Focus: Kiwibank chief economist Jarrod Kerr weighs in on the economic crisis caused by coronavirus.
A University of Canterbury scientist says the massive disruption caused by the Christchurch earthquake offers crucial lessons for universities hunkering down for Covid-19.
New Zealand's universities – which currently have more than 16,000 students in accommodation around the country – are now scrambling to make contingency plans, such as shifting lectures online and offering up their labs to help with testing.
Associate Professor Mark Quigley, a University of Melbourne earthquake scientist who retains an adjunct role with Canterbury, said after the February 22, 2011 disaster the university immediately evacuated and closed for weeks.
"Many university staff and students experienced trauma, financial pressures, and extreme anxiety over the uncertainty of their immediate future - all within the broader context of business closures and loss of employment."
That came as academics were already working under uncertainty - with lengthy closures possible at any time – as a result of the 7.1 quake that struck six months before.
"Sound familiar? It's useful to contextualise our current Covid-19 scenario against the Christchurch experience."
After the first quake, the university allowed staff to make their own decisions about how to best adjust their courses and assessments.
Some academics directly involved in the earthquake response were relieved from their normal duties.
After the second, more damaging earthquake, the teaching schedule was delayed by four weeks, the teaching semester reduced by 12 weeks to 11, and the mid-semester break cut from three weeks to one.
For many courses, lecture recordings – including some from the year before - were made available to students online so they could complete the first part of their courses digitally.
Other lectures shifted from face-to-face lectures to ones carried out over video link.
Despite further disruption caused by another large quake in June 2011, final exams went ahead over the following weeks.
Recognising the potential effects on students, the university changed its assessment policy to broaden the scope for applications for special consideration and guaranteed they would be accepted.
Quigley said, for one course alone, about 18 times the normal amount of more special consideration applications were received.
"For some of the most disrupted courses, no significant differences were found in how the students assessed course organisation, stimulation of interest, or overall assessment," he said.
"If communications are handed well, students will accept innovative and non-traditional changes to the way material is delivered, the actual content, and even the assessment."
Based on Canterbury's experience, Quigley argued university leaders should be giving academics the power to find their own ways of adapting.
Trying to tackle crisis situations with a top-down management approach could heap unnecessary stress on staff's already hectic workloads, he said.
Quigley also said it was "imperative" staff be able to begin planning to make special considerations for students in courses now.
The University of Canterbury was disrupted for months by the Christchurch earthquake. Photo / NZPA
But students, too, should begin accepting that university life was about to change.
"Our experiences with students throughout the Christchurch earthquake crisis was that many of them thrived in this new environment of a shared experience with adversity," he said.
"They worked hard and partied hard, and that their worst fears of poor academic achievement and adverse career impacts were never realised."
In the face of Covid-19, he felt it important that experts – including those working in medical and social research – be helped to contribute to the response, just as he was in 2011.
"University academics should also consider whether deployment of postgraduate researchers to Covid-19 related topics - even for students who have are advanced on other topics or working in seemingly irrelevant fields - is feasible," he said.
"The global socio-economic impacts of this crisis are cascading in unfathomable scale and complexity and require great thinkers to assist with solutions."
Universities New Zealand chair Derek McCormack said universities were already working with the Government and were ready to support in any way they could.
"As well as offering expertise, universities have made their laboratories available to help with Covid-19 testing," said McCormack, who is also vice-chancellor of AUT.
But the main focus was on students and staff. Although universities were exempt from new restrictions on meetings, preparations were being made for campuses being closed fully or partly.
"We have planned for a wide range of contingencies to try and maintain the educational experience for our students," he said.
"All universities are working creatively to ensure as much work as possible — including lectures and tutorials — is available through other means, including online."
Yesterday, Massey University announced it would begin limiting face-to-face teaching, and move classes online where possible.
Massey was already partway through university-wide introduction of its contentious new Digital Plus strategy - and some academics have raised concerns about the way management may roll it out under the crisis.
"We are also looking at adjusting the academic calendar, including rescheduling events such as graduation ceremonies, exams and assessments," McCormack said.
• Associate Professor Mark Quigley has written a perspective piece on the challenge, which can be found here.
