See You on Campus | Tomohiro Ichinose, Dean of the Faculty of Environment and Information Studies
June 28, 2022
As I mentioned in the previous Okashira Nikki, Keio University has started holding most of its classes on campus this semester, but online classes are still being utilized. This spring semester, I am teaching classes in all formats: in-person, real-time online, hyflex (a combination of in-person and online), and on-demand. Each has its own advantages and disadvantages. Online classes do not require travel time, and if the internet connection is good, materials are easy to see and audio is easy to hear. In-person classes are rich in non-verbal information and provide opportunities for chance encounters and conversations with others before and after class. Hyflex is an ideal format in theory, but it requires a lot of preparation, and depending on the situation, both the in-person and online components can end up being half-hearted. On-demand allows students to watch videos anytime they want, but it is basically a one-way street. As a faculty and as individual instructors, we are moving forward while grappling with how best to combine these class formats. It is an undeniable fact that the COVID-19 pandemic has greatly expanded the new possibilities of online learning. On the other hand, it is genuinely heartening to see many students gathering on campus again after a long time, greeting each other and chatting here and there.
The same is true for events for high school students, in the sense that we can finally meet them in person. Just before this Okashira Nikki was published, on June 25, we held a faculty introduction at Keio Girls Senior High School, and on the 26th, we held a faculty information session for high school students at the Osaka City Campus . The open campus scheduled for August will be held both online and on campus. Also, the Camp for Designing the Future , to be held in August, will be conducted in person for the first time in three years, and we are also planning a new initiative where faculty and students will visit three locations: Kumamoto, Kochi, and Tottori prefectures. Campus tours for high school students had also been difficult, but they are now possible with certain infection control measures in place. For the past two years, even the Admissions Office (AO) entrance examinations were conducted online, and we were rarely able to have high school students visit the campus. We are finally able to say, "Please come to campus." Of course, information about SFC and the Faculty of Environment and Information Studies can be obtained in various ways without visiting the campus, and many students have enrolled in the past without ever having been here. However, this campus—with its large grounds, lush greenery, a space that students create for themselves, and where even drones can be flown—is one of our greatest assets. A new student dormitory will be completed on campus next spring . For all high school students interested in the Faculty of Environment and Information Studies, I truly hope you will visit our campus.
Detailed information about the open campus in August will be released in early July on the following site:
Open Campus & Events | Keio University Shonan Fujisawa Campus (SFC)