In his message to the campus on February 18, 2022, EVC Hal Stern wrote that “we are returning to our standard academic policies and procedures for the Spring 2022 quarter.” We have received several questions from programs on details of the projected return to standard instructional practice. Although the Academic Senate has not yet provided explicit guidance on some of the points discussed below, with these FAQs we are providing clarification based on the full information and answers we have received up to the present. We will provide further clarifications and details as those become available.
Tyrus Miller, Dean
Yong Chen, Associate Dean
In the F2021 and W2022, “in-person” instruction was defined as having “at least one hour per week of in-person meeting for students with the instructor of record.” Does that definition apply to the Spring 2022 quarter?
That was an administrative definition for use during the emergency waiver that allowed online teaching with Dean/Chair approval. That definition does NOT apply going forward. As Provost Stern and Senate Chair Ho noted in their February 18 message to all UCI academics, “Spring courses should be offered in the approved modality listed in the Schedule of Classes.”
To what extent can the instructor use online/remote material in their courses?
For any class that has the “normal, pre-pandemic” number of hours of in-person class meetings at a physical location, the use of additional online/remote material does not require senate approval at this time.
Can instructors use online/remote materials and activities to replace in-person class meetings?
Some measure of online material will be allowed to replace a limited number of in-person class meetings at a physical location without Senate approval. But because the exact level is under review by the Senate, faculty who plan to deviate significantly from a “normal” in-person schedule in their courses should submit proposals for online approval.
How is “hybrid” defined?
It is a term that have been used in different ways during the pandemic and can be a source of confusion. The campus will use the pre-pandemic definition of “hybrid,” which is that less than the “normal pre-pandemic” number of class meetings are in-person AND the experience is the same for all students. When a 4-unit language course reduced in-person class meetings from 4 times a week to 3 times a week and added one hour of online lecture time per week, it required senate approval. The Senate is still discussing what “level” of hybrid, or how many “fewer than normal in-person meetings,” would trigger the need for Senate review. It is certainly expected that having a “few” remote/online sessions in a quarter will not require approval, but the policy has not been finalized yet.
Who can teach remotely courses that have not been approved by the senate as online classes?
The Senate, namely the Council on Educational Policy (CEP), has approved a temporary, one-quarter exemption from an in-person mode of instruction with an approved disability accommodation certified by Disability Management Services to be confirmed by the instructor’s department. This rule applies to senate faculty, Unit 18 faculty, and TAs, as instructional employees.
Provost Stern and Senate Chair Ho mentioned that some students are likely to need flexibility. How should instructors approach faculty to approach “flexibility” in order to meet student needs? Do they have to teach their class in two modes at the same time in-person and remote?
Faculty do not need to “teach in two modes.” Regarding student’s needs, please note that “I cannot make it to campus at all during the quarter” or “I do not feel safe coming at all during the quarter” are not reasons for getting a special version of the course.
Instructors working with students “in isolation and quarantine” or with documented disabilities approved by the DSC are expected to give these students access to course content as appropriate, which may include detailed outlines and recorded lectures. Faculty are encouraged to design course policies that can handle a certain limited number of student absences due to a host of reasons, including illness, without having to treat each case as requiring justification by the student and individual exception by the faculty member.