqa.govt.nz
• Office of the Ombudsmen: www.ombudsmen.parliament.nz
• Quality Commission Scheme: www.qualitycommission.co.nz

Report by Jessica Wilson