Learning & Teaching Collaborative Resources

Include a communication policy in your syllabus that tells students what forms of communication you will use to inform them of important information about the course, including class cancellations and how the course will proceed if the campus were to close. The policy should also detail expectations for students to receive communications: regularly checking email or other communication channels, setting appropriate notification preferences in Canvas, logging in to Canvas on a regular basis, etc.

Possible solutions:

• Email
• Canvas Announcements (How do I add an announcement in a course?)

Note: Canvas allows users to receive notifications via a variety of contact methods (text message, alternate email address, etc.). Encourage your students to customize their preferences to receive important notifications in the method that would be most effective for them (How do I set my Canvas notification preferences as a student?).

Let your students know how they will be able to access readings and other materials or resources that they will need. 

Possible solutions:

• Canvas Files (How do I use Files as an instructor?) and Modules (How do I add a module?)
• Email

Note: Canvas Modules allow you to group and organize content in Canvas--such as files, pages, assignments, or discussions--in a way that makes sense for you and your students to make it easier to find and access the correct materials.

Let your students know how they will be able to submit required assignments or other materials to you.

Possible solutions:

• Canvas Assignments (How do I create an assignment?)
• Email

Note: If work needs to be done on paper--and/or can’t be done electronically without tools or training that students don’t have access to--(e.g., drawing, notation, or special symbols that are not easily produced with a keyboard) students can complete the work on paper and scan or photograph it for submission; presentations and other oral assignments can be recorded and the recordings shared or submitted electronically.

Consider alternate methods to share material that you planned to present in a face-to-face class meeting.

Possible solutions:

• Create and share a narrated screencapture recording with Kaltura/My Media
• Create a narrated PowerPoint file
• Zoom videoconferencing
• Share written notes (in Microsoft Word, pdf, or other format) via Canvas or email

Note: If you plan to record a presentation that is longer than 15-20 minutes, it is recommended that you split it into several files instead of one long video.

Consider how you and your students can continue interactive discussions if you are unable to meet in person. 

Possible solutions:

• Canvas Discussions (How do I create a discussion as an instructor?) for asynchronous discussion
• Zoom videoconferencing for synchronous discussion

Note: Videoconferencing may be more challenging technologically and logistically (if schedules or access to high speed internet pose problems) than asynchronous, text-based discussions, so consider holding Zoom sessions only when real-time interaction is particularly important.

Plan how you will be able to offer individualized real-time support for students if you can't hold face-to-face office hours.

Possible solutions:

• Zoom videoconferencing
• Telephone

Note: You can schedule virtual office hours by planning times that you will be logged into Zoom and available for any student who wants to talk with you or schedule individual appointments (or both).

If you planned to use in-class quizzes, tests, or exams to assess students' learning, consider how you will manage that assessment if you are not able to hold face-to-face class sessions.

Possible solutions:

• Canvas Quizzes (What quiz types can I create in a course?)
• Essay-based tests can be submitted as a Canvas Assignment (How do I create an assignment?) or by email

Note: As with other types of activities, quizzes or tests designed for a face-to-face setting may require modification to be used online, so plan to spend time to consider possible modifications.

Plan to continue to provide regular feedback (and grades) so that you and your students can accurately monitor and assess their progress and learning in your course.

Possible solutions:

• Canvas Gradebook (How do I use the Gradebook?) and SpeedGrader (How do I use SpeedGrader?)
• Email

Note: While email can be a useful mechanism to share written feedback, it is strongly recommended that you use a tool like the Canvas Gradebook that allows students to access all of their grades and feedback in one place.

Creating a Communication Plan

In this session we discussed different types of communication that need to occur between instructors and students, communication channels available in a remote learning situation, and some of their potential strengths and weaknesses. We also discussed the importance of creating a plan for the tools you will use to communicate with students for different purposes, and sharing the plan with your students. The recording of this session, held March 23, 2020, on Zoom is below. There is also a link to the communication planning sheet.

Continuing Class Discussions

In this session we discussed strategies for continuing class discussions when your course is no longer meeting face-to-face in a physical classroom. Our discussion covered potential applications of synchronous (e.g., videoconferencing) and asynchronous (e.g., Canvas discussions) tools and effective practices for asynchronous online discussions. The recording of this session, held March 24, 2020, on Zoom is below. Below the video are links to of tips or guidelines for students participating in online discussions.

Examples of Tips/Guidelines for Students Participating in Online Discussions

• Online Discussions: Tips for Students (University of Waterloo Centre for Teaching Excellence)
• 10 Tips for Success in Online Discussions (Florida Tech)
• Discussion Board Basics and Discussion Board Netiquette (YouTube videos by byuicurdev)
• Netiquette Guidelines for Online Courses (Oklahoma State University Institute of Technology)

Adapting Assignments

In this session we discussed a process for adapting assignments to a remote/online learning environment, beginning by focusing on the goals of the assignment rather than the product. We also discussed the need to provide more explicit or formal scaffolding of assignments to provide feedback during the process. The recording of this session, held March 25, 2020, on Zoom is below. 

Engagement & Active Learning

In this session we discussed challenges with maintaining classroom community and continuing active learning with the move to remote/online learning. Our discussion covered a model for building and scaffolding engagement and community building online, as well as starting points and suggestions for incorporating active learning activities. The recording of this session, held March 26, 2020, on Zoom is below. 

Designing a Just-in-Case Lesson Plan

A just-in-case lesson is a lesson that you prepare ahead of time to be used in place of the regularly planned course activities in case of emergency, such as an unexpected cancellation of a face-to-face class meeting. 

Checklist for Just-in-Case Activities:

• The learning activity meets at least one course learning objective

• The activity is “evergreen”

• The activity could fit almost anywhere in the semester

• The activity includes a large out-of-class component

• The activity is not dependent on face-to-face interaction

Other desirable characteristics:

• Could be used for multiple different classes

• Skill-based

• Engaging

• Straightforward to complete (minimizing confusion and frustration)

Designing a Just-in-Case Activity

1. Select a content or skill area that is relevant to the course and supports course learning objectives, but is not tied to a particular point in the sequence of the course. (See examples of “Non-content” content areas below.)

2. Identify a learning objective for the activity that is aligned with one or more course objectives.

3. Plan a self-contained activity or activities that meets the learning objective and supports students in developing skills in the selected area.

Examples of “Non-content” Content Areas for Just-in-Case Activities

• Communication skills: writing, oral presentation, visual communication 

• Rhetorical skills: an ability to persuade others 

• Collaborative skills: an ability to work with others 

• Technological skills: an ability with a particular technology important to a discipline or career

• Graphic skills: tables, graphs, etc. 

• Mathematical/statistical skills 

• Research skills: abilities to read about and understand (and maybe conduct) particular kinds of research (surveys, ethnographies, textual analysis) 

• Analytical skills: abilities to analyze certain kinds of documents and/or situations  (medical, nutritional, psychological diagnoses; historical analyses) 

• Critical thinking skills: ability to think independently and maturely 

• Problem-solving skills 

• Cognitive skills: meta-cognition, reflection, self-reflection, self-motivation 

• Creativity: inventiveness 

• Professional dispositions 

• Ethical skills 

• Team-building Skills 

• Information literacy

Potential Activities at Different Levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy to Replace a Face-to-Face Class Meeting

Knowledge

• Ask students to complete an online multiple choice question check-in test before the start of next class

• Ask students to complete an online crossword puzzle that reinforces the main concepts from last class

• Ask students to find two resources that pertain to topic X and post these resources to the course LMS site

• Encourage students to spend the snow day getting ahead with reading, paper writing, or exam prep

Comprehension

• Ask students to listen to a podcast on topic X and to provide their own written interpretation on the class discussion board of its main message

• Ask students to create a concept map that shows how the main themes from a previous in-class discussion relate to one another

• Ask students to contribute keywords to a set of searchable keywords for a series of articles posted on the course LMS site

• Record a mini-lecture using a program like Kaltura, Jing, or Screencast-O-Matic, or a web conferencing tool (e.g., Blackboard Collaborate, Adobe Connect, WebEx, GotoMeeting) and upload your video to a site like YouTube or Vimeo for student viewing.  Direct students to watch your video content and respond with questions via email or a discussion board post

Application

• Ask students to participate in an online simulation

• Ask students to pose three questions to the class discussion board that shows their application of the central themes of context X to context Y; have students respond to each other’s questions

• Ask students to find an online headline news article that illustrates a key concept discussed in class; have students post newspaper article to the course LMS site and explain to the class how the article demonstrates the concept

• Ask students to participate in an online resources scavenger hunt 

• If appropriate for your discipline, consider assigning students to complete modules from Khan Academy (topics include math, science, arts & humanities, economics & finance, and computing, among others); instructors who create a profile can “add students” to track progress

Analysis

• Ask students to compare the blog posts of author X and author Y on topic A in a blog post of their own on the course LMS site

• Ask students to conduct their own data analysis on a set of online data; have students post the results of which they can post online to the course LMS site with an explanation of their findings

• Ask students to find two online articles that show a contrasting writing style of an author; have students post these articles to the course LMS  site with some guiding questions for their classmates’ exploration of the readings

• Ask half the class to read an article arguing for a particular issue and the other half of the class to read an article arguing against the same issue; have students develop a list of points that could help them debate the issue in the next face-to-face meeting

Synthesis

• Ask students to post their thesis statement to the class discussion board; have students critique at least two of their classmates’ statements

• Ask students to watch two short online videos on topic X; based on their observations from these videos ask students to outline a thesis statement to extend our understanding of this topic according to a set of research parameters; have students post their statements to the class discussion board and offer feedback to at least three of their classmates’ statements

• Ask students to design a wiki for a topic they are interested in and that is connected to the course material

• Have students develop test questions for an upcoming exam as a study guide and post to course LMS site

• Ask students to post a summary of a concise summary of a reading on twitter

Evaluation

• Ask students to create their own podcast (either on their own or in groups) that distills the main message of the readings for next class

• Divide the class into two teams – one for and one against – a particular viewpoint of a current contentious debate; have students debate with each other in their groups online

• Ask students to complete an online (real-time updated) survey about topic X; have students assess their own responses in comparison to the responses of the rest of the class

• Have students search for information on a topic in three mediums (for example, social media, news/popular media, and an academic article) and write a short reflection comparing, contrasting, and evaluating the different audiences, goals and formats for the pieces of writing

Below are two examples of approaches that Keene State College instructors took to help their students continue learning when weather forced cancelation of in-person class meetings.

Delene White, Modern Languages (German)

I'd like to start by saying I read the Weatherproofing Your Course info on canvas. I found it very useful for thinking about how I assign homework and what I do to scaffold work in the course in general, and it helped me plan specifically for the snow day. 

People tend to ask how long this work takes, so I wanted to share that I started planning what I wanted to change about by lesson plan and what I wanted to add to the assignment for the snow day on the day before, when it looked like campus might close.

What was the activity/activities you asked students to do?

• reminder to finish specific homework assignments with links to those assignments.
• a video tutorial I had already made, with a response activity to submit on Canvas.
• a worksheet in which I added more explanation 
• an activity to study the vocabulary and practice speaking with words in the telenovela's script,
• followed by a speaking exercise to record themselves, repeating after me on a free website: https://www.lingt.com/  

What were your goals in selecting these activities?

• to get students to stay engaged in the class and not fall behind the schedule too far, and to get more speaking practice. 
• to stay within the time limits of the class time (1 hour 45 min.)
• to be flexible enough that students could also do the work later that day. (I realized I had to change this later!)

How did the activity/activities you chose relate to what you had planned to do in the in-person class session?

• the worksheets with added explanation included what  I would normally explain in person at this level
• the speaking activity mimicked or even improved what I would normally do in class to get learners to practice using the vocabulary and speaking with an appropriate accent.
• the video tutorial repeats explanation I do in class, so they can review it with more engaging and visual and audio (animal sounds, for instance). I added captions to the video to make it accessible to more people (hard or hearing or deaf, those who can't use volume but still want to study; it's also easy to access on a smartphone)
• The recordings also for students to practice in in a virtual 1:1 space, and they allow me to give feedback in a more meaningful way than time in-class allows. 

What resources or tools were helpful in planning and/or creating the activity?

• I used Quicktime screen recording on my laptop to record my tutorial, along with powerpoint slides, and edited in iMovie, which allows for adding titles with movement to replace some of the static powerpoint slides.
• Lingt.com for the speaking assignment
• Nicos Weg telenovela for practice listening, vocabulary, and grammar
• Google docs for the worksheets
• (not this time, but I also use H5p.org--or the plugin on my website--for changing worksheets to an interactive space)

How did it go? (Were students successful? Did it meet your goals? What trouble did you have?)

• Those who participated and followed through did very well and told me they found it helpful. This is part of the goal met.
• It didn't meet all my goals, as not all students participated, for various reasons. Most said they didn't realize they had to do anything on a snow day.
• When we returned on Thursday, some asked if they could still do the work, I encouraged that so they could get all the practice I had as goals. (This timing for submitting their work was the flexibility I needed to add)
• Trouble in creating the assignment: none

Dena Shields, Public Health

I had two classes on a Wednesday for which I used an alternative method.  My goals were as follows:

1. stay on course schedule
2. encourage students to think critically about the material and apply
3. allow for communication between students/students and me
4. provide students with the resources that they need
5. class could continue whether students had power/wifi or not - could complete work at a later time
6. students did not need to leave home

For my first class:

I used My Media and uploaded a Kaltura-recorded lecture in combination with a discussion board. 

1. Within the lecture, I asked questions requiring them to answer them in the discussion board.
2. I also posted a case study that was supported by the lecture.  They needed to complete and then post their responses to the discussion board, and then respond to others.  Students could not see others' work until each had posted.
3. Students were asked to post questions related to the lecture on the discussion board and I went in and answered them. 
4. Students received credit for attendance if these items were completed.

Resources used:

• MyMedia with Kaltura
• discussion board on Canvas
• textbook for case study

When we return on Monday we will review any further questions that students may have.  It was effective in keeping us on schedule, answering students questions, keeping them engaged with the material.  I should not have left the discussion board open as long to encourage better back and forth discussion.

For my second class:

The students were working on a research project and we had a library workshop day already planned for Wednesday. I provided them with all of the resources that they needed to be able to do the work from home. This included how to access their assigned journal, keyword search guides and other resources, how to access EbscoHost at home, APA format guides, etc. It was work that they could do independently.  I received a couple of emails on this day. 

Resources used:

• library resources, including Ebscohost
• prerecorded department resources related the APA (Kaltura)
• rubric/project on Canvas

This was effective in keeping us on schedule. Though I know that some students did do the work on that afternoon, I am sure not all did. One of my goals was to make sure that they had all of the necessary resources. So even if a student chose to go skiing that afternoon and do the work over the weekend, the resources would be available. It was less about attendance as long as the project is completed on time and well.