Medical Student Who Was 40 Minutes Late Marked Absent and Failed... Court's Ruling

Claim in Civil Lawsuit: 'Arrived 40 Minutes Late but Attended'
Court: "No Obligation to Confirm Attendance Until Class Ends"
Has Past Experience of Grade Retention Relief Through Litigation

A Korean medicine student who was held back in the third year due to missing the final exam passing score by 1 point and was later relieved through a civil lawsuit was held back again in the fourth year and filed another civil lawsuit but was not granted relief this time.

If a student receives an F grade in even one subject, they are held back... "Both grade processing and retention are appropriate" ruling

[Image source=Pixabay]

On the 9th, the Civil Division 1 of Wonju Branch of Chuncheon District Court (Chief Judge Lee Su-woong) ruled against student A and dismissed student B's case in a lawsuit filed by two students, A and B, from a Korean medicine department at a university in Gangwon Province against their alma mater's foundation, seeking confirmation of the invalidity of their retention.

Student A and others were enrolled in the fourth year of the school last year during the second semester and were evaluated in a relative grading course with 20% attendance and 80% assignments or quizzes. They received a final score of 59 or below in one basic and major required subject, making them subject to retention.

The university held a grade review committee in January and determined that "both grade processing and retention are appropriate," confirming the retention of student A and others.

In response, student A and others filed a lawsuit in February. However, immediately after the lawsuit was filed, the university canceled the retention of student B, who then graduated normally in the same month.

Student A, who did not graduate, argued in court that "receiving an F grade due to four absences was caused by an error in the attendance confirmation process" and "there were procedural defects such as unfair grading methods, so the retention is unjust."

In a situation where receiving an F grade in even one subject results in retention for one semester, this student's attendance became a stumbling block.

"Although late, I attended, and the professor did not directly check attendance" claim... "Grading method is fair"

Chuncheon District Court Wonju Branch.
Photo by Yonhap News

The key issue in the trial was whether student A attended Professor C's Q&A style class on October 27 of last year.

At that time, Professor C marked student A as absent for not answering questions during class.

However, student A claimed, "I was about 40 minutes late to the lecture (which lasted about 1 hour and 40 minutes) but attended, and since Professor C did not directly check attendance, there is illegality in violating the rule that 'attendance must be checked directly.'"

However, the court stated, "It is difficult to see that the professor conducting the lecture has an obligation to actively confirm attendance before the class ends, so student A's claim is unfounded," and explained, "It is hard to view the grading method that reflects weighted class hours as unfair."

Furthermore, the court said, "The grade review committee also appears to have reviewed attendance and the fairness of the grading method based on the materials submitted by student A, so there is insufficient recognition of procedural defects, and there is no evidence to acknowledge them," concluding, "Student A's claim is without merit."

Previously, in mid-December 2021, when student A was in the third year, they scored 59 on the final exam for acupuncture medicine and were held back by a '1-point difference,' but filed a lawsuit claiming "the professor's exam questions had no correct answers or multiple correct answers, causing errors." At that time, the court ruled in favor of student A, canceling the third-year retention.