Covid-19 Information

Please click '+' to expand or '-' to collapse the questions below. 

• I am a student registered with Disability Services. How do I access support?

  Support through Disability Services will be provided remotely.  You can either email your Disability Officer directly as usual, or alternatively email: disability.office@qub.ac.uk  

• I am registered with Disability Services and use Non-medical helper support. How do I access this now that the campus is largely operating remotely?

  Please be assured support is still available. 

  • Tutor support -  This may be provided remotely by video conferencing methods such as Skype, Zoom and Facetime.  Other students report this is working really well for discussion, sharing documents etc.
  • Proof Reader support - You may continue to liaise with your Proof Reader and exchange work via email.  
  • Library Assistant support -  There is a Library specific FAQs page.  This is being constantly updated to reflect the latest guidance, so please use this as your primary source of information.  Any student library loans during this closure period will have a global extension to 15th June meaning that no one will be penalised for missing their book loan return dates.
  • Note Taker support - As your Note Takers will not have access to Canvas, the best way to access video clips from online classes will be for you to liaise with the relevant lecturer/s to request that these are made available to you.  You should send the video link on to your Note Taker/s and they will then make notes from the video material as they normally would in a lecture scenario.

  Please note:  Lecturers are being asked to use Mediasite to prepare voiceovers to accompany their PowerPoints. Most lectures will be delivered in this way ie 'Slideshow and Audio'.  The other options are 'Screencast and Audio' (if the lecturer needs to move the mouse to point to information on screen etc) or 'Slideshow with Video' (where the students will see their lecturer talking to them). Once finalised, the lectures are then embedded in Canvas. If the lecturer selects ‘Everyone’ under ‘Who can View’, this means that the link may be copied by the student and shared with their Note Taker.

  Alternatively, if the lecturer selects ‘Only Shared Users’, and is provided with the email address of the relevant Note Taker by his/her student, he/she will be able to invite the Note Taker to share the presentation with them and this will be done by copying the link and sharing it via email.

  If you have any specific queries relating to non-medical helper support, please contact Kirsti Alexander by emailing: k.alexander@qub.ac.uk

• I would have availed of a Scribe / Reader for Exams. What support can I access for Alternative forms of Assessment? (Part 1)

  There is a range of Assistive Technology and Software (ATS) available to support you. 

  Many of our students will already be very familiar with the range of assistive technology and software (ATS) they can use to complete Alternative forms of Assessment from home.  However, those who normally receive one-to-one support may have some reservations / concerns. Please see below for a summary of the main ATS you may use in lieu of one-to-one support.

  Please note: If you have received your ATS but have not yet availed of the accompanying training, you are strongly encouraged to contact the approved trainer as soon as possible to make arrangements for remote training.  If you are unsure who the recommended trainer is (this will be detailed in their DSA2 letter).  Alternatively contact the Needs Assessment Centre at nac@qub.ac.uk for clarification.

  Alternative Supports

  Scribe support –Students may make use of voice dictation software that allows you to verbally dictate your answers to be converted to typed text. This software may be accessed as follows:

  1. Dragon Professional Individual V15– students in receipt of DSA may already be using this software for written composition. If you are not in receipt of DSA, please contact your Disability Officer for further guidance.
  2. Microsoft Office 365– Microsoft Office 365 comes with inbuilt voice dictation feature – see https://dictate.ms/

  Reader support – Students may use text to speech software. This will read aloud the text on your computer screen. This may be accessed as follows:

  1. Assistive software such as TextHelp Read and Write Gold or Claroread– students in receipt of DSA may already be using this software for text to speech. If you are not in receipt of DSA, please contact your Disability Officer for further guidance.
  2. Microsoft Office 365– Microsoft Office 365 has an inbuilt text to speech feature. Follow the link for further information relating to the accessibility functions available in Office 365: https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/Accessibility/office.

  Prompter support – If you normally receive Prompter support and have a timed exam through Canvas, you can arrange with your Prompter to ‘phone through with prompts as you work through the exam. Alternatively, you could set regular reminders or alarms on your phone which will alert you throughout your exam.

• I would have availed of a Scribe / Reader for Exams. What support can I access for Alternative forms of Assessment? (Part 2)

  Office 365

  All students have access to Microsoft Office 365 and it may be downloaded on to up to 5 devices:

  http://www.qub.ac.uk/directorates/InformationServices/Services/Office365Queens/

  As highlighted, Office 365 comes with inbuilt accessibility such as voice dictation and text-to-speech.  There are plenty of YouTube demonstration videos available to illustrate how to get started eg https://dictate.ms/

  If you have any further queries, please contact your Disability Officer directly or alternatively email us at disability.office@qub.ac.uk and we will be happy to assist you.

   

  If you require information regarding planning, writing or referencing assignments there is a range of very helpful guides on the Learning Development Service web pages

  https://www.qub.ac.uk/directorates/sgc/learning/LearningResources/

• I need additional supports for my upcoming exams but I am not registered with Disability Services, what should I do?

  Students with a disability or long term condition need to register with the service to receive support for exams.  Students should complete our online form and attach relevant medical evidence (see Guidelines for Medical Evidence) in order to register.  Disability Services staff will then contact you via email to arrange a time and date for an assessment.  The assessment could be carried out via telephone or online via Microsoft Teams. Please note that there is a cut-off date by which you must register with Disability Services in order for exam support to be guaranteed.  Cut-off dates will be advertised to all students during semester 2.

• I am registered with Disability Services do my reasonable adjustments apply during changes to the University’s teaching and assessment methods due to Covid-19?

  It is our aim, as far as possible, to build accessibility into our assessments so that you do not need to request a further adjustment.  However, if you receive details of an alternative assessment and think that you may require a reasonable adjustment, please contact your Disability Officer. If you are registered with Disability Services, your agreed reasonable adjustments and academic supports (as detailed in your Individual Student Support Agreement – ISSA) will continue to be applied where possible. Under the amended regulations your School will be aware of the additional needs of students at this time.

  Please note: If your School is unable to facilitate a required reasonable adjustment, you will receive a mark assigned by the Board of Examiners where possible. If the Board of Examiners decides that a mark cannot be assigned, you will be given the opportunity to complete the assessment under normal conditions, at the next available opportunity, for full marks and without any financial implications.