IICP College Covid-19 Contingency Plan

Version 4. 8^th September 2022

As an organisation we wish to maintain safe practice at this time and continue to curb the spread of COVID-19. In order to protect the College community, and to minimise disruption, it is important that we all continue to follow the familiar guidelines relating to hand hygiene and individual responsibility for managing symptoms or illness. We are mindful that COVID-19 is still in the community and are keen to do everything we can to reduce the chance of spread, and also we want to provide an engaging and stimulating learning experience for our students.

Physical distance

The requirements for physical distancing have been removed. Classrooms will be set up in the normal manner for a class pre-COVID-19.

Face Masks

While the requirement to wear masks has been removed, we are requesting that all learners wear a face mask in public spaces in the building. You are encouraged to wear masks in your classroom, but you may wish to remove your mask when speaking. Masks will be provided by IICP College in each classroom. As a general rule lecturers do not wear masks.

Hygiene Etiquette

All students should continue to follow HSE COVID-19 hand hygiene advice and good respiratory hygiene etiquette.
HSE guidance on hand hygiene is available here https://www2.hse.ie/conditions/how-to-clean-your-hands/, and on respiratory hygiene etiquette is available here https://www.hse.ie/eng/about/who/healthwellbeing/infectcont/sth/gl/section-3-app-3-8.pdf.
Hand sanitisers are located in each room and outside of the rooms on the wall.

Symptoms of COVID-19

Please follow HSE guidance in relation to any symptoms of COVID-19, which is available here: https://www2.hse.ie/conditions/covid19/. This changes regularly, so it is important that you keep up to date with evolving public health advice. Please do not attend the College if you are displaying any signs or symptoms of COVID-19 or have a positive COVID-19 test or are living with a person who has COVID-19. Please ensure that you are aware of and follow the Contingency Arrangements outlined below.

Contingency arrangements: Learner unable to attend due to COVID-related reasons

The College is aware that COVID-19 related disruptions to planned activities may occur into the next academic year. We are very aware that our college community includes people at high risk of getting seriously ill from COVID-19, and people who live with those who are high risk. In addition, many of our students and staff work in a health care setting, and may encounter clients who are high risk. In order to protect our community, and particularly those who might be at high risk, we have developed the following arrangement. We will endeavour to support learners who cannot attend in-class lessons in person due to COVID-related reasons, where this is feasible within the programme requirements.

Learner Illness/Close Contact Status:

Where on the date of a scheduled class-based teaching input a learner:
1) Tests positive for COVID-19, or
2) Has a positive case of COVID-19 in your household, or
3) Has symptoms of COVID-19

Then you should not attend your face to face lecture. Should you wish to attend your class remotely, then you should make contact with the College (see notification section below).

Where feasible, the lecturer will open a Zoom so that students at home can listen to the lectures. This engagement will satisfy programme attendance requirements for the class. Some lectures will not be accessible remotely for the safety and comfort of all. In order to maintain a learning space that feelssafe and cohesive, it will usually not be possible to stream into the class for experiential modules.

Please note, this is a contingency plan which introduces hybrid arrangements for some face to face classes to facilitate students who are unable to attend for COVID-related reasons. It may not be possible to facilitate active participation by students attending remotely and students in the classroom within contingency arrangements. The lecturer will be teaching the class to those onsite, but those who are online due to illness or close contact will be able to listen to lectures. The limitations are further set out below. Where hybrid delivery is not possible, or you are unable to attend remotely, then you should speak with your lecturer about making up the lost learning.

NOTIFICATION

Please email studentservices@iicp.ie as soon as possible if you are not able to attend an onsite class, but wish to Zoom in. The subject of the email should be as follows:

Subject: Notification of Remote Learning Request – Class and Name.

So for instance, if I was a third year student on a Tuesday, and I needed to zoom in to a Research Methods & Sexuality class, my subject line of the email would be:

Subject: Notice of Remote Learning Request – Triona Kearns – 193 Tuesday – Research Methods & Sexuality – 20th of September 2023.

The administration team will need to inform faculty in advance of a class if any learner cannot attend an onsite class in person. Therefore please ensure that you notify the College as soon as possible if you are required to access a class remotely due to COVID-19. Please note that notifications that are not received by 5 pm on the day preceding a lecture may not be able to be facilitated. That said, we will do our best and do please let us know after this time if you are unable to attend.

The following requirements apply to those students who are attending face to face classes remotely:

• Learners who are Zooming in on a given onsite teaching input must arrive in the waiting room 10 minutes before the class begins. Once the lecturer has started teaching to the students in the physical classroom, it will be difficult to admit remote students on Zoom. Learners who are not online and in Zoom after the class is scheduled to commence may not be admitted.
  For that reason, we ask that you please make every effort to be in the waiting room 10 minutes before the class is due to start.
• Learners who are streaming in from home should wear headphones so that any confidential material is not inadvertently overheard by anyone who may be sharing the location you are zooming in from.
• Learners who are streaming in from home will be able to listen to the lecturer, but may not be able to participate in the discussions. Usually it is not possible to facilitate active participation by students at home and students in the classroom within contingency arrangements.
• The chat functionality may not be monitored by the lecturer who is teaching an onsite class. If there is more than one learner streaming in, you may be able to use chat to communicate with each other.
• Learners who are streaming in from home may not be visible to learners in the classroom and learners in the classroom may not be visible to learners streaming in from home.
• During any group work activities in a theoretical class (i.e. Jigsaw review of articles, brainstorming groups etc.) students who are at home zooming in usually will not be participants. If there are multiple students zooming in, the lecturer may facilitate a breakout room, but this cannot be guaranteed.

Other reasons for not attending in person are not covered by the Contingency plan, due to accreditation requirements. Where you are unable to attend a class in person for reasons other than those outlined above, then you should speak with your lecturer about making up the lost learning.

Contingency arrangements: Lecturer unable to attend due to COVID-related reasons

It is conceivable that a lecturer could become ill or be a close contact before they are due to teach an onsite class. In such cases the lecture may be delivered through remote means, if the lecturer is well enough to do so. The College will endeavour to give as much notice as possible in any change in arrangements.