Students Want back on Campus [21.02.22]
The Hohenheim student representation in committees and Student Parliament demands as much presence as possible for the summer semester. On-campus and online offerings must be coordinated and hybrid events must be kept to an absolute minimum, according to a recent statement. A resolution passed by the Hohenheim Senate at the beginning of the month follows a similar line. How consistently the guidelines formulated therein are actually implemented now depends in particular on the degree program directors and the individual lecturers - but also on the willingness of the students to actually take advantage of offers on campus.
Many students who are entering their 5th semester in April have hardly spent a day at the university. Learning delays and motivation problems are a problem for many of them. However, this generation of students has also had little opportunity to experience what studying is all about apart from simply acquiring knowledge: making contacts, spontaneously continuing discussions after a lecture, practicing new roles and soft skills in dealing with professors and fellow students, or simply enjoying the colorful campus life.
Attendance in winter behind expectations
Six months ago, the University of Hohenheim announced a winter semester with many attractive courses on campus. It was said at the time that it should be worthwhile for everyone to move to Stuttgart (again) and come to Hohenheim regularly.
In retrospect, however, the results are mixed: With the exception of the practical courses, attendance decreased steadily from month to month and overall fell well short of expectations. In the second half of the winter semester, only a fraction of all lectures and seminars took place on campus. The proportion varied greatly from degree program to degree program.
The omicron wave was probably not the only reason for the change. Above all, the constant switch between face-to-face and online learning presented students with considerable problems. Probably also because of the shortage of learning space on campus, fewer and fewer students took advantage of the remaining face-to-face courses, preferring instead to stay at home.
Coordination as a sticking point
The student body wants to prevent this negative spiral from repeating itself. In a recent statement, the students call for the "maximum possible amount of face-to-face teaching" for the summer semester of 2022. At the same time, however, a basic supply of digital learning materials must be guaranteed, especially for material covered in the exam.
The crux of the matter from the students' point of view is better coordination of face-to-face and online offerings: "In order to get as many students as possible to actually come to campus, it is essential that modules in the schedule are arranged in such a way that students only have face-to-face or online lectures throughout a day."
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Senate defines presence as the rule
The Hohenheim Senate draws a similar conclusion in its resolution of February 2. According to the resolution, face-to-face lectures should no longer be the exception in the summer semester, but the rule.
However, since not all seats in the lecture halls can be occupied, a certain amount of online teaching is unavoidable. To ensure that degree programs can still be studied, the Senate appeals to lecturers and degree program directors to coordinate the timing of courses and their formats. Hybrid courses are no longer recommended.
Email & Interview
In a recent email, the Vice President for Academic Affairs urged all lecturers to be committed to implementing the Senate's guidelines. At the same time, she encouraged all students via email to actually take advantage of the offerings on campus in the coming semester. To alleviate the learning space situation, the university is planning additional outdoor workstations. And the support services on campus are also to be expanded to make it easier to (re)start studying, according to Prof. Dr. Korinna Huber.
The Online Courier editorial team plans to interview the Vice President for Academic Affairs and student representatives in the coming days.
Text: Leonhardmair / Translation: Neudorfer
