Online Class Supporters Program (2020 A Semester)

Notifications

• 2020/10/4: We apologize that allocating the class supporters has been delayed because the number of applicants is much less than the number of what the lecturers need.
• 2020/9/11: We started A semester’s class supporter system.
• 2020/9/11: We now process the payment of class supporters on S semester.We apologize for your inconvenience. Click on the previous information here

Important！！
If you want to access the forms below, please log in office 365 in advance. Please refer to this link and you can get the office 365 licence. In addition, Please refer to the checksheet whether you can log in to your account. You can also find video clips to set-ups. Still you cannot access the office 365, please contact the manager of the class supporters (See the end of this page).

What is a Class Supporter?

Every undergraduate / graduate student and postdoctoral researcher belonging to the University of Tokyo can become Class Supporters. The job of Class Supporters is to support the lecturers’ online courses. If you are interested in availing the Class Supporer, please read carefully the text below to understand the system of the class supporter.

Aims and the Goal of Class Supporters

• Class Supporters are NOT a TA. We do not expect that Class Supporters work hard as well as TAs are supposed to do.
• We aim to match the lectures and the Class Supporters as soon as possible.
• We also aim to make interdisciplinary connections through the system of the Class supporter.
• The budget of the Class supporter system is independently of any departments. Therefore, all lecturers can be allocated to the Class Supporter without any budget restrictions of their department.
• The lectures can hire both Class Supporters and TAs. However, if there are TAs already at your online class, the Class Supporters may not be necessary.

The Work for Class Supporter (Examples of the expected work)

• The Class Supporter will prepare for the online classes and/or the hybrid classes with the lecturers outside of class hours. Here is the example below:

  • check the audio settings
  • check how the camera works
  • check how the screen works when using online meeting systems.
  • communicate how the hybrid class carries out with the lectures.

• Class Supporters will intervene when you find some fundamental troubles at your class as follows:

  • If class supporters realize the lecturers mute, please say “Teacher, I cannot hear your voice/ see your shared screen. Please unmute/ reset your shared screen.”
  • Checking chat sent by the students. (Depending on the class style)
  • The job of class supporters, in a word, is to prevent from occuring the worst case of happening (e.g. the lecturers spoke 30 minutes without noticing theri unmute)
  • The Class Supporter masters the very fundamental troubleshooting on the online conference systems.

• Collecting information regarding online conference systems and sharing with it, if the Class Supporter affard to do.

  For example:

  • The Class Supporter “I received the notification of the Zoom update last night.”
  • The Class Supporter “I found information at utelecon.”

• Hybrid classes that require class supporters to come to school should take in consideration whether the class supporter student can commute to campus or not.

• Caution: As a premise,the amount of work as class supporters should not be hard and, therefore, the class supporter should be able to take classes as well as a student.

List of non-expected duties as a Class Supporter

• We do not expect that Class Supporters master anything about the online conference systems. Therefore, the lecturers should understand the online conference systems and know how to set the systems.
• We do not expect that Class Supporters totake a movie and follow the lecturers move in front of the blackboard.
• We do not expect that Class Supporters cope with all troubleshooting on the online conference system (e.g. Some students cannot enter the online classroom or cannot hear the lectures voice).(Of course, we do not think that the lecturers should cope with all troubles at the online classroom.)

What the Class Supporters duty is (1) to prepare for the online classes with the lecturers and (2) to cope with the problems if the lecturers do not notice them (e.g. Audio trouble, forget to unmute).If the lecturers want Class Supporters to do some more duties, please consent to the Class Supporter or hire another person as a TA. Lecturers should not ask the duties no more than 10 hours including 2 hour training sessions.

How to Find a Class Supporter? (For Lecturers)

There are two ways to find Class Supporters.

Lectures find the Class Supporter on their own.

1. Please fill in this Class Supporters Application form.
   • You cannot designate those who do not register for a student at the University of Tokyo, including the people who complete doctoral coursework at the University of Tokyo but do not have a student registration.
   • International students are required to have “the permission to engage in activity other than that permitted under the status of residence previously granted”．
2. After a short time, the lecturers will receive the approval notification. The Class Supporters can start their duty before receiving the approval notification.
   • After approving, we will send two types of forms to lectures. One is to confirm how to undergo the payment, so that the students must fill in the form. The students who become a Class Supporter also have this form but please ask them whether they fill in and submit the form. Another is to report to notify the completion of the Class Supporters’ duty. The lecturer should fill in this form after finishing their duty.
3. Please submit the latter form after finishing their job because we cannot pay for a Class Supporters reward unless the lectures submit this form.

Lecturers aks for help to find Class Supporters

1. Please fill in the Class Supporter Request form.
2. We will find the Class Supporter who can match your request in the classroom. If we find the Class Supporter based on your request, then we will send you an email to notify who will be the Class Supporters.
   • Please contact your Class Supporter as soon as you receive our message．
   • After receiving an approved email from us, we will send two types of forms to lectures. One is to confirm how to undergo payment so that the students must fill in the form. The students who become a Class Supporter also have this form but please ask them whether they fill in and submit the form. Another is to report to notify the completion of the Class Supporters’ duty. The lecturer should fill in this form after finishing their duty.
3. Please submit the latter form after finishing their job because we cannot pay for a Class Supporters reward unless the lectures submit this form.

Important Notice

• The lecturers should apply for the Class Supporter System by November 30 in A semester 2020, through the application form．
• If the lecturers find the Class Supporter on your own, please consent the students to these conditions below.
  • Reward is 13000 Yen for each class.
  • The maximum working hour is 10 including 2 hour training sessions outside of the class.
  • Payment will take 2 months after the Class Supporter finished their duties.
• Class Supporters will take the training session about 2 hours to understand what the Class Supporter should do and not do at the class. However, the Class Supporters are not necessary to have high-level IT skills. We expect that the Class Supporter is willing to help the lecturers’ online class and that those who participate in the online class can support without any high-level IT skills.
• Lecturers contact their Class Supporters to share what to do at their class within 8 hours (deducting 2 hour training from 10 hour total working hours). Class preparations and duties at the classes are included in 8 hours. We expect that the duty of the Class Supporters in the class is not so heavy that the Class Supporters are able to take their class as well. Therefore, the lectures do not have to count as the Class Supporter’s working hour in the class.
• International students cannot work in total more than 28 hours / week.Therefore, please pay attention not to exceed 28 hours / week.
• International students are required to have “the permission to engage in activity other than that permitted under the status of residence previously granted.” If the international students do not acquire the permission, please proceed as soon as possible. In addition, international students who on a leave of absence cannot acquire the permission so that such students cannot be a Class Supporter.

A series of Duties and Important points as a Class Supporters (For Student)

• We do not ask Class Supporters to adapt to IT skills. Class Supporters participate in the class and are willing to help with their lectures. In addition to that, We expect that Class Supporters are willing to acquire how to use the online conference systems, if necessary. Therefore, if you are interested, please apply to the Class Supporter as long as you can help with your lectures.
• If the lectures ask you to become the Class Supporter, the lecturers have to fill inthe Class Supporters Application form.
  • After the application form is approved, you receive the form for payment. Please fill in the form as soon as possible.
  • Please watch the video clips at the Class Supporter’s web page here. Watching this video are considered to be 2 hour training sessions. If you become a Class Supporter more than 2 classes, you just watch the video only once. If you take the training session on S semester 2020, you do not have to watch the video again. You do not have to notify or prove watching the video. However, PLEASE watch the video for understanding your duties.
• After you finished your duties as a Class Supporter, the lecturers will submit the report for finishing Class Supporters’ duties. The form submitted by the lecturers is required to complete the payment, so please confirm with your lecturer the report submission.
• If you are interested in becoming Class Supporters for a class you do not take, please submit a Class Supporters’ application form and then we will match the lectures who look for the class supporter and you. Note that in response to the conditions of the class (e.g. day and hour of the class) , we will allocate you a class. Therefore, even if you wish to become a Class Supporter, we cannot allocate you as a Class Supporter.

Contact us

Class supporters Management class-support@he.u-tokyo.ac.jp