How are we all feeling about f2f teaching?

[Rumblebuffin]

Given that we're gearing up for a massive new wave, I'm nervous about teaching largely unvaccinated first years in poorly ventilated rooms without masks (still waiting on guidance about the masks).

Yeah, me too!

Glad I'm not alone - nobody seems to be talking about it this time!

I think people are either just willing it to go ‘back to normal’ or are worried about raising concerns.

I can't believe you are all going back without masks in the classroom!

I'm in Ireland and a student not wearing a mask is a disciplinary matter. Vaccine take up in that age cohort is really high too (they can't get into pubs without them) but we're not allowed ask are they vaccinated.

They tend to be a cesspit of infection at the best of times. I really feel for those of you facing them without masks. I assume the UK unions are as rubbish as ours?

I can’t face another term teaching on Teams so am happy with f2f in theory, though we haven’t yet been told if masks are going to be required. It was pretty awful teaching with masks on last year as discussion couldn’t happen (my teaching is all seminar-based).

However, I’m a HoD and am really worried about continuity. If staff in my department get sick, 85% of our modules are too specialised for me to organise cover for. I honestly don’t know what I am supposed to do in those circumstances.

We're required to provide a recording for those who can't attend so some of us are thinking of doing teams or similar and then the students in front of us can contribute via chat as well as the ones accessing virtually. Problem with that is will the WiFi hold up.

Unfortunately this is why I felt I had to quit teaching. I found it unacceptable to be in an unventilated room with 30 unvaccinated unmasked pupils. Times that by ten different classes per week and I’d have direct contact with up to 300 pupils. It’s just not on.

I'm fine with it. But my DH has been working in food retail this whole time so I think I'm just numb to the personal risk aspect.

My main worry is that we'll have a huge surge in cases and everything will be chaos. I'm so tired.

I'm nervous about teaching largely unvaccinated first years

Every 18 year old know has made getting their vaccines before going to uni a real priority (having heard what happened to their older friends and siblings last autumn). Although I do accept if you teach in a university with less of a "white middle class" demographic that might not hold so true.

I know, I'm really hoping that some decent guidance emerges on mask wearing. And/or that I can wear a visor at least. My teaching is seminar based too and for that reason I would prefer to approach more cautiously and proceed with online, or at least a more gently blended model for the first term until we get a better sense of how this new wave of infection pans out. Not just for my own safety but because, as @GCAcademic points out, if I'm down then my courses are down too. This would be chaos. And what about staff with complicated caring responsibilities? If we contract covid and pass that on to somebody we live with and care for, this is also going to impact our availability at work. Not to mention our sanity!

The way things are planned now, I will be teaching across all year groups and facilitating various sessions for students outwith my regular groups so I really understand your horror at doing the maths with the figures @Blueleah!

Not too worried about my own health but I am worried for many of my staff. And as GCacademic pointed out the cover implications. Department in adjoining office has 3 out of 15 off with COVID and there is no cover. Staff will be run ragged in a few weeks.

My school implied we are safe as they have taped a magical square at the front of the class on the floor which we stand in and protects us!

Colleagues, academic and PS alike, going down is my big fear, too, and everything grinding to a halt. My place has mandated masks in all indoor settings unless you are in a room alone, which will make F2F seminars challenging - and some students will be on class, others simultaneously on Zoom.

Reading the Higher Ed board is like stepping into a parallel world where they all expect everything to be back to normal. I fear within a couple of weeks of term starting reality will bite...

@Bingobango69 This is what I just don't understand - we are so clearly sleepwalking into this exact scenario and haven't learned from what happened last year.

Yep, and just like last year we can see what happened in the US as a foretaste, where colleges and unis with high vaccination rates have gone online after a couple of weeks.

I’m nervous but ok about teaching F2F. After all, I’m going out to bars/restaurants and travelling on public transport etc in my own time. And I’m looking forward to seeing my students in real life.

But I’m so worried about us all getting ill or family members requiring care so we can’t work. We’re already really short staffed because we have far more students than normal and no one can cover specialised modules. So what on earth do we do then?

largely unvaccinated first years in poorly ventilated rooms without masks (still waiting on guidance about the masks)

Absolutely.

I’ll be teaching seminars this coming term and I think I’ll be wearing a mask, to model good practice.

But I am a little apprehensive simply because I KNOW undergrads didn’t follow any of the social distancing requirements last year. They mixed households, had house parties etc etc.

They seemed to assume that because many of them have had COVID it’s of no consequence. Those of us who are older (I’m over 60) and with underlying conditions which make us a bit more vulnerable maybe can’t be so casual about this disease.

But I am looking forward to reach in person. Last year was HARD.

I'm very much looking forward to it, to be honest! I've really missed it. But I only teach in small groups, and can open the window. I don't think I will wear a mask myself, because I find it very inhibiting when teaching (I do wear a mask when on train, in shops etc). I expect most will have been vaccinated and I will ask those who have not to wear a mask (not enforceable, I know, but I can ask).

I think the health risks to me and the students are extremely low. I'm vaccinated and expect most of them to be. Most of the student group I was teaching in person in Autumn 2020 had Covid and I didn't catch it then. My daughter had Covid this summer and none of the rest of the household caught it. I have been travelling and socialising recently.

Even if I am infected, the risk of serious illness is tiny. I am more worried about disruption from another spike, but the higher rate of vaccination and different rules on isolation will reduce this enormously. I would be even more worried about the consequences of continuing to teach online and inflict the degree of isolation on everyone that we had last year.

I am not a covid-denier by any means. I've been following rules quite carefully throughout and wearing a mask even when not required. But it is time to live more fully.

But my DH has been working in food retail this whole time so I think I'm just numb to the personal risk aspect

I read somewhere (MN maybe?) that they had noticed that people who had largely worked out of the home/front line for the last 2 years were less concerned. It was those of us who had WFH who were much more anxious about things opening up (I include myself here).

I've been trying to get back to "normal" - using public transport, going to the gym, doing group gym classes, and even the theatre & eating out. But in all those situations, I can control how I come into contact with others. In a seminar room - small, not great ventilation - with a mix of vaxxed & unvaxxed - it's harder. Particularly given that we are not allowed to ask about private medical information, nor require mask wearing.

Yes I think that's true @KaycePollard

We sort of consciously decided very early on that we had to not think about personally getting covid, otherwise we would go crazy

We followed all the rules and were careful but obviously you can't control everything, we just had to put it out of our minds

I can see it's much harder for people who have been more isolated this whole time. I think you'll get used to it though.

Nervous but also pleased. I have missed personal contact. Easy for me to say, of course, because I have some research buyout this year. But yes, everything may change and I may never get out of my attic

I think you'll get used to it though.

I hope so. My problem is that I suspect if I were to catch COVID, I will be quite/very ill from it - going by my regular response to "normal" colds and a couple of bouts of horrible flu - difficulty breathing over several days is typical for me. So the mild underlying anxiety of becoming very ill from other people's "mild" viruses is always there anyway

I agree with @irregularegular. I'm really hoping for face to face. Not sure my uni/ department will oblige though. The uni policy is rooms run at 1/3 capacity and everyone must wear a mask. Because of the 1/3 capacity thing there is a massive shortage of rooms and lower status depts like mine will be bottom of the list.
I don't want to wear a mask while I teach and I don't want the students to either. I find it really hard to hear what people are saying when they're masked up and my lectures are discussion based. Also I give a participation mark and I find it really hard to recognise faces when students are in masks.
I'm pretty despondent about it tbh. I can teach online but it's not what I want to do long term, and permeant PPE is just depressing.
For those of you who don't want to 'go back to normal' yet, what would be your criteria for a return to f2f and no masks if you had control?

I work in professional services so I'm not sure if I'm allowed here but very interested to see this discussion.

We've been back on campus for several weeks and trying to work out how on earth we're going to see students safely f2f. We give student welfare advice and we work in small offices dotted around campus and staff are really worried about how they'll manage to avoid Covid (especially any international variants that might arise)

Our uni is encouraging mask wearing but very few students are complying. We can't insist on it.

It's a bit of a mare really as we're so short staffed and any sickness is going to be impossible to manage (dept been cut to the bone over the last year)

Are your universities talking about contingency plans for case spikes?

My institution’s staff intranet pages are full of ‘Getting back to campus’ guidance - logging LFTs, expected that people wear masks etc.
I went back onto campus this week for first time since November. No one is wearing masks. None of my colleagues are testing. So it will be interesting to see how things go when students return. No specific guidance about masks in classrooms yet.
I’m not too concerned at the moment, really looking forward to teaching actual real face to face students, getting them to work meaningfully together in groups (fingers crossed), and enabling them to have social experiences. Some of them in 2nd year have never even really been on campus and no doubt may be feeling anxious about that for all sorts of reasons. Really want to give them a positive teaching experience to remind them why they are at university!