Thursday, 28 March

COVID-19: GRASAG raises concern about UG’s e-learning initiative

Education
GRASAG said there are gaps in the e-learning initiative rolled out by the management

The Graduate Students’ Association of Ghana-Legon, has said there are gaps in the e-learning initiative rolled out by the management of the University of Ghana to enable students access lectures in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak in the country.

Ghana has so far recorded 27 cases and 2 deaths forcing the government to place a ban on all public gatherings to prevent further spread of the disease.

Schools have also been asked to shut down.

The University of Ghana suspended all lectures and social gatherings and directed its non-essential staff to stay away from the campus as it embarks on a contact-tracing exercise after one of its students tested positive for coronavirus.

Management of the university also asked international students to return to their home countries following the closure of the university, as part of moves to forestall the spread of the coronavirus.

In a statement released on Monday, 23 March 2020, GRASAG expressed its disappointment with the authorities of the university for not being involved in the decision-taking process “to roll out online teaching and learning”.

According to GRASAG: “Our first time seeing or hearing something about this, as executives, was when we all received this said notice through our student email addresses. This is unfortunate, as details of this initiative are not available to us to help us better explain to our constituents when they seek more information and details from us.”

GRASAG, however, commended the “management for resorting to innovative ways of teaching and learning in this outbreak season of COVID-19, which required that the university shut down.”

It continued: “There are a number of gaps identified in how this initiative is structured and the process of it being implemented”, emphasising that technology is good but it becomes ineffective and inefficient when it is not accessible to all its target users.

GRASAG continued that “not all students own an electronic device that supports this e-learning platform. In your notice, a provision was made for such students to come and use the computer laboratory facilities on our various campuses upon bookings.”

It wondered if this does not contradict the President’s advice for all Ghanaians to avoid all movement as well as the university’s “initial directive of all non-resident students to keep away from campus?”

“And also, does this not affect the directive of closing down all halls of residence in cases where students living far from campus will wish to stay during the booked period to use the computer laboratories? Will these computer laboratories not be a point of spreading the virus, as hygiene protocols are not consistently followed, knowing very well that we will have students coming from different parts of the country using this facility where they could have contracted the virus?”

GRASAG also raised concern about whether the e-learning platform is accessible to students with special needs.

Read full statement below.

Source: Classsfmonline.com