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Remote working increases and autonomy is under the spotlight as Europe tackles second wave of Covid-19
As Europe responds to a surge in Covid-19 cases this autumn, universities are navigating a rapidly changing environment, with many now encouraging or requiring research and studies to take place online.
And, as some governments clamp down on freedoms to fight the virus, institutional autonomy is rising up agendas too.
National and regional differences mean large variations in responses, but many universities are opting for a “blended” model mixing online and in-person classes for their students while emphasising remote work where possible for researchers.
“We’re currently experiencing a ‘lockdown light’ in which primary and middle schools are remaining open but secondary schools and universities are obliged to switch from in-person to distance teaching and learning,” said a spokesperson from Austria’s education ministry.
On 3 November the ministry recommended online learning, but left universities in charge of how they interpret this. Many institutions implemented a “shift schedule” for research staff in response, it said.
The Austrian Rectors’ Conference said that while none of the country’s 22 public universities are closed, all of them are providing a “hybrid system” with “very limited” on-campus activities. A spokesperson for the rectors’ conference said that the “worst case” would be universities losing that autonomy.
In Sweden too, it is “up to each university to decide” how to proceed, with “most” institutions opting for hybrid learning, said Marita Hilliges, secretary general for the Association of Swedish Higher Education Institutions. She said there was considerable variation in the percentage of in-person versus online learning between institutions and even between faculties.
Universities in the UK have also remained open during lockdown (see P17), but the sector has reacted badly to the announcement that conditions attached to bailouts for those that struggle financially due to the crisis will be tied to curbs on their freedoms—including limits on senior staff pay.
Even in France, where a nationwide lockdown is now in place until 1 December, the research ministry has confirmed that staff who cannot work remotely should return to campus. France’s Conference of University Presidents said it had asked the government to permit universities to “maintain research activity on site, with doctoral students, but with strong development of teleworking when it can be organised”.
Although in the minority, some countries have opted for a total lockdown of universities. The Slovak Rectors’ Conference told Research Europe that from 24 October institutions were required to perform their activities online—but some made the change “even earlier”. In the Czech Republic, government regulations mean that generally universities are closed.
Countries that have avoided surging cases of Covid-19 are bracing for tougher times.
In Estonia, the situation was “fairly calm up until the end of October”, a spokesperson for its rectors’ conference said. But they said a recent rise in cases could mean “more drastic measures have to be taken soon”.
This article also appeared in Research Europe