Covid-19 update: September 2021 Teaching Activities Organizational Plan

Covid-19 update: September 2021 Teaching Activities Organizational Plan

In compliance with the ministerial order (18 June 2021) collocating all the italian regions in the “white zone”, the following plan regulating teaching and curricular activities from 1 September 2021 may be adjusted on the basis of the national health situation.


Lessons in Presence

The teaching activities will be carried out primarily in presence, up to the maximum number of seats available in each classroom, already identified in compliance with safety protocols aimed at the protection of the health of all members of the university community.

Protocols available at infostudenticovid.uniroma2.it. *

The control of the accesses will be guaranteed through a compulsory reservation on the Delphi online platform, restricting the access to the available seats for each classroom.

The reservation of the on-site lessons through the Delphi system will be accepted starting 4 days prior to the date of the lesson in which one intends to participate until the day before or, in any case, until there are no more seats available. The online reservation also implies that the student must sign a self-certification on the state of health and compliance with the rules imposed by university safety protocols.

The possibility of participating online will be guaranteed to all students through a live streaming of the lectures.

Furthermore, teachers are required to carry out the lessons face-to-face. Also, the name of the teacher actually present in the classroom on the reference day must always be shown.


Exams

Exams will be conducted in presence. However, there will also be an online exam call, in order to ensure that all students have the opportunity to take exams (should they be unable to take exams in person on campus due to proven reasons such illness resulting from Covid, or if they can provide medical certification that they are in quarantine, or for foreign students who are prevented from returning to Italy).

The checks on the truthfulness of the declarations will be carried out exclusively by the central administration. Certifications/documentations cannot be requested by Professors. It should be noted that no exam can be carried out in the teachers’ office, but only and exclusively in the classrooms of the Faculty/Macroarea already set up with the defined spacing. Students will be able to access all the exam calls within each exam session.

In compliance with the art. 1 paragraph 10 letter v) of the D.P.C.M. January 14th, 2021, to the safeguard of students who are unable to participate at the ‘didactic or curricular activities’, these activities can be carried out, where possible, remotely, also having regard to the specific needs of students with disabilities and students with specific learning disabilities;

where deemed necessary, and in any case by identifying the relative methods, the recovery of educational activities, as well as curricular activities, or any other test or verification, even intermediate, which are functional to the completion of the educational path will be ensured;

the absences of the students are not counted for the purposes of the possible admission to final exams as well as for the purposes of the relative evaluations.

For mainly remote courses, it will be possible to maintain the exams online through the Teams platform and the procedures already active at the University.


Graduation Sessions

The graduation session will be conducted in presence, allowing up to a maximum of four accompanying persons for each student.  This method can be implemented as long as the distance and any other safety measures related to the number of undergraduates are guaranteed.

Students may present the thesis dissertation remotely in the case of a justified request – for example if they are currently unable to be on-site for proven reasons such as illness resulting from Covid or if they can provide medical certification that they are in quarantine, or for foreign students who are prevented from returning to Italy.

The checks on the truthfulness of the declarations will be carried out exclusively by the central administration. Certifications/documentations cannot therefore be requested by Professors.


International Students

1. Enrollment for International Students with a STUDY VISA
Due to the persistence of the COVID-19 emergency situation, the physical mobility of international students arriving in Italy may be slowed down, or there may be delays in obtaining a study visa.

In order to ensure regular enrollment procedures, international students will be required to pre-enroll in the 2021/22 academic year in order to access and attend the online lessons. The enrollment will be formalized only after checking the truthfulness of the original documentation presented at the University and a valid Italian residence permit.

2. Submission of the Graduation Request for International Students Currently Abroad
International students must have a valid Italian residence permit in order to be able to complete the graduation request through the Delphi online platform. International students who are currently abroad and whose residence permit has expired will be allowed to complete the graduation request even in the absence a valid residence permit in the event that they are unable to apply for renewal due to the continuing pandemic emergency.


Safety Regulations

In accordance with the principle of individual and collective safety, the presence in the University areas can only be allowed according to the following rules that students are required to respect under their personal responsibility:

1. wash your hands frequently with soap and water or use the special dispensers of sanitizing solutions;

2. if you have symptoms of fever (over 37.5 °), cough, breathing difficulties or other symptoms such as myalgias, ageusia (lack of taste) and anosmia (loss of smell), you must stay at your home and contact your own doctor immediately or, in case of severe symptoms, the emergency number 118;

3. keep the distance of at least 1 meter from the person next to you and avoid crowding situations;

4. in the classrooms, occupy only the seats allowed, marked by appropriate signs, in order to maintain an interpersonal distance of at least 1 meter;

5. wear a mask and proceed with frequent ventilation when you are in the university common areas (classrooms, laboratories, etc.);

6. avoid shaking hands and hugs and touching eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands;

7. respect the information signs (entry and exit routes and those provided for indoor movements), in order to implement the most effective measures to prevent gatherings;

8. sneeze and cough by covering the nose and mouth with the crook of the elbow or with disposable facial tissues.

Anyone who becomes aware of any positive cases of COVID-19 among those who have had access to the University is required to immediately inform the Covid 19 University Coordinator.


Libraries

Access to the libraries will take place ensuring safety and physical spacing for a predetermined number of seats which must be made by reservation in the manner shown on the web page of each library; in the same way, a consultation service for paper documentation is available.

Opening hours, contact details and any other useful information can be found on the relevant websites. At each library there are sanitizing devices to allow students to access with their own material after disinfecting it.


Laboratories and Complex Structures

The laboratory managers regulate, through shifts, access to shared laboratories to the various division and allocation of spaces, in agreement with the Director of the Department, in compliance with the indications provided in the Protocols and any specific directives issued by the University.

In order to ensure the physical spacing required by regulations, alternative methods must be provided for sample delivery or collection of results, mainly not in person (e.g. results sent by email, sharing of data folders, workstations outside the laboratories to deposit samples).

A maximum number of people including the technician who can be present in the laboratory at the same time must be established, in relation to the free surface of the room, the need for movement typical of laboratory work and the instruments present.

For situations where there are fixed workstations (e.g., fume hoods, weighing rooms, etc.) that do not allow to respect the distances, it is necessary to provide for alternate workstation occupancy or shifts. The maximum number of people who can access at the same time must be indicated on the laboratory door. For further details, please refer to the University Guidelines, available at infostudenticovid.uniroma2.it *


Internships, Laboratory Activities, Exercises

Internships, laboratory activities, exercises, will take place in presence with the University safety and prevention protocols.


PhD Students

The training activities of the PhD students will take place in the presence; also research and laboratory activities will be allow in presence.


NOTE: At the same link infostudenticovid.uniroma2.it it is also available both the “Protocol of the management of the confirmed and suspected cases of Covid-19 inside the university classrooms” issued by the Minister of University and Research, and the map of the entry and exit routes and indication of the temperature control (Thermo-scanner), as well as support services for students, in each Faculty / Macroarea.


N.B. This article is translated from the Italian website.