Because of H1N1 and other various reasons, professors sometimes need to cancel class, but how they go about it has become a small problem on campus.
Ann Duginske, speaker of the Oshkosh Student Association (OSA) Assembly, will be working with faculty, staff and department heads to discuss policies regarding class cancellations.
Some commuter students have approached Duginske about canceled classes. It is more than a little inconvenient, they said, to drive 30 to 45 minutes or even more to get to class, only to find that class has been canceled.
Several students spoke at the Nov. 9 OSA Assembly meeting expressing concern about last-minute class cancellations.
“We don’t see this as a widespread concern,” Duginske said. “But we’re just trying to make sure it doesn’t become an issue, and we’re trying to make sure that if classes are canceled, or if there’s a reason a session isn’t held, then we’re doing as much as we can to notify students.”
There are different policies for different departments.
“Right now we’re in the process of collecting information and talking to Faculty Senate and academic staff,” Duginske said. “I’ll be meeting with the deans and department heads to find out what the policies are.”
Most agree that the best solution is to not cancel classes at all. Alan Lareau of the German department was asked in October to attend a meeting in Madison. Lareau had two classes that day, so he asked a colleague to substitute for him, and classes went on as scheduled.
Another time Lareau made arrangements for his students to spend time in the language lab, watching a video and completing worksheets.
Frederick Yeo, dean of the College of Education and Human Services, has used guest speakers to fill in for him on days when he had a scheduled absence.
But unscheduled absences are a bit more difficult to handle.
The COEHS responds to an illness or accident in three ways, according to Yeo. First, the department makes an effort to find a substitute for the sick professor.
Second, an e-mail will be sent to all students.
Last, someone will put a sign on the classroom door indicating that the class has been canceled.
Yeo emphasized that the COEHS does not have an official policy for professors to follow. The professors know they are responsible for their classes and also know what they are to do in the event of a sudden illness or accident.
Normally, only the professor has access to the class Desire 2 Learn Web site so no one other than the professor has the class e-mail list – unless other arrangements have been made.
According to the D2L help desk in Madison, D2L only provides two ways of contacting all students. The professor can put an announcement on the course home page or send a mass e-mail on the classlist page. D2L cannot be configured to send text messages or tweets.
James Johnson, director of Risk Management, is responsible for TitanAlert system. This system allows the University to send emergency alerts and updates to all students, faculty and staff who have requested TitanAlert services. The system will send text messages advising those registered of University closings, and parking and weather alerts.
A separate class-closing alert system could be created, according to Johnson. But, when an individual class is canceled, everyone on the list would receive the cancellation notice. On the other hand, creating an alert system for each individual class would be unwieldy.
In any event, the alert system as it exists today can only be accessed by a limited number of people, for security reasons. An individual professor canceling a class would have to contact Johnson’s office to request a cancellation notice. This would make after-hours and weekend cancellations more problematic.
At this point, what OSA is doing is “a very preliminary process,” Duginske said. “We’re just trying to make a recommendation. We’re trying to work collaboratively with faculty and staff.”
“For instance, always send an e-mail within two hours of class being canceled,” Duginske said. “Some sort of notification process so students, faculty and staff know what’s going to happen if class is canceled.”
1 comments