Update on Remote Learning

THIS POST IS A REPUBLISHED VERSION OF AN EMAIL COMMUNICATION SENT BY AUP PRESIDENT CELESTE M. SCHENCK ON MARCH 15, 2020, ABOUT COVID-19 AND AUP'S RESPONSE. IT IS PART OF OUR SAFETY & SECURITY BLOG THAT ROUNDS UP ALL THE LATEST NEWS AND UPDATES FOR OUR COMMUNITY.

Today, I want to update you on how teaching and learning will resume on Wednesday, March 18. Please know that we are adjusting to events as they transpire in this unprecedentedly unpredictable moment. It has been clear since the French authorities closed schools down last Thursday night – and was announced in our last two messages to you – that we are moving dramatically away from delivering live, simultaneous remote classes.

Instead, most of AUP’s remote learning will be what we call asynchronous, which means that you will be able to follow your classes from wherever you are in the world. You will watch lectures and films or listen to podcasts and recordings prepared by your teachers, get reading and writing assignments, and contribute to class discussion by connecting to online chat groups. When classes are held synchronously, they will be scheduled at times that are compatible for students residing in a diversity of time zones. We will not be expecting students to attend online classes at 3am or some other unreasonable hour. I repeat, wherever you are in the world, you will be able to follow, participate, and earn your credit in classes that will be in one single format addressed to all students in the class. Every AUP student in good standing in a course, who fulfills all the requirements of that course and checks in regularly, will have ample opportunity to succeed in the course. Please be patient with your professors as we finalize this new way of teaching over the next week or so.

That said, we (all of higher education and millions of students making their way home as universities and colleges close) are entering uncharted territory as we move to this new way of learning. There will no doubt be hiccups and glitches as we get started, so try to meet them with a combination of fortitude and good humor, and trust in our desire to get this right. Let your teacher know if you are having any technical difficulties and start immediately figuring out how you are going to motivate yourself to put in the time, energy, and organization to follow asynchronous classes and assignments. The new format will clearly demand more of you, as it will of your teachers. 

For students staying in Paris – it looks to be some 400 of you at present, so you are not alone – we are working hard to put in place a mentoring system of groups of students. Our mentors will check in with you daily in online sessions to see how you are doing, follow everyone’s health, solve problems together, discuss the current situation and the constraints you are living under, tell jokes, and generally create and deepen our sense of community and connection. You will hear more about this very shortly.

Please continue to be in touch with us if you need assistance of any kind by writing to studentdevelopmentaup.edu or by calling 06 11 68 76 44 for emergencies. If you are feeling sick, please call International SOS at 01 55 63 36 35 and follow their instructions. We’re going to get through all this together.