The development of the Okanagan mental health and wellbeing task force
As the McMaster community dives into the second semester of an unprecedented academic year, the newly created Okanagan mental health and wellbeing task force has also been gearing up for its launch.
The Okanagan mental health and wellbeing task force was created from the recommendations of McMaster’s virtual learning task force. The virtual learning task force, co-chaired by Dean of Engineering Ishwar Puri and Dean of Social Sciences Jeremiah Hurley, consisted of over 30 faculty, staff and students that collected feedback from the McMaster community about the virtual learning experience. Feedback included over 3,000 responses from students and instructors to the MacPherson Institute’s Fall 2020 Experience Survey.
The task force’s final report, released in November 2020, provided 21 recommendations to improve the virtual learning experience. Recommendations included immediate actions for the winter 2021 term, especially highlighting the need for stronger supports for mental health and well-being. Although the survey respondents rated their overall learning experience to be fairly positive, many instructors and students shared feelings of being overwhelmed.
“These unprecedented times have pushed the task force to rethink what McMaster’s commitment to academic excellence means by developing recommendations intended to alleviate students, faculty and staff feeling overwhelmed and provide opportunities to start the winter semester refreshed and prepared together.”
“These unprecedented times have pushed the task force to rethink what McMaster’s commitment to academic excellence means by developing recommendations intended to alleviate students, faculty and staff feeling overwhelmed and provide opportunities to start the winter semester refreshed and prepared together,” the report stated.
The current status of students’ mental health was explained by Connor Blakeborough, health promoter at the Student Wellness Centre. Connor’s role as health promoter at the SWC involves assisting with programming such as mental health services, along with coordinating initiatives like Wellness Book Worms.
Additionally, he is a member of the education and health promotion subcommittee on The Okanagan mental health and wellbeing task force. The task force is a subsection of the McMaster Okanagan Committee, which is further split into several other subcommittees.
"There is also just a general fear of missing out on the university experience as it's usually experienced, especially for people coming into their first year and not getting in their first year experience on residence, or being on campus or being involved in the community in a way that's more regular.”
“Just in the communication that we have with students, a lot of students have been feeling lonely, isolated, overwhelmingly bored. There is also just a general fear of missing out on the university experience as it's usually experienced, especially for people coming into their first year and not getting in their first year experience on residence, or being on campus or being involved in the community in a way that's more regular,” said Blakeborough.
The Okanagan mental health and wellbeing task force will address the recommendations of the virtual learning report and explore ways to support the McMaster community through remote learning. This task force is a subsection of the McMaster Okanagan Committee, which was developed after McMaster signed the Okanagan Charter in 2017.
The charter was an outcome from the 2015 International Conference on Health Promoting Universities and Colleges and developed by interdisciplinary stakeholders from 45 countries. The charter had two calls of action to educational institutions: to embed health into all aspects of campus culture, across the administration, operations and academic mandates; and to lead health promotion action and collaboration locally and globally.
The mental health and wellbeing task force comprises 10 representatives of students, faculty and staff and is led by Dr. Catharine Munn, associate clinical professor in psychiatry and behavioural neurosciences.
"The new [Okanagan Mental Health and Wellbeing] task force will help us to understand the needs that have arisen in these new and uniquely challenging circumstances and to identify key solutions, so that we can emerge as a healthier and stronger community.”
Paul O’Byrne, dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences and chair of the McMaster Okanagan Committee, was quoted in a McMaster Daily News article: “McMaster signed the Okanagan Charter in 2017 to help demonstrate our commitment to integrating health and wellbeing into all aspects of life at the university. The new [Okanagan Mental Health and Wellbeing] task force will help us to understand the needs that have arisen in these new and uniquely challenging circumstances and to identify key solutions, so that we can emerge as a healthier and stronger community.”
Blakeborough echoed the sentiments of O’Bryne.
“I think it will be a great opportunity to explore mental health and wellbeing as it relates to both individual and systemic issues, especially those that have become a lot more apparent and prevalent during the pandemic. The task force and the committee will be able to look at the relationships between faculty, students and staff which deal with students on a daily basis and how we can use that relationship and better that relationship to benefit students and their mental health,” said Blakeborough.
“I think it will be a great opportunity to explore mental health and wellbeing as it relates to both individual and systemic issues, especially those that have become a lot more apparent and prevalent during the pandemic."
Other suggestions outlined from the virtual learning task force revolved around teaching recommendations, such as reducing workload for students, creating easier navigation of course platforms, providing additional flexibility for assignments and increasing opportunities for classroom connection.
When asked what efforts he would like McMaster to make, Blakeborough recommended incorporating discussions of mental health within current courses and programming, specifically on the social determinants of health, including financial insecurity, housing and food insecurity.
“I think there's definitely a lot of things that could be addressed. But ultimately, it'd be great to see programming or electives which kind of teach self reflection and goal setting,” said Blakeborough.
“I think there's definitely a lot of things that could be addressed. But ultimately, it'd be great to see programming or electives which kind of teach self reflection and goal setting,” said Blakeborough.
“[The task force has] listened to the feedback and factored in the results from various surveys when crafting these recommendations,” said Dean of Engineering Ishwar Puri.
“We hope that these ideas resonate with students and instructors so that we can work together to address the ongoing challenges and meet the opportunities that lay ahead for us as a campus community in 2021,” elaborated Puri.
“We hope that these ideas resonate with students and instructors so that we can work together to address the ongoing challenges and meet the opportunities that lay ahead for us as a campus community in 2021,” added Puri.
Resources for mental health and wellness:
➞ Student Wellness Center
➞ Good2Talk
➞ Student Assistance Plan
McMaster announces commitment to hiring 12 Black faculty members
In October, McMaster University completed an external review of Black student-athletes and their experiences with racism. The review was first initiated in July, prompted in part by tweets by former McMaster football star Fabion Foote who now plays for the Toronto Argonauts.
In a series of tweets, Foote shared his experiences of systemic racism within the McMaster Athletics & Recreation Department.
My DL coach at Mac said I had to sell weed to afford my tuition lol. Keep in mind I never smoked in my life. My friend was in a group chat were a white athlete used the N word. My teammate reported it to the coaches and they some how managed to blame us for it.
— Fab (@Fabloescoo) June 28, 2020
The review investigated the experiences of various students from as early as 2010 and included various interviews with both former and current Black athletes, Black staff and coaches and non-Black staff and coaches.
Completion of the review showed that a culture of systemic anti-Black racism is present at the school and has harmed a number of current and former athletes.
Completion of the review showed that a culture of systemic anti-Black racism is present at the school and has harmed a number of current and former athletes.
“[I]t is clear that there is a culture of systemic anti-Black racism within McMaster Athletics as a result of individual and group actions and inactions from staff, coaches and department administrators. This culture is evident in explicit and implicit examples of anti-Black racism. It is also evident in a widespread lack of awareness, education, understanding, empathy and systemic perspective on issues of race and inclusivity,” the report said.
“They probably think they’re working from neutral where they have to do something and fix it, as opposed to stopping doing things that they are already doing.”
McMaster President David Farrar shared a letter of apology to students and acknowledged that more action needs to be done.
“On behalf of the University, I apologize for the anti-Black racism you experienced. I am deeply sorry that effective action was not taken to prevent this; there are no excuses for the behaviour you endured. I assure you that we are listening and that action is already being taken to implement the report’s recommendations and to begin the work with the Department and the broader university community to help us eliminate systemic racism,” the letter wrote.
However, for Elvin Girineza, a fourth-year chemistry student, noted how several flaws of the review and the university’s response were apparent to him as a Black student.
“I think it’s interesting to say the least, that they reviewed only athletes as part of the survey."
“I think it’s interesting to say the least, that they reviewed only athletes as part of the survey. Also just that it was more asking for experiences rather than something more proactive, more doing something to address it. [It was more] reactive and having to have their Black students remind them of what exactly is going on or has been already going on in the past,” Girineza said.
On Nov. 23, McMaster announced that the school will be committing to hiring 12 Black faculty members. The announcement stated that this approach aims to ensure the school’s commitment to inclusivity is supported by Black scholarship excellence.
The release of the initiative received support from many across social media, with people feeling pleased that the university is addressing the issue and taking action.
An important first step. Let’s keep imagining better futures ✊🏾 https://t.co/O8RNOFK6CB
— Stacy Creech de Castro (@Stacy_AnnC) November 25, 2020
Aside from showing support, some have also suggested the next steps the school can take to further foster inclusivity, such as considering similar initiatives for Indigenous scholars.
Excellent first steps towards meaningful change in #academia. I hope to see a similar hiring initiative focused on #Indigenous #scholars@McMasterU @EIOMcMaster https://t.co/1pvKtlAUmV
— Dr. LeaGrie (@LeaGrie) November 24, 2020
Others have also questioned whether this initiative is enough and how it can truly ensure that Black voices are being expressed in academia.
Dr. Alvin Thomas, a clinical psychologist and professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, responded to the announcement on Twitter.
“Along with the hiring, what positions, policies, procedures, processes and changes are being enacted to make sure that these new faculty have every opportunity and support towards success rather than becoming possibly sacrificial lambs as has happened with other academic spaces?”
“Along with the hiring, what positions, policies, procedures, processes and changes are being enacted to make sure that these new faculty have every opportunity and support towards success rather than becoming possibly sacrificial lambs as has happened with other academic spaces?” Thomas tweeted.
Along with the hiring, what positions, policies, procedures, processes and changes are being enacted to make sure that these new faculty have every opportunity and support towards success rather than becoming possibly sacrifical lambs as has happened with other academic spaces?
— Dr. Alvin Thomas, PhD. (@Dr_AT758) November 28, 2020
Girineza expressed that although hiring Black faculty is a step in the right direction, he believed a lot more work still needs to be done.
“They’re deciding how much influence and power [Black academics] get and then those new faculty will be restricted to their rules."
“They’re deciding how much influence and power [Black academics] get and then those new faculty will be restricted to their rules. . .[McMaster is] only willing to budge however much they’re willing to budge. They’re not willing to fully listen and maybe take on a more humble role and, you know, take a step back and not be the one in charge of the final decisions when it comes to how institutions deal with its own problems,” said Girineza.
"They’re not willing to fully listen and maybe take on a more humble role and, you know, take a step back and not be the one in charge of the final decisions when it comes to how institutions deal with its own problems,” said Girineza.
Girineza is no stranger to racism as a part of his everyday reality. When he had to choose where to attend university, the culture and severity of racism at each university played a part in his decision.
“For people who haven’t experienced racism it’s a theory to them more and there has to be more work put on looking at the extent of it. Does it really exist? While to the people who experienced the consequences, it’s just a reality,” Girineza expressed.
“For people who haven’t experienced racism it’s a theory to them more and there has to be more work put on looking at the extent of it. Does it really exist? While to the people who experienced the consequences, it’s just a reality,” Girineza expressed.
Girineza added that if McMaster really wants to properly address anti-Black racism, they have to be willing to dive deeper into the issue and apply their actions systemically.
“As opposed to trying to put a bandaid on cancer,” Girineza said.
“As opposed to trying to put a bandaid on cancer.”
Girineza believes the problem is being handled by people who may not realize that they may also be contributing to the problem.
“They probably think they’re working from neutral where they have to do something and fix it, as opposed to stopping doing things that they are already doing,” said Girineza.
He said that if the university wants to foster a place of community and safety, they must do more than just the basic standard.
“I can’t applaud the institution for doing the bare minimum,” Girineza said.
“I can’t applaud the institution for doing the bare minimum,” Girineza said.
Winter 2021 semester delayed
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, universities across Ontario have made the decision to extend winter break.
This includes the University of Toronto, Western University, McMaster University, Laurentian University and the University of Waterloo.
When news first broke out among students that various universities had announced a winter break extension, students at McMaster created a petition in fear that their university would be an exception and not extend their break.
The very next day after the petition was posted on social media, McMaster made its announcement that winter term classes would be delayed.
Winter classes were originally planned to commence on Jan. 6. Now, the school has announced that the Winter 2021 semester will begin one week later on Jan. 11.
Although classes may be delayed, McMaster said that this does not mean the semester will end at a later date.
Although classes may be delayed, McMaster said that this does not mean the semester will end at a later date.
Instead, the school said that the exam period in April will be condensed to accommodate this change and therefore, the winter semester will end as originally planned. Classes will be extended into the exam period, and there will be no overlap between classes and exams.
McMaster’s announcement said that the decision was made following a recommendation from the Virtual Learning Task Force and was supported by the president and vice-presidents.
The school said that they had taken into consideration students’ wellness and mental health. Delaying classes by a week will hopefully provide students with a bit more time to recharge and also gives faculty members and staff the chance to better prepare for the winter semester.
“[T]hose who went home for their Christmas break [will also have] the chance to isolate for an additional week to help limit any potential COVID-19 cases,” the school added in their announcement.
“[T]hose who went home for their Christmas break [will also have] the chance to isolate for an additional week to help limit any potential COVID-19 cases,” the school added in their announcement.
Although the winter break extension came as a relief for many students across the province, some students at McMaster proposed an alternative solution to encourage better wellness for students.
A petition was started asking the university to create two reading weeks instead of one and discard the winter break extension.
These students argue that a winter break extension would not help prevent students from experiencing burnout throughout the semester. Hence, giving students an extra week off during the semester can allow students to get some extra rest between their studies.
“This is needed in a time where students are at home with little guidance or motivation, who require an additional break during the semester, whenever possible. This is a great opportunity to attend to the mental wellbeing of students. It is unfair to delay the semester for people who refrain from travelling in an attempt to limit potential COVID-19 cases,” the petition stated.
Reading week for the winter term currently remains unchanged and will occur from Feb. 15 through Feb. 21.
Winter break will officially begin for students at McMaster on Dec. 23 following final examinations and students will be continuing their studies virtually for the rest of the winter term.
As the fall semester comes to an end and finals roll in, here are seven tips for managing stress and practising self-care
Between keeping safe during the global pandemic, reacting to social injustices, hours of online school and finishing up your last midterms and assignments, it can be easy to forget to reflect and check-in with yourself.
The looming pressure and worry about exams exacerbate these stressors. During these turbulent times, self-care and mental wellness may be the last item on your agenda. However, managing stress is critical for avoiding burnout and maintaining good mental health. Below are seven self-care tips to help bring more balance into your routine.
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1. Develop a regular sleep schedule
This may be one of the most difficult goals to achieve for many students. Especially with online and asynchronous classes, you can quickly be derailed into a bad sleeping habit. You can track your sleep schedule using an app and set yourself up for success by limiting electronic use before bedtime, putting your screens into a nighttime mode in the evening and limiting caffeine intake.
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2. Eat regularly scheduled meals
Similar to maintaining a healthy sleep schedule, practicing a healthy diet is important for both your physical and mental health. Eat foods that give you energy and make you happy. Switch things up by sharing recipes with friends.
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3. Engage in non-academic activities
It may seem obvious, but many of us still need daily reminders to rest and unwind. You can go on a walk, exercise or take a nap. Give yourself opportunities to release some of the tension and stress and refuel your energy by doing activities you enjoy.
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4. Take time to reflect
Even if it’s once a week, think about at least one thing that went well and one thing that you wish to work on. You could pick up journaling, use a mood tracking app or discuss your thoughts and experiences with your friends and family. Going on walks can also give you some personal time for reflections. Through reflecting, you can take a break from thinking about school, realize achievements and strengths and gain insights to set new goals.
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5. Find ways to connect with your community
According to The Health Mind Platter by clinical professor of psychiatry Daniel J. Siegel, connecting time is one of the factors that are essential for optimizing one’s mental well-being. It helps to reinforce relationships and reduce feelings of isolation. Try to identify the communities to which you belong and how to maintain an active membership.
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6. Reward yourself
We all deserve praise after enduring a difficult and challenging semester. Set plans and goals and reward yourself by taking a day off, treating yourself with a gift or engaging in other activities that you normally don’t have time to do. Having something to look forward to at the end of a busy week or exam season can motivate you and keep you on track.
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7. Reach out to peer support services if you need help
You can find resources through the Student Wellness Centre or reach out to one of the four peer support services offered by the MSU: MSU Maccess, Student Health Education Centre, Women + Gender Equity Network or Pride Community Centre.
Remember to also check in with your peers. Share how you are doing, what is going well, what you want to improve on and what you are looking forward to. It’s perfectly normal to ask for help and it can be comforting to have someone validate your feelings and experiences.
Although self-care can look different for everyone, hopefully some of these tips have inspired you to develop your own self-care plan. We will all get through this semester together. Be proud of all the accomplishments you’ve made so far and always remember to be kind to yourself because taking care of your mental health is the most important homework.
Students in different time zones are feeling unsupported and unaccommodated by the university
By: Aislyn Sax, Contributor and Elisa Do, News Reporter
In the Fall semester of 2020, McMaster University has become a ghost town with many students enrolled in exclusively online classes or with occasional in-person labs.
This transition has allowed many students to live away from campus throughout the school year and significantly impacted the lives of international students. With different time zones, international students now often face the challenge of writing exams at inconvenient times during the day.
Annie Deng is a math and stats student in her third year. She decided to stay in her home country of China for the fall semester.
"The nature of online learning amplifies the issue of my lack of social connections and support in Canada. I worry staying in Canada might not be good for my mental health,” Deng said.
"The nature of online learning amplifies the issue of my lack of social connections and support in Canada. I worry staying in Canada might not be good for my mental health,” Deng said.
However, as soon as the semester started, Deng found that staying in China brought other challenges. Deng now has classes at 2 a.m. and realized that the Registrar scheduled her final exams at 12:30 a.m. and 4 a.m. in her time zone.
To resolve the time zone issues, Deng considered completely changing her sleep schedule, but family duties have made this option unrealistic. Instead, she decided to change her sleep schedule just for the days of exams and tests.
"It's simply exhausting. Even if I try to sleep four more hours during the day, I still can't function normally at those hours,” Deng added.
Deng had contacted her professors to ask if she could write the midterm tests at a different time but was met with an unsatisfying answer.
"It seemed like my professors don't know what to say to me. [Only] one of them gave me a solid answer,” Deng explained.
"It seemed like my professors don't know what to say to me. [Only] one of them gave me a solid answer,” Deng explained.
When she tried to reschedule, Deng was faced with more problems. After being referred to several different places and attempting to contact people, Deng was yet again unable to seek a fulfilling answer. She heard no reply from the Registrar and the Ombuds office. She learned that the University Secretariat has an appeal form where students may submit a formal inquiry on policies. When she inquired about it, Deng was met with a reply that the appeal form only dealt with faculty-level policies, whereas time zone differences were a university-level policy.
While each of her professors eventually accommodated her, Deng said that she would like to see clear information on who to contact to resolve time zone issues.
According to Deng, many international students she knows are considering returning to their home countries.
"After all, it's too hard staying in a foreign country alone during a pandemic without family around. Staring at a computer screen for lectures and knowing you can't hang out with your classmates because they are at home doesn't help," she added.
"Staring at a computer screen for lectures and knowing you can't hang out with your classmates because they are at home doesn't help," Deng added.
Another international student, Yifang Wang, also expressed her concerns for this school year.
As Wang is currently residing in China, she does not have access to various websites required for their academics, such as Gmail and Avenue to Learn. Although the university offers Virtual Private Networking software for students and a network accelerator for those in China, Wang expressed that she could not get the software to work for her. Hence, Wang had to purchase a VPN in order to access the necessary tools for her studies.
Wang is currently taking a linguistics course that includes weekly quizzes and said that using a VPN has made it more challenging for them to access the quizzes right away.
“[The professor] will give us like 10 minutes or 15 minutes, but it will take me four minutes, sometimes three minutes to load the page and he didn't care about that,” Wang said.
Wang added that the professor would not provide her more time. The professor said there are always students who complain about the time limit. Wang believed that the professor did not consider the number of international students in the course, many of whom likely struggle with the same problem.
The university had also maintained tuition fees at the same amount as they would have had the 2020-2021 school year been in-person. This includes international tuition fees, which are extensively greater than those with Canadian citizenship.
In 2020-2021, the average international undergraduate student tuition fee in Canada is $32,019 for the year. At McMaster, Wang said that her tuition is roughly $34,000 for the year.
In 2020-2021, the average international undergraduate student tuition fee in Canada is $32,019 for the year. At McMaster, Wang said that her tuition is roughly $34,000 for the year. Despite the fact that Wang is now attending lectures that are pre-recorded rather than in-person, tuition has only increased since last year. Although recordings may be necessary due to the pandemic, Wang expressed that recorded lectures are much less captivating and motivating for her to attend.
If international students wish to return to Canada, it is also challenging for them to do so during this time. According to the current travel restrictions, students who applied for their study permit to Canada after March 18 are not allowed to return at all, and those who applied before have no guarantee that the border will allow them entrance and can still be refused entry on a case-by-case basis.
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The university is rapidly transitioning its services to a near exclusively digital world for the first time. They have recently created the "Where in the world are you?" survey on Mosaic, which they say will be used to determine where students are located for the fall term.
The survey comes eight months after the initial school closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic in March. It was also initiated four months after the university had made the decision for all classes to be held online during the fall term.
"I want to see the university doing something on this matter. Right now, I feel my needs are being neglected,” Deng said.
With months in advance to plan and navigate the digital world, international students are still not receiving adequate support for their academics.
"I want to see the university doing something on this matter. Right now, I feel my needs are being neglected,” Deng said.
Universities across Canada advocate for greater financial aid
In 2020-2021, the average tuition for full-time undergraduate programs across Canada is $6,580 per year. 52 per cent of students graduate with student debt and an average student has a total of $28,000 in debt when they graduate.
52 per cent of students graduate with student debt and an average student has a total of $28,000 in debt when they graduate.
Student debt in Canada has been deemed a crisis by many. In 2018, Canadian students collectively owed over $28 billion in student debt.
The McMaster Students Union is one of the student unions that have joined in to work on the Debt Free Degree campaign, advocating for more accessible and affordable post-secondary education in Canada.
This campaign is led by the Undergraduates of Canadian Research-Intensive Universities and the University Students’ Council at Western University.
Other student unions that are also taking part in the campaign include the University of Toronto Students’ Union, Students’ Society of McGill University, Waterloo Undergraduate Student Association and more.
These nine student unions represent students of the U15 group of Canadian research intensive universities. Collectively, the student unions represent over 250,000 students.
The campaign is calling for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion Carla Qualtrough to take action.
Mackenzy Metcalfe, vice president of external affairs at Western’s University Students Council and chair of UCRU, said that this would put grants at a total increase of $1200 per student for the 2020-2021 federal budget.
Policy recommendations from the campaign include doubling of investments in Canada Student Grants from what was provided in 2019. Mackenzy Metcalfe, vice president of external affairs at Western’s University Students Council and chair of UCRU, said that this would put grants at a total increase of $1200 per student for the 2020-2021 federal budget.
This amounts to roughly $1 billion from the government. Metcalfe also noted that this was one of the promises made by the Liberal party during the 2019 election. This increase in grants would apply to all students eligible for financial aid.
“Investments in students are investments in the future. Students are really going to make up the workforce of tomorrow and increasing funding for student financial aid will undoubtedly see exponential return in the next couple of years,” said Metcalfe.
“Investments in students are investments in the future. Students are really going to make up the workforce of tomorrow and increasing funding for student financial aid will undoubtedly see exponential return in the next couple of years,” said Metcalfe.
MSU Vice President (Education) Ryan Tse declined an interview but wrote in an email statement that the MSU is excited to work on this campaign.
“The Debt Free Campaign [gives] students the opportunity to share their stories and call on the government to help make postsecondary education more accessible and affordable,” wrote Tse.
In previous years, UCRU had advocated for the transfer of federal tuition tax credits to student grants. Currently, the recommendation for the federal government to transfer tuition tax credit funds to upfront grants is also an MSU policy.
However, the Debt Free Degree campaign had decided not to specify federal tuition tax credits as a source of funding for student grants, but simply advocate for an increase in grants.
“UCRU still believes that tax credits from tuition should be relocated to upfront grants for students, however, during our past few lobby weeks, UCRU received feedback from the government about the proposal. We heard from multiple sources in government that they were not interested in making this change to the tax credit system. However, we did hear that they were interested in supporting students through student financial aid,” Metcalfe explained.
Although recommendations from the campaign ultimately do not eliminate student debt, Metcalfe said that having a larger proportion of financial aid as grants rather than loans will help decrease the amount of accumulated debt.
Aside from an increase in student grants, the campaign also recommends a two-year grace period on all federal student loans. Currently, federal student loans have a grace period of six months.
In other words, students have six months following their study period with no accumulation of interest on their federal student loans. Aside from finishing their final school term, students are also required to repay loans six months after they leave school, take time off school, or transfer from full-time to part-time studies. After those six months, students are expected to begin payment and interests will accumulate.
In Ontario, financial aid for students is regulated by the Ontario Student Assistance Program. OSAP incorporates both federal and provincial student loans and grants.
On a provincial level, student loan requirements differ depending on the province. Students in Ontario are not expected to start repaying their provincial student loans until after the first six months, but their loans do accumulate interest during that period of time.
Across social media, the campaign shares various infographics comparing the average amount of student debt to other various items of the same monetary value such as 112 pairs of AirPods, a Honda Civic, 233 years worth of Netflix subscriptions and 9 million cups of coffee.
$28,000. That's the amount of debt an average student has when they graduate. You can buy a lot with $28,000. Paying off student debt shouldn't be one of those things. It's time for a change - alongside @UCRU_Can, we're pushing @JustinTrudeau & @CQualtro to take action. (1/2) pic.twitter.com/FbeJu13B5J
— McMaster Students Union (MSU) (@MSU_McMaster) November 6, 2020
Students were encouraged to join the movement by writing a postcard to their local member of parliament. A Google form at www.debtfreedegree.ca was available for students to fill out and UCRU will send the postcard on the student’s behalf.
Students were also asked to spread the word by sharing posts with the hashtag #DebtFreeDegree on their social media and provide UCRU with feedback by emailing [email protected].
The MSU is working alongside @UCRU_Can and Student Unions across the country to advocate for accessible, affordable post-secondary education in Canada, and a #DebtFreeDegree. Learn more about our fight for Debt Free Degrees at https://t.co/t0I4CFpbCP. (1/3) pic.twitter.com/5o9GvsngPy
— McMaster Students Union (MSU) (@MSU_McMaster) November 3, 2020
The campaign ended on Nov. 16 and Metcalfe stated that over 200 students had shared their feedback. These student concerns will be presented to federal policy makers during UCRU’s annual Federal Lobby Week. This year, the federal lobby week is scheduled from Nov. 23-27.
New employment contract for sessional faculty members and addressing out-of-province TA exclusion concerns
At McMaster University, the Canadian Union of Public Employees 3906 is a union that works to improve the working conditions of academic workers at the university. The union currently represents about 3,500 workers at McMaster and includes three units.
Unit 1 includes teaching assistants and research assistants in lieu. Unit 2 includes sessional faculty, McMaster English Language Development sessional faculty and hourly-rated sessional music faculty. Lastly, Unit 3 includes post-doctoral fellows.
A key responsibility of the union is to negotiate and enforce an employment contract for each of the three units. The contract includes all benefits, rights and responsibilities of union members, and the responsibilities and obligations of the employer, McMaster University.
Recently, several issues have arisen between the union and the university. The previous collective agreement for Unit 2 members expired on Aug. 31, 2020, which prompted negotiations with McMaster to develop a new agreement.
Sharoni Mitra, president of CUPE 3906, said that the new agreement entails various concerns from sessional faculty members such as better job security, benefits, working conditions, teaching assistant training and compensation for the extra technological support required in a remote environment during this time.
From Oct. 14 to 16, the union held a strike vote amongst its Unit 2 members. Members voted 81 per cent in favour of a strike mandate for the bargaining committee if negotiations with McMaster fail.
This does not necessarily mean that a strike will occur, but votes from members signal to the union that members are prepared to strike should negotiations with McMaster fail to meet members’ needs.
Other recent negotiations with McMaster include the university’s exclusion of out-of-province teaching assistants from the bargaining unit. This means that out-of-province teaching assistants lose rights, privileges and protections that are a part of their membership with the union. They are excluded from the union’s dental plan, healthcare spending account, Gender Affirmation Fund, worker protections and other benefits.
Mitra expressed that the union was not consulted by the university about this decision and that the university justifies their exclusion of out-of-province TAs due to the wording within their collective agreement.
The previous collective agreement between TAs and the university denoted that teaching assistants of Ontario are recognized by the university as part of the agreement. However, Mitra said that this was largely interpreted by the union as teaching assistants who are working for McMaster, an institution located in Ontario.
The union argued that they are teaching assistants of Ontario, regardless of where they live.
The union argued that they are teaching assistants of Ontario, regardless of where they live.
This decision has been met with much criticism from the union, especially due to the change to the online environment that teaching assistants have to face during the COVID-19 pandemic. The union has sent the university a letter of understanding in hopes of resolving the matter internally but was not met with a satisfying response from the university.
In the LOU, the union asked that the university agree to recognize out-of-province TAs as unionized TAs at least for the time being, while courses are being offered online.
“Our preference would have been to find a solution without causing worry for our members; however, the University has made it clear that this won’t be possible,” the union shared.
“Our preference would have been to find a solution without causing worry for our members; however, the University has made it clear that this won’t be possible,” the union shared on their website.
As a TA living out-of-province during this school year, Angela Kruger expressed that it is frustrating for them to know that they have been excluded from the union by the university.
Kruger said they enjoy teaching and being able to share their knowledge with students; however, it’s unfortunate that the institution is also benefiting from this relationship while making things more difficult with the power they hold.
“If I wanted to say this is too much work for me, I don’t know what I would do and I don't know what grounds I would have. I do know who to talk to but I don’t know what they could do for me since I’m not considered part of the union,” said Kruger.
Kruger said that they have now had to postpone activities such as dental visits due to the lack of coverage they now receive following the exclusion.
Kruger also added that being able to organize TAs together has such immense value as TAs are often in a rather vulnerable position between the power dynamic with the university. Although it is important for them to stand up to power, circumstances from the pandemic such as rent and living expenses limit their options in negotiating with McMaster.
“To sacrifice a TAship or jeopardize your relationship with the university when you are trying to build a career in the university, is a relatively serious thing to consider doing. So yeah, I do think that it’s important to organize but I do think that as TAs there are multiple intersections of precarity that will necessarily inform whatever kinds of organizing efforts we are able to exert,” said Kruger.
The union has now filed a policy grievance, which is an official complaint, but this was denied by the university.
"Basically, McMaster found a loophole to exploit us,” said Mitra.
“It’s just completely unconscionable that the employer would use the pandemic to push people out of the union to weaken our collective power and to directly strip them of those benefits and protections. Basically, McMaster found a loophole to exploit us,” said Mitra.
The situation has been referred to arbitration and the union is working with CUPE National’s legal department to prepare for any next steps that might occur in the negotiations with McMaster.
Proctoring seen as a pro for some, but a con for others
As students and instructors find new ways to adapt to an online educational environment, methods of online assessment are something that also face major changes. The MacPherson Institute, McMaster University’s centre for teaching and learning, has shared many resources and suggestions for instructors to develop a remote teaching plan.
On the MacPherson website, there are also resources for assessment alternatives. A final exam can be a take-home exam and student presentations can be done online using Microsoft Teams or they can be recorded and posted on Avenue to Learn.
For instructors that wish to conduct final exams online through Avenue to Learn, MacPherson suggested different features, including presenting questions one-by-one or putting in time constraints for the exam.
Although not mentioned on the MacPherson website, many course outlines also state that professors have the option of using proctoring softwares for assessments. As noted on the Undergraduate Examinations Policy, instructors have the responsibility to specify the required electronic equipment and software at the beginning of the course.
Students have the responsibility to ensure that they have the necessary equipment and software required and any questions or considerations related to online examinations must be referred to an instructor no later than 10 days prior to an online examination.
For an online proctored exam, students must ensure they have equipment such as a webcam and additional software. Such software may require students to turn on their video camera, present identification, allow instructors to monitor and record the student's computer activities, as well as lock or restrict their web browser during assessments.
It has not been made clear to all students whether proctoring will be used for some of their courses.
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Clean D’Souza, a third-year actuarial and financial mathematics student, is one of the students who is unsure if his course examinations will be remotely proctored or not. D’Souza said that he doesn’t mind if it is proctored and that he believes proctoring has many benefits. He believes proctoring can help to separate those who are actually putting in the work to get their grades and those who decide to cheat.
Another third-year actuarial and financial mathematics student, Rimsha Laeeq, finished her first proctored examination on Oct. 5. Laeeq said that she did not mind having her examination proctored as it encouraged her to have greater focus during the test and to study harder beforehand. However, Laeeq expressed that proctoring was uncomfortable at times, including the fact that she had to show all of her surroundings to the camera and ensure she does not look away from the computer for too long.
Kinesiology professor Trevor King has opted for online open-book assessments through Avenue to Learn.
“I'm hoping to not use [proctoring softwares] because I think that it adds a lot of stress to an already stressful situation for students, so I don't want to add that on,” said King.
“I'm hoping to not use [proctoring softwares] because I think that it adds a lot of stress to an already stressful situation for students, so I don't want to add that on,” said King.
King also added that although professors have to consider whether students are truly understanding the content, an open-book assessment doesn’t necessarily hinder students from learning.
“[M]y thought is that a test is not really applicable to the real world in most situations and if you go out and have a problem to solve, in the real world, you're going to be able to look things up. [The ability to] quickly and effectively look things up is a very important skill that I think that students should have when they come out of university. So I think that an open book test makes way more sense than just having to memorize things.”
Professor Jennifer Ostovich of the department of psychology, neuroscience and behavior, has also taken a different approach to assessments this year.
Ostovich has decided that rather than a traditional approach to grading, she will use specifications grading.
Specifications grading is an approach in which course assessments and assignments are broken down into pass or fail tasks. To achieve a certain grade, students would have to pass certain tasks, and for different grade levels, there will be a different combination of tasks to ensure students reach the appropriate level of understanding.
For example, weekly quizzes are divided into two different types and to achieve a higher grade, students would have to complete a higher ratio of one type of quiz versus another. In addition to weekly quizzes, there are also assignments students can complete and a greater number of completions is required for a higher grade.
Ostovich expressed hope that with this new approach, students can feel that they retained more of the material and stress less about achieving certain grades on their assignments.
When asked about potential student collaboration on assessments, Ostovich expressed that collaboration can be beneficial for student learning.
"Is it a bad thing for students to talk to one another and learn that way? I don’t think it is."
“With any of the online testing options, that’s been the concern: that no matter what we do, students will collaborate. . . We have to set up a system in which it doesn't matter if students are collaborating, because you can't stop it right?. . . Is it a bad thing for students to talk to one another and learn that way? I don’t think it is. But you have to set up your assessment strategy so that that's not a big deal if it happens and that's what I've tried to do.”
Students shouldn’t need accommodations for a course because they should be accessible to begin with
This week, I had a very pleasant meeting with one of my course instructors and it made me wonder: why can’t courses be set up in a way that is accessible to begin with?
Let me backtrack a bit. I’m registered with Student Accessibility Services, which is a service that allows you to request accommodations for your courses. To receive your accommodations, you must register and confirm your accommodations every term. Once you register, an accommodation letter is sent to your instructor and you are expected to communicate with your instructor about your accommodations. This is to ensure any details of your accommodations are taken into consideration and that you and your instructor are on the same page.
This can be a tedious process and if I’m being honest, I often forget to schedule a meeting with my course instructors. Unfortunately, this avenue is the only way to access “formal” accommodations from the university and as a result, many disabled students are left advocating for their needs.
Last week, I set up a meeting with my instructor. I was very nervous to meet her as I have had issues with accommodations in the past. Yet, I felt a glimmer of hope — the course had lecture transcripts, which is not something I’ve seen in any of my other courses in the past three years that I’ve attended McMaster University. With in-person classes, many lectures were not podcasted and if they were, they were rarely captioned and never had a transcript. Online classes have obviously been better with recording lectures, but many of them are still not captioned.
Yet, I felt a glimmer of hope — the course had lecture transcripts, which is not something I’ve seen in any of my other courses in the past three years that I’ve attended McMaster University.
As I mentioned previously, the meeting was great. My instructor was very kind, understanding of my situation and made sure to ask me if she could alter anything about the course to make it better for me. She asked me if I needed a notetaker, but I mentioned that the lecture transcripts were very helpful — maybe even better than having course notes. I brought up my concerns surrounding the quizzes and exam, as one of my accommodations included extra time and I wasn’t sure if that would be accounted for on Avenue to Learn. But she assured me that the quizzes were not timed and that the exam was a take-home exam. She also let me know that if I needed any extensions on assignments to just let her know a few days beforehand and that it would be no problem to grant an extension.
When we started discussing the course as a whole, she mentioned something that gave me an interesting perspective on course accessibility. My instructor told me that she could empathize with my disability as she also took medication for anxiety. She let me know that because of her experience with mental illness, she tried to set up the course in the way that she would have liked to take it as someone with anxiety. This meant providing transcripts, offering untimed quizzes and being lenient with deadlines. Since she set the course up this way, I didn’t really need to use my accommodations because I was already accommodated for.
During this meeting, I felt like I was able to sigh a breath of relief. I hadn’t realized until now how often I had to advocate for accommodations. Sometimes it would be just a meeting, but sometimes I had to contact my SAS coordinator because my instructor refused to accommodate me. For this class, though, my instructor considered students’ disabilities when designing the course. Accommodations were considered not as an afterthought but during the preparation of the course. As a result, I didn’t need to push for my needs to be heard because the course was accessible to begin with.
Accommodations were considered not as an afterthought but during the preparation of the course.
This made me reflect on other courses I’ve taken throughout my undergraduate career. Most courses I’ve taken were not set up in a way that I didn’t really need to use my SAS accommodations; they were more of an afterthought. If you had accommodations, the instructor would find a way to incorporate them into the course. Otherwise, the course would just run as the instructor intended it to be, even if the course is inaccessible.
I’m grateful to have SAS accommodations. If a course isn’t set up in a way that is accessible for me, I can meet with my instructor and figure out an accommodation plan. But not everyone who needs accommodations is able to use SAS. If you don’t have accommodations, it’s up to you to figure out how to make the course accessible, whether that’s through asking your peers for notes or asking your instructor for extensions even though you don’t have an official letter to back up your disability.
Although this is the norm right now, it shouldn’t be. We’re paying to take these courses, so instructors should make sure that we are able to take the course. The responsibility of making courses accessible should not fall on disabled students. Instead, courses should be set up in a way that considers disability. Offering accommodations is a good start, but we should strive to make courses accessible to begin with.
A list of ways for students to adjust to online classes
The start of the 2020-2021 school year has been an adjustment for many students. This adjustment period may continue into the winter semester now that classes are confirmed to be online. As you start to prepare for midterms and major assignments, here are some tips to help you move forward in a virtual learning environment.
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Creating the ideal study space
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Attending virtual classes
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Keep up your good study habits
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Ask for help
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Cultivate community
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Take care of yourself
This year is going to be strange. We’re all learning how to manage this new situation and it’s not going to happen overnight. It will take the time it takes, so be patient and kind with yourself as you navigate your virtual university experience.
