German universities are planning to offer face-to-face classes from October. The decision is well received by students and student representatives. But how should the universities implement this in view of the increasing number of infections?
For Oliver Schramm, law student at the University of Hamburg, the three digital semesters had advantages and disadvantages. “Taking exams at home is super easy,” says Schramm. “You sit relaxed at the PC, the extreme pressure is gone.” What he misses are the lectures and seminars, those events in which contacts are made, people exchange ideas, and discuss. He is pleased that it could be that time again in winter. But his anger that it took so long persists. “It just upsets me how neglected we have been since the beginning of the pandemic.” Many students found themselves in health and financial emergencies during the pandemic. The auxiliary loans were a good offer, “but Lufthansa, for example, simply got the money for free,” criticizes Schramm. And even in the second lockdown, the students fell completely through the political grid again.
The Studierendenwerk Germany is also critical of the fact that the universities were again not mentioned with a syllable at the federal-state conference last week. “I missed the terms ‘universities’ and ‘studies’ in the resolutions,” said spokesman Stefan Grob. Even so, recent government decisions offer new opportunities for universities. As from a request from the stern to the education and science ministries of all 16 federal states, all universities plan to offer predominantly or entirely face-to-face events in the winter semester. Those who have been vaccinated, recovered or tested can again attend seminars and lectures on campus from October – provided the infection rate allows this. Student representatives welcomed the government’s move. However, a return to attendance is only possible if as many students and employees as possible get vaccinated.
Unclear how many students are vaccinated
The easiest way would be to only allow those who have been vaccinated and those who have recovered to the universities, the President of the German Rectors’ Conference (HRK), André Alt, is convinced. Legally, however, this can hardly be implemented and cannot be checked on site. “That is why I appeal to all students and employees to get vaccinated,” says Alt. The universities as well as the Free Association of Student Unions (FZS) and the Education and Science Union (GEW) called on students to immunize themselves allow. “Anyone who does not get vaccinated without a medical reason puts others at risk and acts in a disagreeable manner,” says Jonathan Dreusch from the FZSRequest of the stern.
It is not currently possible to say how high the vaccination rate among students is – and it will probably be difficult to measure in the future, says Stefan Grob from the Studierendenwerk Germany. Some universities are currently conducting surveys themselves. Of the 4,000 students surveyed at the University of Tübingen, 74 percent said they were already fully vaccinated. 18 percent are vaccinated once. Upon request, the University of Bremen announced that, according to its survey, 87 percent had already been vaccinated once and 60 percent had been fully vaccinated. In both cases, less than half of all students took part in the surveys. The University of Hamburg, which is currently conducting a survey, therefore expressed concerns: “There are considerable scientific, methodological doubts as to whether such a survey can be valid, reliable and objective at all. Conclusions about the actual vaccination status will not be drawn from it.”
There are still no concrete implementation plans
However, this does not change anything in the plans of the universities. One thing is certain for everyone: face-to-face events should become the norm again. However, there is still a lack of constructive and convincing implementation plans. The University of Bremen therefore set the 3G rule – vaccinated, recovered, tested – for access to the campus buildings at the beginning of August. In addition, a was developed to adapt the teaching to the infection process. Among other things, this stipulates that lectures can only take place digitally, while seminars can take place in the form of hybrid events. In all rooms there is also a mask requirement and, unlike in other federal states, a minimum distance of 1.5 meters. The test, recovery and vaccination records are checked by security personnel at all entrances to the buildings.
For the universities in Berlin there is already a way of teaching in presence again. Accordingly, there is still a mask requirement and attendance lists are intended to facilitate contact tracking. In Saarland, unvaccinated students have to be tested twice a week. Test opportunities are offered for them and university staff. Thuringia also offers university employees test offers. These should remain free of charge beyond October. In Bavaria, the state government provided 15 million euros in early summer to finance student self-tests at universities. However, the University of Cologne stated that it could not provide any free tests for unvaccinated people.
FZS representatives find it problematic that the tests will be chargeable from October. Students in particular cannot afford this in the long term. “People who have been vaccinated can also transmit the virus in individual cases. We consider a face-to-face study operation without regular tests with rising incidences and possible newly spread virus variants to be unsafe,” says Jonathan Dreutsch from the FZS. The President of the HRK sees it differently. It is understandable that the tests can no longer be financed by the state. “Students who are not vaccinated and cannot provide evidence of a daily test cannot in principle claim that they are allowed to attend the relevant event virtually. For the universities, it would simply not be possible to have every seminar and exercise at the same time present and virtually – that is hybrid – to offer “, says HRK President Alt.
Whether events only take place in person or are supplemented with digital offers varies from university to university or has not yet been clarified. The Ministry of Culture and Science will work with the universities “in good time before the beginning of the lectures in autumn about the specific design of the winter semester 2021/2022,” it says from North Rhine-Westphalia. Elsewhere, teachers are asked to plan their events both in presence and as a hybrid format in order to be able to adapt the operation flexibly.
GEW criticizes additional workload for teachers
The education and training union is critical of this. “After the digital semesters, the lecturers are also overburdened. The fact that they should now plan their events hybrid only means additional burdens,” says Ann-Kathrin Hoffmann from the spokesperson for the GEW Federal Committee for Students. Due to postponed exams, many lecturers are still in the middle of the correction phase and already have to plan their courses twice for the coming semester.Last but not least, this additional effort also increases the workload of the student employees and tutors. In addition, there is the existential threat to many employeesr through fixed-term employment contracts. All of this is at the expense of teaching and education, criticizes the GEW.
Education is a matter for the country and so each country regulates the upcoming winter semester in its own way. How the proof of health status is checked, how many students are allowed in the lecture halls and whether the tests are financed by the universities must be done in the next one and a half months before the start of the semester be clarified.
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