Australian National University vice-chancellor Ian Young has backed away from cuts to tutorials across the College of Arts and Social Sciences - instead referring the matter for a formal review.
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Professor Young wrote to students on Tuesday morning saying, ''I understand the proposed changes within CASS would represent a significant change from the traditional approach, and as such need to be carefully considered.''
Students within the college were informed last Wednesday an executive decision had been made to phase out tutorials in favour of large interactive workshops and forums - but there was widespread opposition from undergraduates and postgraduates as well as the National Tertiary Education Union.
Professor Young said on Tuesday he had asked Professor Marnie Hughes-Warrington, the deputy vice-chancellor (academic), ''an acknowledged expert on educational delivery and quality assurance'' to chair the review, which would also have external expert representation. It would report back to Professor Young by mid-September.
''This review will enable all educational elements of the proposed changes to be carefully considered. In the meantime, classes will continue as normal in the format selected by your lecturer,'' Professor Young said.
Students from the ANU Education Action Group have meanwhile organised a rally next Thursday against budget cuts across the university - including cuts to CASS they believe are behind the tutorial changes. The group said on its Facebook page ''The tutorial experience is central to university life and is a vital forum for the exchange and development of ideas''.
CASS Associate Dean Royston Gustavson wrote to students last week defending the forum approach, saying, ''Such a model reconfigures current contact hours in a way that is intended to have a positive educational impact. Such forums/workshops are typically run by the course lecturer, rather than tutors, thereby giving students a significantly increased opportunity to interact with their lecturer.
''Nevertheless, it is recognised that any change process can be difficult for those who are going through it.''
He also warned that for courses that continued to use tutorials ''funding constraints may see tutorial sizes increase from 15 to 20 students, but such a tutorial size has been standard in some other parts of the university for many years''.
He also cited the successful use of forums by other academics including political science lecturer John Minns.
But Dr Minns subsequently wrote to students saying, ''I do not use forums as a replacement for tutorials. I'm still offering tutorials because some students operate better in smaller groups and because some kinds of work - planning an essay question, a role play etc - is probably managed better in a tutorial size group.''
Professor Young said he encouraged ''educational innovation and most universities around the world are presently investigating how traditional education will change as a result of advancing technology''.
National Tertiary Education Union ACT division secretary Stephen Darwin welcomed the backdown on tutorials but said the move was entirely due to cost-cutting. ''Regardless of the outcome of the review, the ANU must provide proper funding for the continuation of proper teaching within the college,'' he said.
The union was seeking a meeting with chancellor Gareth Evans to discuss the failure of enterprise bargaining negotiations. A proposal to initiate protected action will be put to a member ballot at a campus meeting on August 20.
