Oxford University is not just an ancient institution with all the resilience that comes with centuries of experience, but it is also an innovative and modern institution, positioned at the cutting edge of the global response to coronavirus. The University, its colleges and faculties are well resourced and committed to providing current and future students with a high-level education and a full student experience despite the challenge of unforeseen circumstances.
Oxford University is working on the model for students returning to residence in October 2020, with social distancing in place, with several back-up models for alternative scenarios.
Lectures are likely to be delivered remotely. Personalized tutorials and small group seminars, the keystone of Oxford’s teaching provision, are easily adapted to the requirements of social distancing, and so can be maintained if the 2-metre rule remains in place. Oxford’s outstanding library system has already been quickly refocused to meet the new demands of remote teaching, with the extensive purchasing of eBooks and access to digital collections and archives. Scanning services are also being expanded, and many libraries are also posting copies of books from their physical collections to students as requested. Faculty and College IT offices responded to the change to remote teaching with incredible speed, installing and upgrading a wide range of remote platform technologies for teaching and communications. These are regularly assessed and improved, with consistent training and support offered to faculty and students. The Faculty’s extensive lecture provision was immediately moved online, so that students were given extended access to all lectures, seminars and speaker events for the term.
The English Faculty gathered comprehensive feedback from all students, taking into consideration the full range and precise details of individual circumstances. Examination and teaching formats and requirements were revised in response and are under regular reassessment in response to student feedback. Processes and provision have been adapted to meet the circumstances of individual students, and with the aim of reducing student stress and providing the fullest possible support for all our members – students, academics and administrative staff. The English Faculty is committed to ensuring that all our students receive their full education and fair assessment, with access to all our rich teaching resources and the stimulating and individualized teaching for which Oxford is renowned.