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).

I'm expecting far more disruption to teaching this year than last. Last year's f2f teaching felt safe. This year it's inevitable that staff are going to get sick. When that happens, the classes will be cancelled as I can't simply magic up substitute tutors for what are predominantly very specialised modules.

solidarity, people. So update: had some MA teaching today and they were hearteningly terrific. All masked up, door open, not many of them. That felt quite safe. Ugrads will be a v diff picture I think. We must not lose sight of how mental the situation is. Part of the violence is them gaslighting us into thinking it's all normal and fine when a 20something in the fucking hospital on day one is so not fine.

It’s dangerous imo. I’m not willing to be in a room with large numbers of unmasked unvaccinated people. So I quit teaching. It’s a devastating loss when you have to quit your career to stay safe, but I could see they were never going to enforce mask wearing and distancing in academia. My life is worth more than my career.

I have come down with flu. I knew this would happen. I had a student cough all over me last week. Feeling like death. Annoyingly I was due to have the flu jab in a couple of weeks time, first time I’d ever booked it. I won’t be going back till I’m properly recovered; in the past I’d have struggled in to avoid cancelling teaching.

We already have half the team off sick (non Covid related) but has a drastic effect on students because we're already so understaffed. We'd put in for extra posts over the summer but all were rejected.

Really sad you've given up teaching @NumberNineTwo but completely understand it. We have quite a few staff reassessing their options

Get well soon @GCAcademic - flu is so vile

First week of teaching, master's level, and all students in masks in a well ventilated room. All felt as safe as it could be, but not denying I felt apprehensive. Seems to be similar across the uni with the students appreciating the need for masking up - though not in cafes, the refectory, SU etc. Bringing my own lunch for the foreseeable.

Mine are (so far) wearing masks well, but we are one of the places who over-recruited and so the rooms are so full that they are all basically sitting on top of one another - if there is a case in the room it'll surely spread like wildfire even with the masks.

I started teaching last week. Very few students in masks and one student tested positive the afternoon of my morning class. All the students were urged to test, I did two LFTs myself and no positive results have come in so we continued as usual this week.

Mine are now complaining about the windows being open while not wearing masks 🤦🏻

@Mumteedum - mine, who were all wearing masks, were fine with the windows open. At least they were until the heavy machinery started up outside the window...

Just finished week 3. Students have been masked in my seminars, sometimes I’ve had to remind a few. I’m in Scotland where we’re still wearing masks in shops etc which probably makes a difference. I’m really enjoying teaching face to face although two hours in a mask trying to fathom what students are saying is tiring. First lecture yesterday, so nice to just stand and speak instead of recording, editing and my particular favourite, captioning. There doesn’t seem to be any problem with students or staff coming down with Covid, attendance is higher than pre-pandemic, I think they’re glad to be back. Every student I have spoken to, except one, is vaccinated. We have on site vaccination and testing. I don’t really feel unsafe at all. The biggest problem is overseas students in isolation on arrival and the difficulty some are having in getting flights to the U.K. which means we are not as in person as we hoped. On the other hand I have colleagues who have their own health issues or who have family members who are vulnerable who are much less comfortable.

Also in Scotland so everyone in masks (the uni has a reporting system for anyone who refuses). Everyone 1m social distancing. Staff can take their masks off to teach (this is written in the Scottish gov rules that anyone presenting or being part of a panel doesn’t need to wear a mask so long as they keep a 1m distance)..

I’ve quite enjoyed being back and teaching in person. We’ve still got online teaching— it works out 50% in person and 50% online. The buildings are much quieter than normal, although the big teaching building still feels like a germ-pit.

I’m pretty nervous about teaching in seminar rooms full of unvaccinated international students, but really worried for a close colleague who’s pregnant, having to teach labs with close contact 1 to 1 with students. I’ve said she should email them, asking if they’d be willing to mask-up as a personal favour to her. She’s new in the role, with a nit picking line manager, so quite nervous of his reaction if she does so. What a mess.

I'm so sorry for all of you dealing with unmasked students!

I was really worried last week when we were in intro week and I popped on to campus. (I had a minor panic attack) The number of young male students in particular not wearing masks was worrying (especially the lad sitting in front of me on the bus coughing his guts up, no mask).

I'm already one PCR test down as I had the stinking cold, which became a cough and temperature.

Lots of coughing in my first seminar so fresher's flu is imminent if not Covid.

But first f2f teaching of seminars today, two groups of 15, all masked up. I'd brought soares and a few took one as they had forgotten etc. Not happy at the cramming in of numbers, but I guess it means I can set them small group work guilt free as they literally can't socially distance anyway.

I struggled in the first seminar as my mask was steaming up and I couldn't see my notes, it was nit a good session. But luckily the afternoon one was great.

The buses and outside of classrooms seems to be pretty low mask wearing still though. Again particularly the young lads, clearly the govt needs to do some research about the poor state of health of 18-25 year old men.

Update: I am now off sick and awaiting a second PCR test, in two weeks.

Key staff are missing, and actually taking being off sick seriously for a change -(which is good!) so getting any info is getting harder and harder, and lecturing teams are feeling like they are about to collapse.

Oh and my OH did an unmasked lecture this week, as 'it is hard to lecture in a mask' and apparently none of their students in the none socially distanced room (for an hour and a half) were masked.

Covid rates are actually very low at my institution - we have 20k+ students and fewer than 10 recorded cases. We have a medical school so I'm imagining that they will have the bulk of them (as they did during the lockdowns).

Absolutely ZERO of my students are wearing masks in lecture rooms or around the building. Neither are my colleagues to be honest. Im wearing mine whenever moving around, feeling like the odd one out.

Ours are all masked as are we (English Russell Group) but we are somewhat crammed into teaching rooms which have ironic signs telling us to maintain social distancing... and I had a CEV student practically hanging out of the window in class yesterday to keep distance from the coughing classmates.

Had a colleague nearly in tears yesterday. Loads of students coughing away in their seminar and point-blank refusing to wear the masks "strongly encouraged" by the university.

We have very few students / staff wearing masks and a very ‘business as usual, isn’t it great that covid’s over’ vibe going on, even though it’s like listening to the frog chorus in lectures.
Well we did have last week, I wouldn’t know about this week because I’m off sick with the most horrendous (not COVID) lurgy that seems to be going around.
It took two weeks for people to start getting sick, I don’t think it bodes well for the winter.

Just as we're all starting to get sick, our university has announced that mask recommendations and social distancing are being removed next term and it's back to large lectures in person.

I’m very glad, at this point, to be in Scotland.

@Chemenger

I’m very glad, at this point, to be in Scotland.

Yes. I've glad to be in Ireland. There is an occasional student pulling their mask down in class or in the corridor. Usually a hard stare is enough but I do sometimes have to tell them to put it back on properly.

Although I have noticed a massive increase in water consumption in class In fairness to them, it's usually just remove mask, drink and replace mask, although I have to speak to a few who are doing the dog on it by removing mask, rummaging in bag for bottle, open bottle, drink, close bottle (sloooowwwwllllyyyyy), replace bottle in bag and finally put mask back on.

@GCAcademic

Had a colleague nearly in tears yesterday. Loads of students coughing away in their seminar and point-blank refusing to wear the masks "strongly encouraged" by the university.

That is just so horrible. Do they have no empathy whatsoever?