Almost all business school deans expect crisis to accelerate school closures
The number of recently surveyed business school deans (7%) who think the COVID-19 crisis will have no effect on the rate of business school closures is the same as the number who think it will accelerate the rate of closures by at least 20%. The most common opinion, expressed by 28% of respondents, is that closures will accelerate by 3% – 5%. Twenty-one percent expect the rate to tick up by 5% – 10%. Another 21% anticipate a 10% – 20% increase. Regarding their “current best guess” about when campus life might return to normal, the most common response was September 1 (31%), followed by July 1 (28%). More than 25% doubt operations will return normal at all in 2020.
Source: Poets & Quants
Education department clarifies rules for pandemic-related Clery Act reporting
The U.S. Department of Education has issued guidelines that spell out which actions college are required — and not required — to take as they respond to the COVID-19 outbreak. The consumer protection law known as the Clery Act “requires colleges to disclose information about crime and emergencies occurring on or near campus. In particular, institutions must alert the campus community when there is an ‘immediate threat’ to health or safety, including outbreaks of dangerous illnesses.” According to one report, the new guidance says institutions need to inform students and staff about COVID-19 but “do not have to give ongoing updates about the coronavirus pandemic or proactively track down cases within their campus community to comply with the Clery Act.”
Source: Education Dive
At-home, online college courses expose the vast differences in students’ lives
Now that students are back home and learning online, video chats are exposing disparities in students’ lives that weren’t as obvious when they were all having similar experiences on campus. The New York Times quoted one Haverford College professor as saying, “It’s as though you had a front-row view on American inequality and the ways in which it was disguised and papered over. There’s been nothing like this before.” Instead of eating, living and studying in shared campus spaces, many students from different backgrounds are now experiencing college from a variety of different locales, ranging from coastal vacation homes to impoverished neighborhoods where they struggle to balance school and family responsibilities.
Source: The New York Times
Disability advocates worry about accessibility during transition to online classes
Students with disabilities including hearing, vision and learning disorders “have been put on the back burner ‘en masse,’ as instructors scramble to transfer two months’ worth of teaching content to a digital format.” Although faculty members probably understand the concept of digital accessibility, they may underestimate its importance. They may also be too overwhelmed by other COVID-19-related challenges to make sure all of their students have equal access to remote learning opportunities. For example, one blind student reported that “a digital textbook for [her] course is not available in an online format compatible with her screen reader, and her professor has been relying on that textbook more for assignments.” As a result of such inequities, institutions should be “making investments in software that continuously provides alternative, accessible material formats for students with any disabilities.”
Source: Inside Higher Ed