CONTINGENCY PLAN FOR LEARNING AND TEACHING
This website explains how Learning and Teaching is carried on during a period of unscheduled BUE campus closure.
Currently the campus is closed to students, both graduate and undergraduate. The government has ordered this as a response to COVID-19, so as to protect the health of the BUE community.
Although there will be no face-to-face classes on campus, learning and teaching will continue online. Academic staff, Teaching Assistants and Administration will enter the campus and their offices as necessary in order to ensure that teaching continues online.
Clearly it is unfortunate that the campus must close. We quite understand that this is troubling to students. But this is clearly necessary and BUE is committed to supporting students in continuing their studies. It will do so as described below, applying its Contingency Plan for Maintaining Effective Teaching and Learning during Unscheduled Campus Closure.
Learning and Teaching will continue during the closure online.
During this period of closure teaching and learning will continue relying on the BUE eLearning system using Moodle. If necessary, use may also be made of Microsoft Class Notes and Microsoft Team software.
Module Leaders and Teaching Assistants will be available online at the times for which lectures, classes and tutorials were scheduled prior to the closure. They will also be available at the times for which they have scheduled office hours.
Laboratories and other practical sessions requiring students to be on campus, or to interact on a face-to-face basis, will be postponed until after the campus reopens.
Student Must
- Be well aware that this is not a holiday.
- Respond immediately to the communication sent to you via the eLearning site by the Module Leader or staff member teaching the module.
- Access the eLearning system to find instructions not only about your modules, but also on the site for your programme.
- Access the eLearning website for each of your modules and work through the content and other material it contains.
- Complete all exercises on the eLearning website which have been set on material to be covered during the closure.
- Submit electronically and on time all assignments set for the period of closure.
- Communicate with the academic staff member regarding any queries you have on the material covered.
- Continue to check the BUE website for further news about extensions to the closure and reopening of the campus.
Academic Staff Must
- Respond to the direction of the Dean and Head of Department who are required to send all team members an email regarding ongoing arrangements for closure.
- Module Leaders must communicate immediately with others teaching the module with instructions, monitoring on an ongoing basis that instructions are followed.
- Communicate immediately via the eLearning site with all students taking the module indicating what they are required to do. (See Student Must)
- Communicate regularly with the students during closure, individually or as a group, through a news item on the module site on the eLearning system.
- Where appropriate, include a number of additional exercises in the eLearning system which the student should take and which will help reinforce the material that has been covered.
- Continue to expand significantly material currently held on the eLearning system, including full lecture notes and teaching aids.
- Consider how they will further enhance relevant materials (such as e-books, e-journals, databases and websites) and interactive electronic teaching in the case of an extension of closure beyond just three weeks.
- Convert the broad outline of the plan for recovery into a detailed plan which will ensure the recovery of the students’ learning, once the campus reopens, with reference to ensuring that (a) the material and (b) the ILOs of the module have been covered.
- The recovery plan will:
- Assume that students have carried out the Students Musts activities.
- Include additional lectures and tutorials which will cover the topics which would have been taught during the closure.
- Include additional practical classes, where appropriate.
Longer Closure
While it is hoped that the campus closure will end after two weeks, if further closure becomes necessary BUE has planned for continued online teaching and learning in its Contingency Plan for Maintaining Effective Teaching and Learning during Unscheduled Campus Closure. In any case, announcements will be made on the BUE website