[Academic] New academic year and resit preparations

[Brian]

Dear All,

We need to proceed in preparations for teaching in the the new academic 
year. This has been informed by the University's published plans that 
the first 2-3 weeks of Semester 1 will be presented predominantly 
online. The expectation is that we will then transition to a blended 
learning mode of delivery (mixture of online and on campus), over a 
3-5-week period. Some flexibility exists on how we achieve this. I 
therefore ask that staff prepare for the first Semester as follows:

The normal timetable for online lecturer/student interaction is assumed 
to avoid timetabling clashes.

For non lab-based modules, it is advised that staff prepare pre-recorded 
lecture materials with audio voice PowerPoint over so that content can 
be put online. (See the Zoom and Video tabs on the MyPlace staff support 
pages: 
https://support.myplace.strath.ac.uk/display/MS/Staff+Support+Homepage). 
It is expected that scheduled lecture and tutorial slots will become 
mixed and some pre-recorded lecture material could be viewed by the 
students beforehand. It is best not to deliver a 50 minute monologue but 
rather split up your lectures into 10 - 15 minute segments with talked 
over worked examples and student discussions. Clearly, there are many 
variations. Some modules may require transcripts and/or subtitles to the 
pre-recorded material for those with disabilities. Details and guidance 
on how this can be done will be provided by Faculty in due course.

For the second 3-5 week phase of blended learning, small group tutorials 
on campus will be provided. It may be possible to combine this 
face-to-face interaction while simultaneously including online students. 
Clearly, the student numbers, timing etc will depend upon a number of 
factors and this is currently under development with guidance from 
Faculty and University.

All resits will be via online assessment on a Pass/Fail basis. For 
larger student numbers it should be possible to use the same methods as 
the recent diet of online assessments, and for smaller numbers (< 4 
students) use a Zoom verbal assessment. Further details will follow.

Regards,

Brian.

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Dr. Brian WJ McNeil
Department of Physics, SUPA & Cockcroft Institute
University of Strathclyde
107 Rottenrow East
Glasgow, G4 0NG
Scotland

Tel:    0141 548 4727
Fax:    0141 552 2891

The University of Strathclyde is a charitable body, registered in Scotland, with registration number SC015263