Camosun response to Covid-19 on target

The safety and the wellbeing of those who walk Camosun's campuses are every bit as important than ever before. Moving from in-class instruction to on-line is the best response by Camosun College, to the Covid-19 virus pandemic, that is sweeping the world. Naysayers will argue moving from in-class instruction is going to hurt student learning. Students will not get the best education they require. It is no ordinary time. There is a worldwide crisis. No one is immune. If that means closing the college and going to on-line instruction. So be it.

Camosun College is a mini global community, where each program is like a different country. The students are the citizens. The Covid-19 virus does not discriminate between borders. If Camosun didn't execute these changes when it did, it wouldn't be if Covid-19 comes to Camosun, but when. It is better to be safe than sorry. Although a major disruption, the move to online instruction is the best. I do not want to worry, whether when my classmates or myself encounter this virus.

I must admit I am concerned about how on-line would affect my hands-on learning, especially in my Digital Production class. The class requires students to work in groups and to produce video work. Students sign out camera kits, audio equipment, tripods to help them create their work. Not having access to the devices makes it difficult to do any group project. I am wrong to think I need the equipment to learn. Ingenuity is what makes things happen. Fortunately, we have a whole college of instructors. Look at Camosun's Facebook page. There is a photo of a carpentry teacher applying online teaching to first-year trade students. There are other instructors, like those who teach in the Communications department. They are working with the college's IT support, to make the course requirements available students off-campus. But what about the students who depended on using the computers at school to do the course work? How do they access the on-line learning now? The college library has an answer to that question. They are lending out laptops for students to finish their course work.

But what about how the college prepares us to be responsible by showing up to class? How are we to do that if our instruction is only on-line? How does this affect my attendance? Yes, school is like a business. The students are the employees. Like any work environment, there is a contract between the school and the student to show up to class. College prepares us by making us responsible for ourselves and our instructors. But is that reality? Not everyone will be working in an office behind a desk or on a job site. The truth of the matter is that there is no one way or right way to learn. To help, the college has ten tips for working remotely. Students can access these tips by this link: https://bit.ly/3ddQkNf. Even if you do have the discipline of showing up on-line, there is something in those ten tips for everyone.

As I write this, I feel as if I am a character in a science fiction movie. As more and more Canadians are affected by this virus, it is prudent that everyone is self-isolating and practicing social distancing. Moving instruction to on-line, the college did the right thing: Forcing us to stay home.