SpookyFrank
A cheap source of teeth for aquarium gravel
Talk of a student rent strike in Bristol apparently.
Universities
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chilango
Hypothetical Wanker
Also talk of Student Union demands for f2f teaching in Bristol.
existentialist
Tired and unemotional
I don't teach in a university, but some of the issues coming up here are arising in my workplace, too.
After several months of "hold steady while we see how this pans out", and a commitment to keep training online until at least Christmas, one of our students has been lobbying hard and noisily for a return to face-to-face teaching on the basis of an educational exemption. Around half of the remainder of the cohort have made it very clear that, for various reasons, if we return to face to face work, they will be unable to return, for various (shielding-related) reasons. The question of "pausing" the course at some point, if we reach some notional maximum of online hours is reached, has also arisen, and caused lots of controversy.
It's turning into a right bloody mess, and every group discussion turns into a bunfight with students going around in circles setting out their position...probably not helped by the fact that their tutor team is not the most...assertive, and is becoming worn down by the endless, pointless griping. Fortunately, the professional body which accredits our course has just issued some guidance, and it looks like they've set aside any limits on online teaching, and placement hours. All I have to do now is go into a training committee meeting meeting this morning and "sell" the notion of pressing on through to the more twin-sets-and-cups-of-tea end of the tutor spectrum. This will cause cartwheels of delight from those who just want to get their training and qualification done, and I suspect some pretty bitter outrage from those who are dead set on pressing ahead with face-to-face. Which, of all the options, was never actually going to happen any time soon.
After several months of "hold steady while we see how this pans out", and a commitment to keep training online until at least Christmas, one of our students has been lobbying hard and noisily for a return to face-to-face teaching on the basis of an educational exemption. Around half of the remainder of the cohort have made it very clear that, for various reasons, if we return to face to face work, they will be unable to return, for various (shielding-related) reasons. The question of "pausing" the course at some point, if we reach some notional maximum of online hours is reached, has also arisen, and caused lots of controversy.
It's turning into a right bloody mess, and every group discussion turns into a bunfight with students going around in circles setting out their position...probably not helped by the fact that their tutor team is not the most...assertive, and is becoming worn down by the endless, pointless griping. Fortunately, the professional body which accredits our course has just issued some guidance, and it looks like they've set aside any limits on online teaching, and placement hours. All I have to do now is go into a training committee meeting meeting this morning and "sell" the notion of pressing on through to the more twin-sets-and-cups-of-tea end of the tutor spectrum. This will cause cartwheels of delight from those who just want to get their training and qualification done, and I suspect some pretty bitter outrage from those who are dead set on pressing ahead with face-to-face. Which, of all the options, was never actually going to happen any time soon.
SpookyFrank
A cheap source of teeth for aquarium gravel
Of course if we hadn't marketised higher education in the first place, or turned the undergrad population into a debt-fed cash cow; so many of these issues would have a very different character to them.
SpookyFrank
A cheap source of teeth for aquarium gravel
The university here has seen a slight dip in new cases over the past week and is now talking about a phased return to covid-safe social activities and sports, which seems a bit premature but I suppose there has to be some carrot to balance out all the stick. They are also saying students shouldn't mix between households for another ten days.
brogdale
Coming to terms with late onset Anarchism
btw, some of the comments under that piece are as shocking as they are unsurprising.
Dogsauce
I’ve got Skol but I’m not a Scholar
There‘s fuckloads of positive student cases in Bristol. The district north of here which has several large halls had an infection rate of 1,700 cases per 100,000 people last week, so around 1 in 50 of the area testing positive. Accusations that the University wasn’t sufficiently prepared for returning students, plus dickheads having parties etc. They’ve fucked it.
Pickman's model
Starry Wisdom
yeh well it is the guardian
nyxx
*
Students in Manchester planning a rent strike:
thetab.com
215 Manchester Uni freshers to withhold over £300,000 in halls rent strike
'We're paying to be at uni and have a worse experience'
thetab.com
beesonthewhatnow
going deaf for a living
We never stopped f2f. My main job at the moment is providing tech support to lectures as my concert hall is being used as a teaching space.
redsquirrel
This Machine Kills Progressives
Lancaster in a Tier 3 area and still carrying on with F2F, AFAIK Nottingham and Nottingham Trent did/are not stopping F2F and I've not heard of any West Yorks Uni stopping F2`f either. So basically yep insanity is happening.
miss direct
misfungled
Tier 3 here in Sheffield, face to face stopped for two weeks but back now for limited in class time.
Fozzie Bear
Well-Known Member
Daughter is out of quarantine at Newcastle and enjoying her online lessons. No plans for her to return to face to face any time soon but they are doing it with some other subjects where it’s needed more by the sound of it.
SpookyFrank
A cheap source of teeth for aquarium gravel
I don't know what's going on with undergrad teaching here but we PGCE people get one half day a week of real-life teaching, in groups of 15-16 in a large room and with everyone masked up and shielded from everyone else by perspex panels. I think the non-science trainees get even less contact hours than we do.
The undergrad outbreak here seems to have tailed off. The uni was due to announce that students could mix outside their households again, which now seems like a cruel carrot to dangle. I really feel for those kids
The undergrad outbreak here seems to have tailed off. The uni was due to announce that students could mix outside their households again, which now seems like a cruel carrot to dangle. I really feel for those kids
frogwoman
No amount of cajolery...
"Furious students tear down 'new lockdown fences' during passionate protest against Manchester University's decision to 'pen them in'"
more here
From what I've read that is a fucked up story, uni is trying to stop them leaving and has blocked all entrances except one. (which doesn't make sense in terms of stopping the virus at all). I can't blame them for protesting tbh the way they've been treated is horrific
elbows
Well-Known Member
There really are quite a lot of education related positive case statistics in the weekly surveillance report additional graphs document these days. Too many for me to post all of the University relevant ones here, so I'll just say that others can be found through the middle of the following document. There are also lots relating to schools but I shall post something about those in the school thread tomorrow.
Lord Camomile
Yipchaa!
From next week our libraries are going ahead with planned increases to our capacity.
While it's true our libraries have seemingly taken this more seriously than at other institutions, this line from management doesn't fill me with confidence:
Each new person you let into the libraries increases the risk! That's how this works!
While it's true our libraries have seemingly taken this more seriously than at other institutions, this line from management doesn't fill me with confidence:
Each new person you let into the libraries increases the risk! That's how this works!
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Pickman's model
Starry Wisdom
i'd be interested in statistics which showed incidence among staff in educational facilities
chilango
Hypothetical Wanker
Officially 13 out of 247 cases at our place at the time of writing.
Mation
real life adventure worth more than pieces of gold
So, universities must move to online teaching from 9 December.
Also, nothing in the story about how long online teaching might last (I don't think).
Covid-19: Universities to oversee student exodus for Christmas
They are being asked to travel in the seven days after the national lockdown in England ends.
www.bbc.co.uk
Is there anything to stop online teaching starting before it's mandated, i.e. even before the students are packed off home on coaches?
Also, nothing in the story about how long online teaching might last (I don't think).
elbows
Well-Known Member
At the moment its just a fudge for the end of term. I dont think they have sorted out any January restart plans yet, and they might want to wait till its clearer what stage of the wave has been reached at that point, and what state the health system is in, before cobbling something together. There will be a temptation to throw mass rapid tests at the issue but I'm not convinced they have the test capacity to do that.
Mation
real life adventure worth more than pieces of gold
Yes, rapid testing is mentioned as part of it, although students will be allowed to travel without having a negative test result. A fudge, as you say.
Miss-Shelf
I'll meet you further on up the road
on my course we are just unilaterally decided to stay online - we are supposed to be offering students 1x day a week f2f but very few students are taking this up. I;m not travelling 1.5 h each way and paying a tenner to be in a class room with a worse tech than I've got at home when all my students stay at homeSo, universities must move to online teaching from 9 December.
Covid-19: Universities to oversee student exodus for Christmas
They are being asked to travel in the seven days after the national lockdown in England ends.www.bbc.co.uk
Is there anything to stop online teaching starting before it's mandated, i.e. even before the students are packed off home on coaches?
Also, nothing in the story about how long online teaching might last (I don't think).
Quite a few other colleagues have decided to do the same
line manager could mandate me to go in but is choosing not to - not a hill he wants to die on, I guess
Miss-Shelf
I'll meet you further on up the road
In other news, UEL has made UCU committee members redundant in what feels like a targeted attack
Senior, committed respected scholars
capitalising on it's commitment to decolonising the curriculum whilst making Black and other Global Majority staff redundant or pushing them towards leaving
es.britsoc.co.uk
guess there will be ballots for strike action soon
Senior, committed respected scholars
capitalising on it's commitment to decolonising the curriculum whilst making Black and other Global Majority staff redundant or pushing them towards leaving
BSA President writes to UEL regarding The Future of Sociology - Everyday Society - The British Sociological Association
Dear Professor Broderick, Subject: The Future of Sociology at the University of East London As President of the British Sociological Association I am writing to express our deep concern about...
es.britsoc.co.uk
