While many universities and colleges have announced plans for remote instruction this fall, University of Idaho administration maintains their decision to hold classes in-person. But with COVID-19 still impacting the U.S., it’s crucial we keep the health and wellness of our communities in mind.
Last semester, UI shifted to online-only course delivery when the risk of continuing in person became too high. Since then, COVID-19 cases have spiked throughout the state. Despite this increase, Idaho businesses have begun re-opening to the public.
But the virus itself, and the danger it presents, have not changed. We must handle COVID-19 with as much urgency as we did at the beginning of the pandemic.
Nearby Washington State University recently announced all undergraduate courses, with few exceptions, will be held entirely online next semester. WSU is not the only school to have made this decision, it’s just the closest. UI should pay attention to what its fellow institutions are doing in response to the pandemic.
A positive learning environment is important for the success of all students, but this means something different to everyone. Students who may succeed in live courses may struggle to transition to remote learning, while other students may flourish.
As many like to remind us, we’re in uncharted territory. But we can still find ways to make the learning environment safe for all students and faculty.
Last semester, UI students had the chance to explore an online format and figure out what did and didn’t work for them. The various online models UI has experimented with are flexible to students, adaptable to different schedules and fit most learning styles.
They are convenient and accessible to anyone with an internet connection and a device.
In-person classes increase the risk of spreading the COVID-19, even with safety measures in place.
Working online from the start will keep us from making a sudden transition in the middle of a semester, putting fewer Vandal family lives in potential danger.
Even though COVID-19 is still spreading and cases are higher now than they were when UI first closed down, much of the world is coming out of quarantine. Moving the university online will reduce everyone’s risk of catching COVID-19, benefiting higher education in the long term.
We have the resources to move classes online – last semester’s abrupt transition proved this. Despite its planned “robust safety measures,” UI’s insistence on holding class in-person this fall will inevitably and unnecessarily put the lives of its faculty, staff and students at risk.
Stay safe, Vandals.
– Editorial board
Michael Moldenhauer (Shimrra Shai)
@Danny Hipke : There may be "benefits", but look what's on the other side of the equals sign - life, health and safety. And not just of the student, but of their family, and *anyone* else that they may come across during their time here. In my mind, those concerns outweigh pretty much all others. May that be detrimental to areas ranked as lower in weight? Perhaps. But here's the thing: we should never have been anywhere close to this level of infection to begin with, as an entire country. What we're witnessing is a complete failure of leadership on all levels in dealing with this virus. I'd say it fair to say that the United States government has been one of if not the single worst in the world when it has come to handling this situation, based on the simple evidence of the scale and speed of spread of the outbreak compared to literally everywhere else. So yes, there is a cost, but who should really be blamed? If those at the local levels were to show that missing leadership by staying closed and keeping people home, even if that involves sacrifice, is it fair to point the finger at THEM for the costs thereof, and not at the ones who failed to show leadership? So why, then, encourage them to fail to show it and try to avoid that smaller cost by putting everyone at risk?
Danny Hipke
This article is one hundred percent on one side of any debate about classes in person versus online! It's telling, that the article stressed ZERO benefits of meeting in person. I would hope that there could be a more balanced discussion about the subject!