Submit an Academic Petition or Appeal

Petition Letter: To the Associate Dean (Academic)
Dear Dean Stephenson,
I am appealing to drop the course STAM200 that I took in the recent summer/spring term (2021), from May-July. In this letter, I will outline my circumstances and why I have appealed this course. I decided to take this course in the summer as it was an alternative to a required course and I struggle with statistics, thus I thought taking it as one course during the spring term would increase my chances of a better grade. However, I was wrong as being in Pakistan due to coronavirus whilst attempting this online module resulted in a number of challenges for me.
The main reason I was unable to complete this course and I am appealing to drop it is due to the electricity and constant power outages faced by Pakistan, particularly in the summer months. I had not initially planned on dropping the course and was doing well in it, but had to reschedule my tests several times due to unforeseen power outages, thunderstorms, bad weather that caused hours-long outages and resulted in no or little access to Wi-Fi at crucial times. Though power outages in Pakistan are common, this summer fluctuation was unbearable due to the heat waves in Pakistan. My professor was aware of this circumstance while I was taking the class from the beginning, but I did not realize how much it would impact my ability to study and my quizzes until I was in the middle of the term. This was especially as I took this class late in the first place. The professor pointed out to me in an email I have attached for supporting documentation that one of the main requirements of this course is a stable internet connection, which I did not have. Furthermore, he had moved tests for me twice given the fact that I had documentation but felt it was unfair and compromising for the other students to move any further tests, quizzes, etc., and suggested that I should re-take this course when I was back in Canada. There were a number of times that my Wi-Fi would shut down during my quizzes, and if it was off for long enough I would lose my progress. My professor did not want me to give the same quiz again and thus, would put the weightage into something else. However, this course was made up of many quizzes, online activities, and then a long online final which I would not be able to give under these circumstances. The power outages are common in Pakistan and I previously had problems with the power previously too whilst I was attending online school my third year. However, none of my classes required a strong online presence in areas such as quizzes, finals, activities like this class, and I was able to obtain documentation when necessary. Due to the fact that obtaining documentation and moving my quizzes when I needed was unfair to others due to the nature of this course, the professor suggested I drop and take it again.
Furthermore, I also want to explain that I took this course a week or so after it had already begun and had a coronavirus scare in my first week of classes, which meant that I ended up behind for the first 2-3 weeks in the first place. The 10-hour time difference only made it more difficult for me to manage my quizzes and online presence when the power outages and Wi-Fi issues were not resolved and had no way of being resolved by me. Lastly, I would like to explain my professor suggested I take this course again after which I had decided to drop the course but was unable to do so because of a payment I had to make on my Solus. Thus, I did not actively take part in the last few weeks of the course but was unable to drop the course after my payment had been cleared, as I had passed the deadline. I did not realize that I would be unable to drop the course after my payment for it had been cleared, as it was still during the course being active in the spring term. I am appealing this course now as I have just recently returned to Canada and am currently in quarantine, thus I have a plan to re-take the course this year in person. The combination of taking a course and subject new to me while in Pakistan with a ten-hour time difference and consistent Wi-Fi problems contributed to an extreme level of stress for me. I have previously struggled a lot with anxiety and am seeking therapy for it this year but I??m confident I can tackle this course while I am in Canada, this academic year. I hope you will understand.
Thank you,
Ramsha Nawaz