Universities' hybrid format plans draw criticism
Unions representing faculty, teaching assistants and students at the University of Ottawa are concerned about the effectiveness of teaching students both in person and online.
The Inter-Union Coalition of the University of Ottawa says it believes teachers won't be able to properly engage with students, especially in large classes.
Ontario's Ministry of Colleges and Universities has told post-secondary institutions to prepare for in-person classes with no capacity limits or physical distancing.
But several Ontario universities have already offered students the option of attending classes online in the fall and winter semesters.
The University of Ottawa calls this combination of physical and virtual learning a bimodal approach.
Robert Johnson, president of the Association of Part-Time Professors at uOttawa, says the university is offering 30 to 50 per cent of all courses bimodally this fall, and he's concerned.
“We had no idea. We were not consulted,” Johnson said, referring to the period before the university created a webpage in January informing students about the offer of a bimodal approach.
“You can't teach a course with 500 students that way,” he said, referring to first- and second-year courses that often have large numbers of students.
Johnson gave the example of a course he taught online last year, which is being offered bimodally this year.
The course is scheduled to have 60 to 70 students. “There has been no consideration given to that perhaps … we would split that course into two sections. And, therefore, we would give it as two courses,” he said.
The University of Ottawa Students' Union is advocating for smaller classes and more in-person class sections, spokesperson Armaan Singh Kheppar said.
He said many students say virtual learning has affected their mental health and the quality of education they have received.
“We're concerned that it is going to become a norm,” the bachelor of social science student said about the bimodal approach, “where, even when it is safe to return in person, the university will continue to have bimodal courses offered, which will ultimately hinder the learning conditions of students, but also the working conditions of professors.”
The Inter-Union Coalition's news release says at least 444 uOttawa courses will be taught bimodally this fall and 535 in the winter 2022 term. The university didn't confirm these numbers.
Luc Angers, a part-time professor at uOttawa's faculty of education, noted that part-timers often get their contracts two to four weeks before classes start and sometimes even after the semester has begun.
“How can you be trained in a very limited time span to teach an approach that is quite a challenge, without a technical-support input?” Angers questioned.
The university webpage says classrooms will be equipped with telephones to contact technical teams. But Angers said universities that have used this approach elsewhere had technical-support personnel in the classrooms.
“We feel it's a breach of contract because the university is not giving us the academic liberty to choose the best method for courses to be taught,” he added.
Patricia Magazoni Gonçalves, president of the union representing student workers at uOttawa, said teaching assistants don't have a clear job description that deals with bimodal learning.
“We have no information on what's going to be expected from our members,” Gonçalves said. “Are they going to be expected to do technical work, like setting up the computer, setting up Zoom links, answering emails, (or) are they going to expect to only work on the academic part of being a teaching assistant?”
She said the assistants' union, CUPE 2626, wasn't consulted before the university decided on the bimodal approach, even though an article in their collective agreement says the employer should work with the union in cases of technological change to minimize the effect on union members.
Gonçalves said the university was providing some workshops, but the student workers who participated in those weren't paid.
“Because it's a new mode of teaching, we believe that, our members should get appropriate training. That training should be paid,” Gonçalves said.
Patrick Charette, director of strategic communications at uOttawa, wrote in an email that, “We will be increasing in-person options for students progressively as health measures change, but we will honour our commitments to students who have registered for courses in online formats since many have already made their plans.”
Carleton University is also offering classes with flexible online or on-campus attendance. Carleton's approach is called hy-flex.
Unlike uOttawa, where parttime teachers can't choose between bimodal or regular classes, Carleton's hy-flex is optional for its contract instructors.
“Contract instructors are not going to be required to teach in hy-flex,” said Dan Sawyer, spokesperson for CUPE 4600, the union representing contract instructors, research and teaching assistants at Carleton.
Sawyer said a concern of Carleton's contract instructors is the potential for an increase in workload not matched by an increased pay.
At Carleton, contract instructors are paid a flat amount, Sawyer said. “It doesn't matter if you teach five students or 600 students, you get paid the same amount.
“Our members have expressed, repeatedly, concerns to management that teaching online requires so much extra work. And they feel they're not being adequately compensated by Carleton, supported by Carleton, and they're not being provided enough training in order to do their jobs effectively,” he said.
While Carleton instructors can choose between in-person, online and hy-flex courses, Laura Hnatiw, a teaching assistant at the university, said teaching assistants are in the dark about whether they have to work in person or online.
Job descriptions for the TAs in the fall semester are also lacking, added Hnatiw, vice-president of Unit 1 of CUPE 4600.