• The education minister announced that grades this semester won't count toward the R-Score for Quebec cégep students.
• The government acknowledged that students could have difficulty learning during this period.
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There's some good news for Quebec's cégep students this semester that's sure to bring relief to some people. In "the sake of fairness," the government decided to not count this semester's grades toward the R-Score. Education Minister Jean-François Roberge made the announcement Monday morning in a press release. 

"Today's decision is in line with the actions taken so far," said Roberge. "Our desire is to ensure that no student is unfairly penalized because of COVID-19."

He did, however, acknowledge that this might put some students in a difficult situation, especially those who have been able to maintain their studies despite the health crisis. 

Quebec schools have been closed since the beginning of March in response to the ongoing pandemic. The government argues that due to the disparity in access to education during the crisis, calculating the R-Score would be "ineffective" this semester. 

"Even partial maintenance of the R-Score would have disadvantaged [the students] considerably and unjustly, for example for admission to quota-based university programs," he added. 

The R-Score is the standardized grading system through which all students in Quebec are evaluated. According to the government, in "normal teaching conditions" the R-Score is a fair and optimal way to evaluate student performance.

While some students might be concerned about their prospects due to the R-Score freeze, all classes will still be credited and will show up on transcripts. 

"The freezing of the R-Score will ensure that all students can continue their learning, have their courses credited and continue their academic journey, in a fair and equitable manner," said Roberge.

"In these exceptional circumstances, it was the best decision to make, as evidenced by the consensus in this sense that was made among our partners in the college network."

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The original plan was to maintain R-Score calculation despite the need for distance schooling during the pandemic.

Education experts, however, thought that it would be best to not calculate it this semester.

The reasoning is that far too many Quebec students might not have access to proper educational channels during the crisis. 

It's recommended that cégep students check in with their respective institutions to find out more details about what to expect after this semester is over.

The government is currently evaluating its options concerning school and business reopening dates.

Stay tuned for more news.