The many burdens of the new academic year

After concluding one of the most complex academic years in the recent history of education in Cuba, September arrived bringing major challenges. These challenges are putting immense pressure on staff across all levels and specialties as they strive to carry through another term—one that was predicted to be grueling long before it even began.

The University of Medical Sciences of Sancti Spíritus is not immune to challenges that arise in the blink of an eye; setbacks emerge daily—some expected, others taking everyone by surprise. While remote instruction is not new to the country, the COVID-19 pandemic did not yield only negative outcomes; indeed, these experiences were lived firsthand during the second semester of the previous academic year.

No one denies that the best learning takes place face-to-face with professors in the classroom or laboratory. Consequently, the university—located in the Olivos 3 district of the city of Sancti Spíritus—has devised a schedule adapted to three modalities: in-person, hybrid, and remote.

Yet, no one is exempt from the realities of a context exacerbated by an absurd U.S. policy aimed at destroying this nation. The many tensions involved in imparting knowledge today are well understood both by the university’s own faculty and by those who have taken on this responsibility in the various municipalities.

Professionals across all care services are currently sharing their knowledge, covering both theoretical and practical aspects. Naturally, the situation is far more complex for those training outside the university, as they lack the full range of resources needed to grasp academic concepts, and there is not even a guarantee of reliable electricity across all institutions in the sector.