The Task Force for Remote Learning thanks you for all that you are doing to support your advisees this term. As we prepare for the Spring semester, it will be helpful for each of us to carefully consider how we advise our students. During advising for the Spring 2021 term, please consider
- Checking in with your advisees to determine how their learning mode(s) have suited them, and challenges to consider as they move to the spring. (If appropriate, ask whether they have requested accommodations, etc.).
- Discussing what their likely learning mode will be in the spring (e.g., on campus or remote) and encourage them to match teaching and learning modes as much as possible.
- If they will be learning remotely, encourage them strongly, wherever practicable, to register for remote taught courses.
- If they will be on campus, encourage them, inasmuch as possible, to take courses in a range of modes—and perhaps no more than one course that is asynchronous/remote.
- It is optimal to have students who will be on campus for the spring term select in person and hybrid courses. It is also optimal for on-campus students to find seats available in on-campus courses when registering—another reason to encourage remote students to take remote classes.
- Students should feel free to get in touch with professors to ask for details about spring teaching plans so that they understand the dynamics of a course.
- Students should understand that the modular A/B option is an emergency parachute. They should not enroll in a course with the expectation that they can leave it halfway through with a grade and 0.5 credit.
- Students should keep in mind that the course withdrawal deadline and the deadline to choose the S/U option are aligned. They have an extended period—two months—to decide whether to take a course S/U, but they should check the registrar’s web page before doing so, as there are restrictions around this option.
