Special Class Delivery Committee Recommendations 

Charge

To provide plans for delivery of classes with special needs (Art, Design, Theatre, Music, Dance, Labs, Clinical, and Media School) under all potential scenarios, considering both existing technology (including filming studios in all locations on campus and inventory of classroom technology being developed by Vice President Tom Morrison and Vice President Brad Wheeler); possible spacing of return to campus and use of facilities; and any new technologies that we might need to make teaching these courses possible during periods of online instruction. Develop guidelines for quality for these experiences online.

Committee Members

• Stacy Morrone: Associate Vice President, Learning Technologies (committee chair)

• Joe Bonanno: Dean, School of Optometry

• Mary Lynn Davis-Ajami: Associate Dean, School of Nursing, Bloomington

• Arthur Fagen: Chair, Orchestral Conducting

• Peg Faimon: Dean, Eskenazi School of Art, Architecture + Design

• Jay Kincaid: Director of Facilities and Technology, The Media School

• Anne Leftwich: Associate Professor of Instructional Systems Technology, School of Education

• Linda Pisano: Chairperson, Theatre, Drama, and Contemporary Dance

• Nikki Pohl: Associate Dean, Natural and Mathematical Sciences and Research, COAS

• Liz Shea: Director, Contemporary Dance Program

• Greg Siering: Director, Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning

• Sarah Wroth: Co-Chair, Department of Ballet

Recommendations

• Deliver classes online where appropriate to provide the necessary space for special classes that require hybrid or face-to-face instruction, and have expanded social distancing requirements. (RCR, page 9, Students in Specialized Programs, 1)
  • The Department of Theatre, Drama, and Dance will convert Halls Theatre to allow physical distancing for the department’s large classes and will convert Wells Metz Theatre to support performance courses.
  • The Musical Arts Center is a potential open space for appropriately distanced ensemble work.
  • Converting Studio 5 in the Radio/TV building to a sound stage will enable proper social distancing for classes requiring space to set up.
  • Schools and departments with special classes need the ability to request their own spaces since their scheduling models (e.g., class duration) are frequently different than those of other courses.

• Establish teaching environments that ensure the safety of instructors and students who will be teaching and attending special classes in hybrid or face-to-face modes. (RCR page 10, Classes, Instruction and Learning Environments, 1 and RCR page 13, Co-Curricular Activities, Athletics)
  • A review of ventilation systems in buildings where special classes are taught should be conducted in light of the special needs of particular disciplines under COVID, and corrective measures taken if deficiencies are found.

• The committee requests additional consultation with the Hess Committee and Facilities Operations about best practices and evolving scientific standards in the specialized disciplines represented by our committee, and about the particular situations of specialized classes, such as performance and studio arts.
• Develop guidelines and policies for sanitizing specialized (and/or shared) spaces and equipment while minimizing the detrimental effects of cleaning agents on materials, equipment, and musical instruments. (RCR page 10, Facilities, 1-3)
  • Evaluate whether additional specialized cleaning materials will be necessary in particular disciplines.
  • Develop protocols for materials and staff to vigorously clean spaces and equipment on a specified schedule in specialized courses.
  • Develop training for faculty, staff, and students on cleaning protocols for specialized equipment and spaces.
  • Develop training protocols for safe proximity in labs and other specialized settings, and adjust practices to minimize close proximity.
  • Conduct further research into low-harm disinfection techniques for equipment, such as the use of UV Germicidal Lamps to disinfect specialized equipment and instruments between uses.

• Continue to identify specialized equipment, hardware, and software and work with the campus and deans to identify funding sources to ensure success and equity with remote learning.
  • Several programs have identified specialized equipment, hardware, and software to continue specialized programs remotely:
    • The School of Nursing and School of Education are considering prepared patient simulations with scenarios and case studies.
    • The department of Theatre, Drama, and Contemporary Dance, School of Education, Eskenazi School, and Jacobs School of Music are defining “equity packages” of necessary equipment to be distributed to online students.
    • Some of the College of Arts & Sciences’ science lab classes are considering commercial lab supply kits mailed directly to students and online labs through commercial sites such as Labster.
    • Some specialized classes will have enhanced recording and live streaming needs, requiring higher-quality cameras, microphones, and possibly operators.
    • Departments should identify and work with deans and the campus to fund and purchase such equipment immediately so that there is time to install the equipment and train faculty/staff on its use well before the fall semester begins.

• Conduct additional research on accreditation requirements as lab time/performance/clinical work/rural visit requirements are frequently tied to accreditation. (RSR, page 12, Students in Specialized Programs, 1)
  • Inform regulatory bodies for specialized areas of substantive change to course delivery if necessary and work with peers to seek regulatory exceptions.

•  Additional staff hours (could include GAs and/or student hourlies) will be required to cover extended lab/studio hours, assist with filming, edit videos, monitor and clean supplies, and ensure social distancing, and anticipate funding needs for those hours.
  • The extended weekly schedule designed to accommodate safe social distancing on campus (e.g., the need to have facilities open on weekends and longer hours during the week) creates the need for increased staffing and cleaning, especially in specialized spaces. Departments should work with deans and the campus to identify funding for increased staffing and cleaning in these spaces.
  • Anticipate short-term, hourly labor required to reconfigure and prepare theatres to serve as teaching spaces.

Process

Each school or department represented on the committee conducted a detailed analysis of the unique challenges, concerns, and needs with delivering courses in face-to-face, hybrid, and online modes. We found the most significant requirements for delivering special classes during the COVID-19 pandemic are the need for:

1. Expanded social distancing and PPE guidelines related to the unique challenges of classes with special pedagogical needs.
2. Extensive and frequent disinfecting of equipment and instruments used in the teaching of special classes. Analysis of ventilation and air filtration systems, and possible enhancements to ensure the removal of aerosol particles in an efficient way.
3. Access to on-campus spaces that house expensive, specialized equipment or dangerous chemicals that require trained supervision.
4. A live performance, studio experience, or clinical element that is tied to accreditation.
5. Access to specialized software and mechanisms for sending supplies directly to students.
6. Additional human assistance (e.g., monitors, editors, captioners, recording staff, and temporary hourly labor to reconfigure spaces to accommodate physical distancing).
7. Access to other populations (e.g., K-12 students, medical situations).

We formed three subgroups of committee members, grouped by three similar course delivery challenges: Performance (Jacobs School of Music and Department of Theatre, Drama, and Contemporary Dance), Laboratory (The Media School, School of Education, Eskenazi School of Art, Architecture + Design, Natural and Mathematical Sciences), and Clinical (School of Nursing, School of Optometry, School of Education). The full committee and working groups met a total of seven times.

Challenges

Performance Courses

• Hybrid
  • These disciplines require expanded and more stringent social distancing guidelines. Singers, actors, dancers, and wind-based instruments, for instance, fill spaces with more aerosol virus particles than a typical class setting and pose a greater threat of spreading the virus. The departments need to work with the Hess Committee and their national professional bodies to identify ways to continue their teaching in light of evolving knowledge of the virus in these settings.
  • Mandatory masks are a major concern for the performance departments. In particular, singing, acting, dancing, and playing some musical instruments (e.g., woodwinds) are not possible when wearing a mask. Students in many performing arts courses will need specialized masks as breathing is often intensified and/or controlled in a way that is different from typical breath patterns.
  • Instruments and equipment will require repeated disinfecting, sometimes multiple times within the same class session. This sanitizing can have a detrimental effect on equipment and musical instruments, so will require additional research.
  • Several faculty members have expressed concern with teaching performance classes face-to-face in the fall over health and safety concerns. Some have identified themselves as vulnerable and potentially unwilling to teach on campus in the fall.
  • All ensemble courses will be designed with repertoire and performance structures in place that can be adapted based on feasibility resulting from the necessary social distancing.
  • Physical contact between performers plays a large role in dance and theatre training and performance. The committee recommends the consistent application of decisions regarding students engaging in any kind of physical contact between curricular and co-curricular activities, i.e. athletics, leisure, or club events. (RCR page 13, Co-Curricular Activities, Athletics)
• Online
  • Performance courses cannot be conducted completely online. Many special courses in performance disciplines are rigorous professional training programs that require auditions and interviews and have robust studio and laboratory requirements that take place in studios and performance spaces on campus. These activities cannot be satisfactorily simulated online.
  • We risk losing those students who would opt to use an open dance space in their hometown.
  • Musical theater, dance, actors, and ballet students being asked to move in their homes presents safety concerns and liability.
  • Moving some performance classes online will require the distribution of equity packages to students to ensure they have the tools and technology required to succeed in the courses from home.

Laboratory/Studio Courses

• Hybrid
  • The Laboratory/studio disciplines face staffing issues. Extended lab/studio hours and limiting the number of students in classes will require longer hours for studio, lab, control room, and engineering staff. Additional GAs and student workers will be needed to assist with filming, editing videos, covering open studio hours, monitoring supplies, cleaning equipment, and ensuring social distancing.
  • Equipment checkout areas will need Plexiglas shields to protect student workers checking in/out equipment.
  • These departments will need to develop equipment training videos and demonstrations prior to the start of the semester.
  • Labs/studios are supervised by graduate students who may not be comfortable returning to work under the circumstances. Graduate students will require extensive training and need to be determined early to ensure training can begin in time. In some cases, training courses may need to be built and put online for graduate students out of the country.
  • Additional hardware and software will need to be purchased (such as web cameras). See Appendices for specifics.
  • Materials and equipment may need to be mailed to students off campus.
• Online
  • Some departments are heavily software dependent for classes. If students are not on campus, the departments cannot financially deploy all the software and student computers are often not powerful enough to run the software. UITS has been increasing remote access to computers that run this software (i.e., IU Anyware), but this remote access will need to be significantly increased.
  • Without a reimagination of production spaces, most hands-on production techniques will be impossible to teach and (more importantly) for students to practice.
  • Students are not able to participate in many labs (e.g., chemistry) from home because of safety and supervision concerns.
  • Additional hardware and software will need to be purchased (such as web cameras). See Appendices for specifics.
  • Materials and equipment may need to be mailed to students off campus.

Clinical Courses

• Hybrid
  • There are concerns for the health and safety involved in sending students out for clinical experiences to fulfill clinical requirements. The likelihood of exposure to a SARs-cov-2 patient increases with broader community exposure.
  • For students without cars, transportation to off-campus clinical work brings with it concerns with maintaining social distancing on buses and carpools.
  • As most K-12 schools will likely have online and face-to-face options, the School of Education is still considering a wide range of options. K-12 schools may not allow guests or outside participants. There needs to be accommodations to observe teaching and make comments such as GoReact.
  • Safe access and student transportation to community partner agencies will make service-learning and Center for Rural Engagement placements difficult. Virtualized and project-based service methods may take precedence in fall.
• Online
  • Clinical courses cannot be conducted completely online. For Optometry, clinics and pre-clinical training laboratories will achieve distancing through schedule spreading and reduced size of sections. Masks will be used and equipment will be disinfected after each use.
  • Illustrative basic science laboratories can be video demonstrations to the fullest extent possible.
  • Teaching clinical courses online requires new teaching materials (e.g., prepared patient simulation with scenarios and case studies).
  • The School of Education is highly dependent on K-12 schools for field work. They will likely try to support K-12 students virtually via Zoom or other options. Local K-12 districts have already indicated they would welcome this assistance. However, they need to consult with Programs Involving Children. They are exploring alternate solutions with the use of VR and case studies. They also run Saturday programs that serve as field experience (Science, Art, Math) for students and are considering creative ways to offer these programs.

 Acknowledgement:

We thank Chris Golden in University Information Technology Service (UITS) for his extensive support of the work of the committee.