Information for lecturers on teaching in the winter semester 2020/21

2020-10-13 On october, the 12th, we will start into the winter semester 2020/2021, which - according to the current state of affairs - will again be an exceptional and unfortunately still one far from "normal operation". In July, the academic committees had agreed to allow more presence on campus again in the winter semester. With the number of new infections with the corona virus now rising more strongly again, it is particularly important that all members of the university familiarize themselves with the guidelines and specifications for infection protection before the start of the semester. Please make sure to observe these in any case, so that teaching can be at least partially taken up in attendance during the winter semester and thus the moments of encounter on campus, which are so important for our students, can be made possible.

After detailed consultation with the deans and the deans of studies, we are preparing for regular teaching in the winter semester. "Regular" means that courses are generally held weekly, in exceptional cases as block courses. In the winter semester 2020/2021, many lecturers want to take advantage of the newly created hybrid teaching format, in which small groups can come together on campus while other participants are connected via video. Depending on the faculty and the study program, a more or less large part of the teaching will also be carried out as online teaching in the winter semester; a small part of the courses will also be carried out in full presence or in alternating combinations of online and presence. All courses are to be planned in such a way that teaching and examinations can be converted to digital formats in the event of a renewed lockdown and can be maintained in any case. The so-called "corona systems" for the respective framework examination regulations were adapted accordingly by the Senate.

If you are holding events in attendance or proportionate presence, in the interest of the health of all university members, please be sure to observe the following basic regulations, which are described in detail in the guidelines linked below:

  1. BEGINNING: In the first week of the lecture period all courses without exception take place online. Please use this week to plan your course with the students, discuss the following regulations for the winter semester and, if necessary, organize student attendance (see 4. Attendance).
     
  2. SEATING: You have been assigned a room for your course. For all seminar rooms a corona-conditioned maximum number of persons who may stay in this room at the same time was calculated by the occupational safety and building management departments. This maximum number of persons may not be exceeded at any time during the course. Seating plans for the seminar rooms were also drawn up. Both the corona-related room capacities and the seating plans can be found under the room information in myStudy. Please note that the tables and chairs may not be moved in order to maintain the specified minimum distance.
     
  3. TECHNICAL EQUIPMENT: The technical room equipment for hybrid courses (camera, microphone) is running at full speed and we are currently confident that by the start of the lecture period a sufficient number of rooms will have the necessary audio and video transmission technology. Instructions on how to operate the technology will be available in all rooms, as well as a contact address where you can get assistance from AVM Service if necessary.
     
  4. ATTENDANCE: In the case of hybrid courses, you as the instructor decide which participants will be present at the respective session. Please develop a schedule with your students, if necessary using the planning tools available in myStudy, to determine when which students will be able to attend on-site or digitally. Please note the information on the maximum occupancy of seminar rooms in myStudy. The participation of students in attendance should be rotated so that all students can participate on site at regular intervals. However, students are not obliged to take part in hybrid courses in attendance, but may decide to participate only online due to their individual situation (e.g. membership of a risk group or other personal conditions).
     
  5. DOCUMENTATION: In order to be able to trace possible chains of infection in the case of corona infection of participants in your course, it is absolutely necessary to document the contact details of the students participating in classroom sessions. All university lecturers are obliged to enter this data into myStudy at the beginning of the sessions or immediately afterwards.
     
  6. You can find the guidelines for handling the contact protocol in myStudy here: https://www.leuphana.de/fileadmin/user_upload/portale/lehre/07_Lehrservice/Hybride_Lehre_WiSe2020-21/200925_Kontaktprotokoll_myStudy.pdf
     
  7. RISK GROUPS: Students who belong to a risk group for a severe COVID-19 disease course according to the definition of the Robert Koch Institute should choose digital teaching forms if possible or only participate in face-to-face classes under special protection. If you have any questions, please contact the occupational safety department at arbeitssicherheit@leuphana.de. If the event is only held on campus, individual case regulations should be found, if possible, in consultation with the responsible dean of studies.
     
  8. DATA PROTECTION: Special data protection regulations apply to hybrid courses at Leuphana. Please inform yourself about the provisions in § 2 of the "Corona Facilities" to the respective framework examination regulations (Gazettes No. 88-93/20 at https://www.leuphana.de/universitaet/amtsblatt.html).
     
  9. EXAMINATIONS: As in the summer semester, regulations on the alternative conduct of examinations apply in the winter semester 2020/21 as well, which you will find in § 3 of the "Corona Facilities" to the respective framework examination regulations (Gazettes No. 88-93/20 at https://www.leuphana.de/universitaet/amtsblatt.html).
     
  10. STUDENT WORK PLACES: In order to create places of residence and work for students between courses, additional student work places will be provided.  These can also be used with own headsets to participate in a preceding or following online event immediately after or before a classroom event. Current information on student workstations can be found on the central Corona site for students: https://www.leuphana.de/portale/coronavirus/studierende.html
     
  11. MINIMUM DISTANCE: A minimum distance of 1.50 m (2.00 m for sports events) to other people must be maintained. Students are requested not to wait in the corridors of the university buildings, but to go directly to their seats in the seminar rooms. You as a lecturer are obliged to work towards compliance with these regulations in your courses.
     
  12. MASKS: In all buildings of the University, mouth-nose-protectors are mandatory in corridors, staircases and sanitary facilities. The mask may only be taken off when you reach the place in the seminar room.
     
  13. VENTILATION: Seminar rooms not equipped with ventilation systems must be ventilated by window ventilation in preparation for the event. Event rooms in which window ventilation is required are provided with appropriate instructions by the building management. At the instigation of the lecturers, the CO2 traffic light is to be switched on when the first yellow diode lights up - otherwise at intervals of 20 min for 3 to 10 min (shorter ventilation times at low outside temperatures) - and after events by shock ventilation. As a teacher, you are obliged to ensure regular ventilation in your courses.
     
  14. SERVICES AND SUPPORT: For questions, consultation or support requests concerning hybrid as well as digitally supported teaching and learning and the design of the various types of events and examinations, please continue to contact your colleagues in the teaching service at digi-support@leuphana.de.
    a) For general information and services as well as materials on the organization of teaching in the winter semester, please visit: https://www.leuphana.de/universitaet/entwicklung/lehre/lehre-im-wise-2020-21.html
    b) Specific information and suggestions for the design of hybrid teaching have been compiled for you by the teaching service: https://www.leuphana.de/universitaet/entwicklung/lehre/lehre-im-wise-2020-21/hybride-lehre.html
    c) Hybrid Workshop "Teaching and Learning in Hybrid Settings" of the Teaching Service on 28.10.2020 from 10-12 o'clock - Information and possibility to register at https://www.leuphana.de/universitaet/entwicklung/lehre/support-tools/digitale-plattformen-und-tools/lehrservice-workshops-digitale-lehre.html#c668479
     
  15. FURTHER INFORMATION: The detailed guidelines for the winter semester can be downloaded in the following guidelines. Please inform yourself and, in the interest of protecting all members of the University from infections, make sure you observe the applicable regulations.
    a) Hygiene guideline for the protection of members and guests of the Leuphana University of Lüneburg from infections with the Leuphana Coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) in the version of 23.09.2020: https://www.leuphana.de/fileadmin/user_upload/portale/lehre/07_Lehrservice/Hybride_Lehre_WiSe2020-21/200923_Hygienerichtlinie_SARS-CoV-2_Vol._2.pdf
    b) Hygiene guideline for courses from 23.09.2020: https://www.leuphana.de/fileadmin/user_upload/portale/lehre/07_Lehrservice/Hybride_Lehre_WiSe2020-21/200923_Hygienerichtlinie_Lehrveranstaltungen.pdf
    c) New version of the annexes to the Framework Examination Regulations for the alternative delivery of courses and examinations during the Corona Crisis; published in Gazettes No. 88-93/20 of August 2020: https://www.leuphana.de/universitaet/amtsblatt.html

In the winter semester 2020/21, we are all once again particularly dependent on your flexibility and willingness to quickly adapt to changing conditions and to bear new regulations and the associated additional expenses. The many positive experiences from the summer semester 2020 allow us - even after consultation with all deans and deans of studies - to look optimistically at the new great challenge of realistically and responsibly assessing the incidence of infections in order to enable encounters on campus - especially in the interest of our students. This in turn requires a particularly high level of commitment from all university members.

The presidential committee continues to be particularly grateful for this commitment, which we all experienced during the summer semester.