The Principals of Scotland’s universities have called on the Scottish Government to provide clarity within the next fortnight on the arrangements for in-person teaching when the next academic year starts.
The call comes as new polling data of over 500 students at Scotland’s universities shows that:
- 73 per cent feel the restrictions on in-person learning last year has had a strong or slightly negative impact on them feeling anxious.
- 80 per cent of students feel the restrictions have had a strong or slightly negative impact on their personal progress with learning.
- 90% agreed or strongly agreed that they would be missing out on important aspects of university if there were still restrictions in place next year.
- 76% agreed or strongly agreed that it was important that the majority of learning should take place face to face next academic year.
The polling, led by YouthSight, spoke to 552 students throughout May 2021. The students were either studying at one of Scotland’s 19 universities or had applied to do so.
Commenting on the data, Alastair Sim, Director of Universities Scotland, said:
“University students have shown tremendous resilience in spite of all the disruptions to their education and wider way of life but we’re concerned that we’re reaching a tipping point in regard to student wellbeing and risk to progression unless we can move ahead to a more normal student learning experience in the early autumn. Access to education, at all levels, should be a priority as society re-opens.
“Universities need clarity within the next couple of weeks about what Scottish Government’s Covid guidance will be for the new term. Students need clarity that they can expect a step-change in access to safe in-person teaching. It’s not a case of simply throwing open the shutters. Universities have to timetable the education of over 250,000 students and hundreds if not thousands of different degree programme configurations and then set up classrooms and labs according to whatever distancing is required. It’s a gargantuan operation.
“Above all, we want a clear plan from Government and we feel students deserve as much certainty as it is possible to give. We need the Scottish Government to give our students, our staff and the institutions themselves clarity about what next academic year is likely to look like according to where the country is likely to be with the route map and to know how to run our classes if Scotland finds itself in any of the levels from 0-3.”
Many university applicants have already accepted offers to study from September, in order to meet a 10 June deadline from application body UCAS, but do not know how much in-teaching they can expect next year. The end of June deadline is significant as universities estimate an eight-week planning horizon is necessary to timetable degree programmes for over 215,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students and reconfigure university estates in time for students to start.
Whilst the academic year starts in September for most students, thousands of pre-session students will have teaching in July and August. Universities have no details on what physical distancing arrangements should be in place for those students.
There are no known cases of transmission of COVID-19 in teaching environments in Scotland’s universities. Last year saw teaching at university delivered as a hybrid of online and in-person, as restrictions allowed. However, 2 metres physical distancing requirements significantly limited the numbers of students who can benefit from in-person teaching to a maximum of around 10 per cent at any one time.
Youth Sight student polling as commissioned by Universities Scotland
Returning university students are worried about the impact that the restrictions on in-person learning have had on their progress:
- 80% say they think that the restrictions on in-person learning over the last year at university have had a slight or strongly negative impact on their personal progress with learning.
- Of that 80%, 31% said it has had a strongly negative impact on their progress.
- 9% felt it has had no impact on their progress.
- And 10% said the restrictions had a slight or strongly positive impact on their progress.
The restrictions on in-person learning at university have taken a toll on students’ wellbeing and studies. Existing students said:
- 73% of students said that significant restrictions on in -person learning last year had a slight or strongly negative impact on them feeling anxious.
- 74% of students said that significant restrictions on in-person learning last year had a slight or strong negative impact on them feeling both focused and engaged.
- 77% of students said that significant restrictions on in-person learning last year had a slight or strong negative impact on them feeling motivated.
- 77% of students said that significant restrictions on in-person learning last year had a slight or strong negative impact on them feeling lonely.
Despite all of the adaptations put in place to deliver online and hybrid learning (when restrictions allowed) current students feel they have missed out on major aspects of the university experience because of the restrictions. Socialising and opportunities to work with peers featured highly but aspects of teaching and use of facilities also featured in the top five responses:
- Socialising and making/meeting friends – 71% of respondents indicated they’d missed out on this.
- Pubs/nightclubs/parties – 59%
- Learning with and collaborating with peers – 51%
- Being able to speak with lecturers in-person – 45%
- Library and other learning facilities – 37%
Looking ahead to next academic year, we asked students what their hopes and expectations are about in-person learning and returning to something close to “normal”:
- 90% agreed or strongly agreed that they would be missing out on important aspects of university if there were still restrictions in place next year.
- 80% agreed or strongly agreed that more in-person higher education should be a priority within the easing of restrictions on society.
- 76% agreed or strongly agreed that it was important that the majority of learning should take place face to face next academic year.
- Amongst returning students, 71% said they’d be worried about their ability to progress or complete their studies as effectively if online learning continued next year at the same level as AY2020/21.
- Amongst university applicants, 75% said they were moderately or very worried about the impact the pandemic would have on their ability to start university next year. 32% were very worried. Only 1% were not at all worried about the impact the pandemic continued to have on their ability to start university.
- A higher percentage of respondents were moderately or very worried about the pandemic’s impact on starting university than were worried about the impact on their Highers/Advanced Highers (56%) and worried about their own physical or mental health (69%). Only the catch-all option of “missing out on life experiences” (88%) was rated as a bigger worry than the impact on starting university.
- 27% of university applicants (for entry in 2021/22) said they agreed or strongly agreed that they would defer their place if the same level of restrictions on in-person teaching remained in place next year.
- Amongst all respondents (applicants and returning students) 72% agreed or strongly agreed that they were better able to focus on their studies when teaching is delivered mostly in-person as opposed to mostly online.
Thinking about the easing of restrictions in wider society and COVID safety measures that could still be needed by September, existing students and applicants told us:
- 71% respondents said they agreed or strongly agreed that universities could deliver a COVID-safe in-person teaching environment. 9% disagreed or strongly disagreed with that.
- 87% agreed or strongly agreed that they were happy to comply with any remaining restrictions at university in order to resume in-person learning.
Notes:
• YouthSight spoke to a sample of 552 students. This was a combination of Scottish-domiciled applicants to start at Scottish universities next academic year and students already enrolled at Scottish universities.
• The survey fieldwork ran for three weeks in May 2021.