Are your DCs back to face to face lectures?

[Whosaidthattt]

DD at Warwick found out today that all of her lectures will be online and 50% of seminars and tutorials will be too.
I am livid! Schools and colleges are back to normal. Can't believe I'm paying £9k for another year of her sitting in her room!
What's happening where yours are?

DS at Lancaster has everything F2F, including lectures, at the moment, which is brilliant, especially after last year when he got nothing at all since the lecturers weren't even on campus, not even at the beginning before the lockdowns/additional restrictions.

Lancaster got a lot of complaints/criticism last year re the lack of F2F and the fiascos with expensive food boxes for those having to isolate and refusing to give full accommodation refunds when students were prevented from using their campus accommodation, so perhaps they're trying to make up for it and restore their previously excellent reputation.

Dd2 at Glasgow doing Art. Now has 50% contact time and some studio time. Better than last year but still having to do too much practical stuff at home in her flat.

@Xenia

It will be interesting to see if expected huge flu outbreak takes place this year and the effect on all those small children who in a sense are now like remote tribesmen who have never encountered other and so have no immunity at all to common colds and other things. We have made a terrible experiment internationally with lockdowns. My sons and I have not even had a cold for 2 years (which is lovely) but one was saying one girl was coughing all the time in class last week so I suppose colds and coughs will be back with avengeance soon.

My son is currently dreadfully ill, most of his college have been ill the last couple of weeks.

DD at uni of Birmingham all f2f accept 9am tutor which apparently people expressed a preference for leaving online.

@Badbadbunny

DS at Lancaster has everything F2F, including lectures, at the moment, which is brilliant, especially after last year when he got nothing at all since the lecturers weren't even on campus, not even at the beginning before the lockdowns/additional restrictions.

Lancaster got a lot of complaints/criticism last year re the lack of F2F and the fiascos with expensive food boxes for those having to isolate and refusing to give full accommodation refunds when students were prevented from using their campus accommodation, so perhaps they're trying to make up for it and restore their previously excellent reputation.

This is where I am and I have a mix of f2f and online seminars, all lectures online. I know they have gone more in person for those doing more practical courses eg if they need lab/workshop spaces. To be honest I’ve found it a bit random because everyone does their online seminars then flock (with the same people they would have been in seminar with) to the library and other on campus places. It’s mad.

Although I agree it’s good that they’ve started going at least partly in person. You just don’t get the same experience online I feel.

Just looking at my twins, (face to face 5 x 2 hour seminars a week on two days a week at law school in London (post grad)) it is not just being in a physical classroom which is better. it is the fact they are leaving the house, meeting new people face to face in a more normal way, dealing with getting there even if it is an effort, getting to know lecturers in a way you don't if you are not face to face.
("Come*, I am sorry your son has been ill)

Even just the change of scene from your bed room is useful.

DD1: Ancient History at Reading, all but one class F2F.
DD2: Marine Biology at Plymouth, all F2F, regular practicals. One lecture was done online because lecturer tested positive but that was a one off, not structural.

Ds 2nd year Birmingham all f2f but lectures also filmed and put online so that’s useful

Edinburgh - English - lectures 100% online and one hour F2F tutorial a fortnight. So that’s great value for money for £9250 plus all the living costs. Would have been cheaper to fly up once a fortnight.

Warwick... (Bioscience) 20 percent of first term already completed without any f2f so far... There was an online Teams session about last week's lectures though with the lecturer - commenting that he hoped this made up for online lectures... ERR NO.. its Online Teams...

Totally with you @Xenia about getting out the house.. The only time my dd has been on campus was to pick her housemates up to go to the gym after their seminars.. She's off to Loughborough Uni to stay with a friend this weekend.. She probably will have spent more time on campus there.

I am so sorry about this Daisyway. I really hoped your dd was going to find that she had some f2f after all. I just don’t see how Warwick attempt to justify it. I think the 1st years are having f2f in biochem aren’t they? So why not your dd?

DS at University of Manchester in his 3rd year- he’s back to face to face for almost everything thankfully!

DS Durham - all f2f so far. I’m not sure how a Uni can justify online.

@Kanaloa

Two of my classes are in person, two online. I found it very confusing. Surely it’s either okay to be in person, or it isn’t? All the classes are roughly the same size so it’s not a limit of eg only 20 people in the room or something.

One of the online ones was supposed to be hybrid but the teacher basically said oh we’ll meet up twice in the term so it can be classed as hybrid but most people say they prefer online. Nobody I’ve asked has said this so not sure why the teacher thinks that.

Can't help with the 2nd part but the first part is probably to do with reducing numbers on campus at any particular time. So reducing people moving from one lecture to another, less people in bottle necks or corridors, stairs. Less people in the canteens, less people in the library.

@delphigirl. She may have a f2f tutorial next week ...not with normal tutor group but with a lecturer overseeing one of the research projects. Another blunder by the University in not offering tutorials with the same small group she got to know last year until November...

She's fine, slightly bored because shes had just 6 lectures per week (all online), she's a methodical worker so lectures and notes normally all done by mid week.... she had a Teams call but that was question and answer session on the lectures. I think there is something else that has been added to the timetable tomorrow but that's online. It would appear that this term is 'quiet' based on the modules she has chosen (but that seems poor planning on the university’s behalf). I was chatting to her yesterday and she said a high percentage of course marks this term are for designing a poster on foot fungus with 15 percent of the marks being awarded for artistic flair... She thought she was on a science course... (I would add that they designed a poster last year too!).

She will be fine, she is happy socially which is a big bonus and she's learned a lot of general life skills (cooking etc).

Another blunder by the University in not offering tutorials with the same small group she got to know last year until November

Hardly a blunder. Universities are not responsible for students' socialising - they're probably organised
a) because of timetabling
b) staff expertise and current availability (we still have staff who are clinically vulnerable - if they get ill, we have no replacements for them, and quite frankly don't want people to, you know, die
c) to mix up the groups, so students all work with different people, and learn how to do that. We do this deliberately so cliques don't form in setting up group & collaborative work. It's an important skill for future employment - team work, and being able to form a team with people you don't know very well.

Can't help with the 2nd part but the first part is probably to do with reducing numbers on campus at any particular time. So reducing people moving from one lecture to another, less people in bottle necks or corridors, stairs. Less people in the canteens, less people in the library.

Yes this is possible. Campus has been busy anyway though as it’s a small campus university rather than a big spread out city one. Especially in the good weather everywhere has been packed. Although I understand that it’s possibly to make sure all people aren’t squashing into the buildings at the same time.

@kaycepollard.

When they set up the tutorial groups they were told the group would remain the same. I would add my daughter YR2 has not met ANYONE OFF HER COURSE! I don't expect a university to provide students SOCIALISING (Thankfully my daughter has gray matter and found friends despite lockdown) however I do expect them (Warwick) to provide interactive learning with other students...develop interpersonal skills? Is this too much to ask? PS The tutorial group will go back to the original group in November.

2. I'm sure universities have CEV staff but if this is the case why over enrol and offer everyone a diluted EDUCATION. I'm 61, probably CEV but Im just getting on with my job because if I didnt I would not get paid and would not be able to support my Dd through university and by support I mean paying the difference between minimum loan and accommodation fees (fees I did not have to pay if I'd of known she would have just 1 f2f session per fortnight although I'll be fair it's probably the least I can do to give her some resemblance of student life ) . This university is a top University and it over enrolled if it didn't know some of its staff were CEV....again it's crap planning... Although Warwick did state some of its staff did not feel safe returning..So WHY OVER ENROL? I could die but I'm double vaccinated and what else can I do shut myself away and yes I probably come into contact with far more people than university lecturers..but its the job I get paid for.. Like Nurses and everyone else who has just got on with their job.

3. Warwick are not mixing up groups for any other rojects. Eg they don't have the resources because of over enrolment (but that's questionable because I believe a lot of students dropped out last year but foi will confirm) to run both tutorial groups and seminar groups for research projects because they are the same staff.

I've accepted that my dd just has to get on with this.. I'm sad, angry and disappointed. I've seen posts from teachers (who are at greater risk in many cases ) who have used words like Pathetic and Lazy when describing Warwicks approach to f2f teaching on some courses this year. I haven't used those strong words... Thankfully I've seen resilience in my daughter, she's resigned to the fact that it is what it is...nothing is going to change but she'll just adapt and fill in gaps if necessary.

Warwick... (Bioscience) 20 percent of first term already completed without any f2f so far...

It obviously varies from department to department. Other departments have been delivering face to face tutorials, seminars and labs. Lectures too for some modules, though not all.

I totally agree @etulosba...sadly they are all paying the same fees. Is this fair?

@etulosba...i should rephrase that and say why should students receive a better education than others when the fees are the same even when they are on similar courses ? Surely it's a failing of the university not to maintain certain standards.

Universities didn’t make the policy to charge fees. Your government did. Stop blaming universities for something they cannot control.

Think yourself and your DD lucky that she has the opportunity for a world-class education at a fraction of the cost of many other countries.

Think yourself and your DD lucky that she has the opportunity for a world-class education at a fraction of the cost of many other countries.

I thought England had some of the highest fees in Europe for home students?

@KaycePollard With the exception of the US the UK has the most expensive fees in the developed world and was recently criticised by the OECD for the continuing prevalence of online teaching at degree level.

Universities may not have made the choice to charge fees but for the last decade plus it is the market in which they operate. Why should people be grateful for a sub standard product especially if it does not leave you sufficiently qualified to progress your career.