Better Supports for Third Level Students in Ireland during the Pandemic
Better Supports for Third Level Students in Ireland during the Pandemic
The Issue
Since the initial lockdown in Ireland due to Covid 19, many of Ireland's third-level institutions have been relegated to being purely online. Even with the easing of restrictions, allowing the return of schools on a face to face capacity, many universities and colleges around the country have remained solely online.
I am a second-year engineering student in UCD, and by the end of this semester, I will have had a total of 8 contact hours on the UCD campus this year. For context, my course consists of, on average 25 hours a week of lectures, tutorials and labs. Over this twelve-week semester, which is 300 hours in the semester, I have spent 8 hours in UCD, which is less than 3% of the total time in the semester. I recently received an email from UCD saying that next semester would follow a similar theme, with all lectures being conducted remotely. This is unacceptable, especially considering that there has been no reduction in fees.
The idea that all lectures will continue as now for 2021, is made all the worse considering that there are institutions all over the country that are dealing with this in a way that allows for safe, in-person contact between students on the campus grounds. Irish third level institutions and their students deserve the same consideration which has been afforded to both primary and secondary education from the outset of this academic year.
This petition calls for all the third level institutions in this country to deal with this pandemic in a way that gives students the option to safely attend a minimum of 20% of their course on campus, while also making those same lectures accessible online. I stress 'safely' and 'optional' especially for students who have fears around Covid. It is important to note that these measures have already been implemented safely in some colleges around Ireland. We also demand that these institutions recognise the adverse effects this on-line system is having on students' mental health. We demand that these measures be put in place for the term starting January 2021.
The Issue
Since the initial lockdown in Ireland due to Covid 19, many of Ireland's third-level institutions have been relegated to being purely online. Even with the easing of restrictions, allowing the return of schools on a face to face capacity, many universities and colleges around the country have remained solely online.
I am a second-year engineering student in UCD, and by the end of this semester, I will have had a total of 8 contact hours on the UCD campus this year. For context, my course consists of, on average 25 hours a week of lectures, tutorials and labs. Over this twelve-week semester, which is 300 hours in the semester, I have spent 8 hours in UCD, which is less than 3% of the total time in the semester. I recently received an email from UCD saying that next semester would follow a similar theme, with all lectures being conducted remotely. This is unacceptable, especially considering that there has been no reduction in fees.
The idea that all lectures will continue as now for 2021, is made all the worse considering that there are institutions all over the country that are dealing with this in a way that allows for safe, in-person contact between students on the campus grounds. Irish third level institutions and their students deserve the same consideration which has been afforded to both primary and secondary education from the outset of this academic year.
This petition calls for all the third level institutions in this country to deal with this pandemic in a way that gives students the option to safely attend a minimum of 20% of their course on campus, while also making those same lectures accessible online. I stress 'safely' and 'optional' especially for students who have fears around Covid. It is important to note that these measures have already been implemented safely in some colleges around Ireland. We also demand that these institutions recognise the adverse effects this on-line system is having on students' mental health. We demand that these measures be put in place for the term starting January 2021.
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Petition created on 23 November 2020