Law Schools

Is Zoom A Classroom?

I have some questions for university counsel, administrators, and the ABA.

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Dear Deans, Provosts, Presidents, University Counsel, and, of course, the ABA:

I am writing to request some information. It has been a crazy time, and I think we have all operated well in keeping the wheels of education turning. However, as we move forward out of this semester, I have some concerns about the dominant method of communicating materials to our students. I think we should give this some thought.

You see, a lot of my colleagues opted for synchronous learning (“Zoom classes”) while I opted for asynchronous learning (“not Zoom”). I feel some peer pressure. So, I thought I would write this blog post to ask some serious questions about Zoom pedagogy because I will be adopting it next semester (if we are still online at that point).

I don’t know the answers myself. But I thought I’d ask the questions.

  1. A student cleaned their gun on Zoom during class. If that happened to me, could I discipline the student? Even though they are in their own apartment? If I work for a state university, can I boot them off the screen without fear of raising a constitutional concern?
  2. A professor accidentally left a tab open to his porn while sharing his screen (just the tab showing). He was fired. What if a student does that during a presentation? Are they subject to university regulations? Can I be fired for having a tab open to a museum website with Renaissance paintings? How about an NRA website? A Joe Biden or Donald Trump campaign website?  Can a student be dismissed for doing the same thing?
  3. A student puts on a shirt that says something racist. Can I turn off their video? If so, do I suffer First Amendment issues if I work for a state university?
  4. Will a foreign LLM lose their status because all of the courses are online and may not count as a “full course of study” in the future?
  5. Does Zoom comply with ADA regulations? Are their greater challenges for some in using zoom that creates an unfair imbalance in educational opportunities?
  6. What research demonstrates that, during a time of crisis, synchronous learning is superior to asynchronous learning? How about just research suggesting synchronous is better than asynchronous?
  7. Is there research about Zoom being the equivalent of face-to-face instruction? There seems to be literature out there suggesting Zoom is more exhausting even if the professor is delivering the exact same lecture they would in a live classroom setting.
  8. If a student complains about my Zoom lecture, will you have my back or are you now so worried about tuition dollars that no matter what I do it will be wrong?
  9. There are serious issues with respect to security and Zoom. Have you examined the FERPA issues related to this or no? I just remind you here that the “S” in Zoom stands for security, ha ha! Not only am I concerned about FERPA, I’m concerned about broader security issues such as webcam spying.
  10. Just going forward, some students have expressed concern about getting credit for online classes via asynchronous learning. Is it your position that Zoom classes will absolutely meet ABA standards after this semester? Also, some law schools were completely asynchronous. Do you expect the ABA to put them on probation?
  11. There is a broader issue with respect to students of lower socio-economic status (SES). You might recall that when we speak of students of lower SES, they might have difficulties with reliable Wifi, or even having a reliable laptop. Some may even share their laptop across family members who may need it for child instruction, other work, etc. They may hold jobs or need a new one because of the crisis. Does the ABA and law school push toward Zoom undermine all of our talk about equity?
  12. Does the FBI warning about [racist, sexist, and pornographic] Zoombombing raise any concerns for you all?
  13. What legal risk do I face as host of a classroom meeting if a third party Zoombombs something offensive?
  14. Are some students unable to access the technology to the point of feeling abandoned?
  15. Some students lack childcare in this new COVID-19 world. What guidance have you given faculty about encouraging parents in the Zoom classroom?  What advice are we giving students about paying attention during a Zoom class while their children might need attention in the background? By the way, can I ban student family members from “auditing” the class?
  16. Have you given any guidance to faculty members about the potential for having a “Charlie Kirk” moment? Should we be careful and record to protect ourselves?
  17. Online classes require small class sizes. Will we be reducing class sizes to accommodate? I hear effective Zoom requires a class size of fewer than 30 students.
  18. Is it your view that the Zoom courses are temporary? Or give the budget cuts are you looking at using this as a means to kill tenure and perhaps lower your faculty payroll?
  19. Suppose I teach in Virginia, and I have a student who is sheltering in California. I am requiring that student to get up at 6 a.m. for my 9 a.m. class, correct? Any problem with that?
  20. If a student refuses to turn their cam on because of privacy concerns, and I mark them absent, what are the legal ramifications?
  21. What if I want to record my class, and a student refuses who resides in a two-party consent state? Will my blanket syllabus consent defend against state criminal charges?

You’ll see that many of the questions relate to one another as well. I’ll await your response. Again, I don’t have any answers, nor am I seeking to serve on any Zoom committee. I’m just wondering.

Very truly yours,

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LawProfBlawg

PS: I forgot to preface this with “this isn’t my area of expertise,” in case that wasn’t obvious.

LawProfBlawg is an anonymous professor at a top 100 law school. You can see more of his musings here. He is way funnier on social media, he claims. Please follow him on Twitter (@lawprofblawg) or Facebook. Email him at lawprofblawg@gmail.com. 

 

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