01 June 2022| 30 Shawaal 1443
The renowned Shanghai University in China has become the subject of mockery after asking students to take the practical swimming test ‘online’.
On May 15, the university announced that students who are finishing their bachelor’s degrees and are due to take a 50-metre swimming test could do so online.
In China, many top-level universities require their students to learn to swim before they graduate because swimming is considered a survival skill and a way to improve fitness and conditioning, The South China Morning Post reported.
The university’s special arrangement was revealed in a now-deleted notice which has been screengrabbed and widely shared across social media.
“For students who have not completed the 50-meter swimming test, the school will use the method of “submitting theoretical homework online” for the assessment,” the notice said.
According to the new method, students had to log in to the campus network and answer an online questionnaire.
“The classes and facilities including the swimming pool at the university are suspended under the ongoing Covid-19 lockdown. To ensure the students can graduate, we decided to conduct the swimming test online,” an unnamed staff member from the dean’s office told Chinese news outlet Jimu, as per SCMP.
This move, however, was instantly ridiculed by social media users, who had a hard time finding the logic in assessing swimming skills by way of a theoretical quiz.
“Are the students supposed to swim in their bathtubs?” one user commented.
“Is it a reality version of surfing the internet?” another user commented.
“Hahaha, go let the swimming sport completely and detach from the water. What a brilliant idea!,” another said.
“This is just embarrassing, coming from a reputable university. How can a theory test be the same as an actual lap in the pool?” a fourth user quipped.
It is not clear if the university pushed ahead with its bizarre initiative, but it would be interesting to see what this ‘online’ swimming test would look like.