Tuesday, August 18, 2020

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• University provides update on Fall incidental fees
• IST issues reminder on campus phishing simulations
• Personalizing math tests during COVID-19

University provides update on Fall incidental fees

As COVID-19 continues to have a significant effect on the university experience of Waterloo students, University administrators and student leaders are working to ensure that students continue to have the support they need to keep working toward their degrees.

That was the message of a memo circulated to students, faculty and staff by Associate Provost, Students Chris Read and Director of Finance Sarah Hadley on Friday.

"Recognizing that we have changed some of our student services and that some are not accessible to students studying at a distance from our campuses, leaders from the Waterloo Undergraduate Student Association (WUSA), the Graduate Students Association (GSA) and the University have again reviewed all incidental fees," says the memo.

"This fall term, we will not charge a number of fees, including:

• WUSA fees for the Grand River Transit UPass
• WUSA fee for undergraduate Orientation  
• WUSA and GSA fees for specific student association and society fees 
• Fees related to Athletics and Recreation" 

"We will continue to charge fees that support our students’ learning and wellbeing," the memo continues. "These supports remain in place and many are still available to students who are not physically on campus."

Full details on fall 2020 incidental fees can be found on the Finance Department's website for undergraduate students and for graduate students.

Students can now see their fall 2020 fee bill in Quest and are invited to contact sfs@uwaterloo.ca with any questions related to fees or fee bills.

IST issues reminder on campus phishing simulations

A message from Information Systems & Technology (IST). 

Phishing attacks have consistently been the most prevalent cybersecurity threat faced by the University of Waterloo. These attacks typically take the form of a malicious email pretending to be from a credible source or organization related to the University. Attackers can use information they receive from targeted  individuals  to:  

• Steal money and modify banking information; 

• Perform identity theft; and 

• Launch further attacks from compromised accounts.  

While the University employs technology to help guard against these threats, user awareness is a critical element in defending against phishing attacks.   

Phishing simulations are a leading practice that allow organizations to measure the effectiveness of security awareness efforts and to re-enforce awareness of the threat, without harming the person or University resource. In Fall 2019, IST initiated phishing simulation campaigns with a group of 11 academic support units. This past May, IST expanded this activity to all faculty, staff, and students.  

What to expect  

If you have a University of Waterloo email account, you may  receive a simulated phishing  email  up to  three times per term. Should  you  follow the link in the email and enter any information on the website,  you  will be directed to a campus phishing simulation page hosted on IST’s Cyber Awareness website. Resources about phishing attacks  will  be available to  you there.  

Any and all data (e.g. passwords) entered by individuals who participate in this simulation will not be recorded and will not be disclosed by IST to anyone.  

What to do when you suspect a phish  

If you believe a phishing email has landed in your inbox, real or simulated, please  forward the message  as an attachment  to  soc@uwaterloo.ca.  

The best defence against phishing 

Setting up your account with two-factor authentication (2FA) is the most effective way to guard against phishing.  Here's how 2FA works: Logging into 2FA protected sites and applications is as simple as accepting a notification on your phone or plugging in a USB authenticator to your computer then pressing a button. That’s it. 2FA at Waterloo is powered by Duo.  

 The Duo mobile app is the recommended second factor solution for campus. The mobile app is very easy to use and provides the highest level of security of the available 2FA options. However, employees who would prefer not to download and use the Duo mobile app on a personal device may request an authenticator from IST.  Please visit our  2FA website  for more information. 

Personalizing math tests during COVID-19

By Jodi Szimanski. This is an excerpt of an article originally published on Waterloo Stories.

The start of the Spring Term, at the height of COVID, had instructors moving their courses to a remote format with students spread across time zones. It changed delivery, assignments and testing as in the case of Anton Mosunov, an award-winning lecturer in the Faculty of Mathematics who altered the MATH 135 midterm to an oral exam.

“In MATH 135, students are learning how to prove things; they’re learning to think. It’s a particular thought process that we’re trying to establish here,” Mosunov notes. “That’s why I thought the oral exam would actually be a good idea because they would show me how they can think and express their thoughts and show me their argumentation.”

Having completed his undergraduate degree in Russia, Mosunov only took oral exams.

Originally, he planned on both the midterm and final exams would be oral exams worth a combined weight of 40 per cent with the motivation to lessen opportunities for cheating. His motivation and other aspects of the exam soon changed. Beyond deterring cheating, Mosunov quickly recognized the benefit online, face-to-face exams could present by personalizing the connection between professor and student during their time apart. It also allowed him to attain a deeper understanding of their learning, where students would need to speak through their thought processes instead of being limited by written word on paper.

Mosunov consulted with former Assistant Dean, Online Studies Steve Furino, colleagues in the Centre for Extended Learning (CEL) and Diana Skrzydlo after attending a talk she gave. Skrzydlo is a continuing lecturer in the Department of Statistics and Actuarial Science and winner of Faculty of Math Distinction in Teaching Award in 2019. He reworked the format and the weight of the exam.

In addition, on the suggestion of CEL, Mosunov held a practice session in which two-thirds of the class participated. Those students experienced fewer issues, including technical difficulties, questions about the format and for some students, anxiety.

Read the rest of the article on Waterloo Stories.