Section 1 Learning During a Pandemic

The CWRU Return to Campus website is found at https://case.edu/return-to-campus/.

Life is absolutely terrible right now. None of us are really okay. We’re all just pretending.

You most likely know people who have lost their jobs, have tested positive for COVID-19, have been hospitalized, or perhaps have even died. You all have increased (or possibly decreased) work responsibilities and increased care responsibilities - you might be caring for extra people (young and/or old!) right now, and you might be facing uncertain job prospects.

I’m fully committed to making sure that you learn everything you were hoping to learn from this class! I will make whatever accommodations I can to help you finish your labs, do well on your quizzes and projects, and learn and understand the class material. Under ordinary conditions, I am fairly flexible and lenient with grading and course expectations when students face difficult challenges. Under pandemic conditions, that flexibility and leniency is intensified. If you tell me you’re having trouble, I will not judge you or think less of you. I hope you’ll extend me the same grace.

You never owe me personal information about your health (mental or physical). You are always welcome to talk to me about things that you’re going through, though. If I can’t help you myself, I may know somebody who can.

If you need extra help, or if you need more time with something, or if you feel like you’re behind or not understanding everything, do not suffer in silence! Talk to us! We will work with you. I promise.

I want you to learn lots of things from this class, but I primarily want you to stay healthy, balanced, and grounded during this crisis.

Thanks to Andrew Heiss for a lot of the better words here.

1.1 Is COVID-19 part of the class?

The answer is, essentially, no.

Professor Love expects to provide some (completely optional for students) resources and reactions related to the news on COVID-19 and the presentation of visualizations and models for the pandemic. He may provide you with some (again, optional) links to outside resources, but

  • we will use no COVID-19 data in the class slides or discussion or course notes for examples
  • nor will we consider any 431 projects that make use of COVID-19 data.

1.2 What about other news, like the US Election?

Will Professor Love discuss the upcoming U.S. Elections, the Black Lives Matter movement, and other news events in class?

Yes, extensively. The FiveThirtyEight website will be a primary source for some of these discussions.

1.3 What if I get sick, or have to care for someone who is sick once the semester starts?

If you need to miss one session, or even two, just review the materials (including the recordings) and move on, and please feel encouraged to ask for help.

1.3.1 IN CASE OF EMERGENCY

If an emergency arises that will keep you from timely completion of work that has a deadline, like a lab, minute paper, or the like, send an email directly to Dr. Love saying the following:

I have an emergency that will keep me from completing (list things you’re worried about completing) in a timely fashion. I will contact you again when I am able to make plans.

  • Dr. Love will respond with “OK” and temporarily excuse you from things until you send a “re-connection” email to make plans for making up the work you missed, at which time he’ll evaluate the situation and together you can make that plan. At no time do you owe us any information about your health or the nature of the emergency.