Vice chancellors have expressed their full commitment to making online classes and e-learning a success amid the closure of universities in the wake of situation created due to the COVID-19 crisis.

During the third Vice Chancellors Committee meeting held since the closure of universities due to the spread of COVID-19, the university heads reviewed the progress on universities' readiness to offer online classes to avoid academic loss. The meeting, conducted online through Microsoft teams, was attended by all the vice chancellors from across the country.

The vice chancellors expressed their resolve to accelerate their efforts, with the collaboration of the HEC, to enhance the quality of online classes, ensure the readiness of e-learning components, and contribute to the national effort against the prevailing crisis.

They appreciated the HEC for facilitating the universities in executing the Learning Management System (LMS).

They asserted that they are committed to resolving all the issues facing the students, faculty and administrative staff in making the LMS a success with the assistance of the HEC.

HEC Chairman Tariq Banuri stressed the need for immediate measures, on the part of the universities, to ensure readiness for online classes. He requested the vice chancellors to adopt and announce a formal policy and standard operating procedures for approval of online courses.

"If you think your courses are ready for online dissemination, please communicate in writing to HEC so that they may be brought into practice and made available for students." He emphasised that LMS have to be put into place before the start of online classes, in order to provide information, track progress, and coordinate activities.

Further, universities need to establish governance system for decision-making and adjudication of complaints.

He asked universities to assign responsibilities for authorisation of online classes to a dedicated decision making body, e.g., an "Online Academic Council".

He also requested vice chancellors to appoint focal points for COVID-19, online courses, and for technology support, and to collect and share data on online readiness as quickly as possible. The chairman HEC highlighted that the HEC uses the concept of "online readiness" to assess quality of online programmes.

This is measured in terms of a set of targeted requirements, covering LMS, course syllabuses, faculty training, libraries, technological options, examination arrangements, laboratory instruction, and above all the support for students.

He asked vice chancellors to satisfy themselves that all actions to prepare for online courses had been taken. "If there is any lapse, there should be readiness to address it." He underlined that: "each class has to be certified for readiness." All course elements must be uploaded on the LMS, which must contain introduction, learning objectives, textbooks, and assignments alongside a lesson plan and rules including grading policy. "The vice chancellors need to ascertain if the professor or teacher concerned has prepared themselves properly for this task." He said libraries must be enabled to provide course material through online means. "Universities need to make proper arrangements for students to access digital library from home."

He also shed light on various aspects of examination and evaluation system, including its objectives, textbooks, and assignments. He affirmed that detailed guidance on grading policies and evaluations systems will be finalised in a few weeks.

Describing faculty readiness, he stressed the need for faculty training. Faculty must take a recommended course, get IT help for a test run, revise syllabus for online availability, restructure lesson plan, and get students feedback and address their concerns. "Online teaching is completely different from face to face teaching, as it has different challenges and techniques."

However, he added, it also offers opportunities along with supportive resources. "We need to raise quality of teaching in general, but special attention needs to be paid to online teaching in the prevailing circumstances."