‘Still a lot of questions:’ USSU expresses concern for students with remote delivery of classes

A jarring Statistics Canada report, coupled with existing concerns for University of Saskatchewan (U of S) students could create a concerning fall term for many.

On Tuesday, the U of S announced it will be planning for the fall term to “combine primarily remote online learning, with limited classroom, laboratory, clinical, and physical instruction only where warranted and where circumstances permit,” according to the U of S release.

Also on Tuesday, Statistics Canada released a report on postsecondary students. The report outlined concerns students currently have, with alarming statistics.

More than 100,000 students were polled, with 92 per cent of students saying some or all of their classes were moved online.

Eleven per cent of students say they weren’t able to complete their credentials as planned, and 10 per cent said they weren’t able to complete their courses.

Those statistics were “quite concerning” to the President of the University of Saskatchewan Students Union (USSU), Autumn LaRose-Smith.

“There’s still a lot of questions, and a lot of answers that we’re waiting for,” she told 650 CKOM Wednesday.

LaRose-Smith did raise more concerns over one key statistic, and that was where 47 per cent of respondents said they were concerned about the inability to return to school in the upcoming term.

Whether it be due to a lack of funds, resources, or issues with the change in delivery, LaRose-Smith said there’s a lot of questions that need to be answered.

“There’s still the concerns of quality of education and access to supports that students have. Hopefully, those will be answered in the next coming months,” she explained.

There are a lot of underlying factors for students heading into the possibility of learning, primarily, online.

“I, myself, actually don’t have a personal laptop for school use, so that’s a huge concern of mine. (It’s) a concern (for) many students. I know there are some groups that are within the university community that are working to figure out those resources,” LaRose-Smith says.

And for those in areas that need to have those clinical, or in-class instruction, LaRose-Smith says that is another concern.

“Hands-on experience learning means something different to a lot of people depending on what college you’re in. There’s a lot of ways where students are potentially going to be losing that opportunity for a hands-on learning experience, not just with labs, or not just in a clinic,” she said.

“This will definitely affect what classes students are going to be registering for and can affect people’s degrees moving forward.”

LaRose-Smith says she hasn’t seen anything as of yet for an increase in class costs due to the move to remote learning. She says she hopes to see a decrease in fee costs for students for the upcoming year.

From tuition to room and board, and living costs, the tab will continue to grow for U of S students.

But, those costs don’t include resources such as textbooks or necessary class resources. LaRose-Smith says she’s looking to keep pushing and advocating for open educational resources to bridge those costs.

“(If a) class is requiring a textbook and students are doing remote learning, that might mean that they may not be in Saskatoon, and therefore may not even have access to acquiring those textbooks,” she said.

Academic dishonesty has also been a concerning factor for postsecondary students, but LaRose-Smith believes the answer to those concerns may fall on those facilitating the classes.

“Students definitely are concerned about how they can address that issue as well, and really, the University is going to have to figure out creative ways to assess students from home.”

LaRose-Smith said the USSU is hoping to be a part of the U of S Pandemic Recovery Team, which was recently formed to lead the planning for delivery in September.

She added that if students do have concerns about their education, to contact the USSU directly.