Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Are there resources available for me that do not require attending a training event?

Yes! Academic Technologies has developed some quick start guides and videos that can help you get going. Also, if you start working on your course and realize that you need some assistance, you can call (252) 347-0015 to access help with Canvas. Chat support is also available 24/7 through Canvas Support. You can also schedule a consultation call. If it would be helpful to talk with someone who can help you narrow the list of tutorials/resources you may need. Schedule an appointment for individualized support through the Learning Technologies design team’s bookings site. 

How and when do I communicate with my students?

This might be the most important thing to do early on – and it’s something you likely already do well. You’ll want to let students know about changes in schedules, assignments, procedures, and broader course expectations. Early and frequent communication can ease student anxiety and save you time from having to address repeated individual questions. 

Keep these principles in mind: 

  • Use communication tools that are already familiar: You can use email or Canvas to reach out to your students to communicate what they can expect from you and the course. Setting clear expectations can ease student concerns about their ability to maintain steady progress in the course. 
  • Communicate early and often: Let students know about changes or disruptions as early as possible, even if all the details aren’t in place yet, and let them know when they can expect more specific information. Don’t swamp them with email, but consider matching the frequency of your messages with that of changes in class activities and/or updates to the broader crisis at hand (for example, the campus closure is extended for two more days; what will students need to know related to your course?). 
  • Set expectations: Let students know how you plan to communicate with them, and how often. Tell students both how often you expect them to check their email, and how quickly they can expect your response. Let them know, too, if you are using the Canvas Inbox tool, or Outlook email, since they may need to update their notification preferences. 
  • Manage your communications load: You will likely receive some individual requests for information that could be useful to all your students, so consider keeping track of frequently asked questions and sending those replies out to everyone. This way, students know they might get a group reply in a day versus a personal reply within an hour. Also, consider creating an information page in Canvas, and then encourage students to check their first for answers before emailing you.

What parts of my Section Specific Information or course materials are vital to retain in the online course?

Don’t be afraid to keep it simple.  Even though the semester is already underway, it may help to back way up and look at your course objectives. While you probably have some great face-to-face activities planned, they may not translate well to an online course. Our goal is not to somehow figure out how to replicate our activities but instead to accomplish our course objectives. Don’t try to include all the bells and whistles. Use tools that you are familiar to you already, or that will minimize the learning curve for you and your students. Start small and basic. You can revise later if you have the opportunity to do so.  

How will I deliver information that I usually cover in lectures?

If possible, switch to asynchronous options for delivering lectures. During circumstances that cause unexpected closures, students may have markedly different schedules, be juggling multiple responsibilities, have access to different technology than before, etc. Consider carefully whether you want to spend your time troubleshooting technology and scheduling difficulties that will likely arise – or if you want to spend your time teaching. Two practical options include:  

  • We recommend using Canvas Studio or Panopto to create videos to share with students.
  • Auditory recordings can be created within Power Point with the voice over feature. Alternatively, you can record an audio file (lots of phone apps will do this) and post it in the LMS along with your usual Power Point file. If you already have a Power Point developed – this might be the most efficient option.  Just remember you may need cue students when to advance the slides ?    

Be aware that a 45-minute live lecture sprinkled with questions and activities can become grueling when delivered online without intellectual breaks. Here are a few suggestions: 

  • Record in small chunks: Even the best online speakers keep it brief (think of the brevity of TED talks). We learn better with breaks to process and apply new information. To aid student learning, record any lectures in shorter (5-10 minute) chunks, and intersperse them with small activities or readings that give students opportunities to process the new knowledge, make connections to other concepts, apply an idea, or make some notes in response to prompts. Added bonus – smaller chunks also lead to smaller files.
  • It’s not just about content: If a crisis is disrupting classes, lectures can mean more than just providing course content; they also establish a sense of normalcy and a personal connection. “Instructor presence” is just as important now as it would be in a full online course. So, consider ways that you can use lectures to make students feel connected and cared about (e.g.  acknowledgement of current challenges, praise for good work, reminders about the class being a community, and a little bit of fun). This affective work can help their learning during a difficult time. (Courtesy of Indiana University) 

How will students interact with each other?

Virtual collaboration is fairly common now, and you can create places in your course for students to interact. Fostering communication among students is important because it allows you to reproduce any collaboration you build into your course and maintains a sense of community that can help keep students motivated to participate and learn. If you already had some sort of student-to-student online activity (for example, Canvas Discussions), you already have a foundation to build upon.  If not, some options for tools students can use for collaborative work are listed below: 

Consider these suggestions when planning activities: 

  • Use asynchronous tools when possible – Having students participate in live conversations can be useful, but scheduling can be a problem, and only a few students will actively participate (just like in your classroom). In such cases, using asynchronous tools like Canvas Discussions or CN Post allows students to participate on their own schedules. In addition, bandwidth requirements for discussion boards are far lower than for live video tools. 
  • Link to clear goals and outcomes – Make sure there are clear purposes and outcomes for any student-to-student interaction. How does this activity help them meet course outcomes or prepare for other assignments? 
  • Build in simple accountability – Find ways to make sure students are accountable for the work they do in any online discussions or collaborations. Assigning points for online discussion posts can be tedious, so some instructors ask for reflective statements where students detail their contributions and reflect on what they learned from the conversation. 
  • Balance newness and need – As with any changed activities, you will need to balance the needs and benefits of online collaboration with the additional effort such collaboration will require on everyone else’s part. Learning new technologies and procedures might be counterproductive, particularly in the short term, unless there is clear benefit. That way students can focus their learning on your instructional goals.

How will I collect student assignments?

Collecting assignments during a campus closure is fairly straightforward since many instructors already collect work electronically. The main challenge during a campus disruption is whether students have access to computers, as anyone needing a campus computer lab may be unable to access necessary technologies. Here are a few things to keep in mind:  

  • It may be easy to collect assignments in small classes via email, but larger classes might swamp your email inbox. Consider using the tools below instead. Balance what is simplest and familiar for students with what is easiest for you to manage. 
  • Assessment tools are built into Canvas
  • Require only common software – Students may not have access to specialty software located in on-campus computer labs. Some of that software may be available while a student is on campus, but unless the students have permissions to load software onto a computer they can access, they may be unable to use these tools. Be ready with a backup plan for such students. 
  • State expectations but be ready to allow extensions – In the case of a campus closure or other crisis, some students will undoubtedly have difficulties meeting deadlines. Make expectations clear but be ready to provide more flexibility than you normally would in your class. 
  • Consider specifying how students should name files – It may sound trivial, but anyone who collects papers electronically knows the pain of getting 20 files named Essay1.docx. Give your students a simple file naming convention, for example, FirstnameLastname-Essay1.docx. 

Are all students going to have access to technology and the internet?

Many of our students are from rural areas without consistent access to the internet, and a digital divide continues to exist in eastern North Carolina where access to the internet is not available to everyone. If students do have access to the internet, it is very likely they will be sharing this access with others who are also working or learning from home.  Multiple devices on a lower internet speed that is potentially competing with a smart tv will challenging.   

Many of the tools offered by ECU can be accessed via a phone, and students can participate in online web conferencing from a smart phone.  Try and keep assignments and content phone friendly and only use video and higher end technologies if you know your students will be able to access them. 

What about accessibility?

At ECU we have resources to help you strategize on how to create accessible assignments and if an equally effective access plan if necessary.  The Office of Civil Rights has published a video on federal accessibility requirements that describes university requirements. The Department for Disability Support Services can provide guidance if you have questions about accessibility or providing accommodations for a student in your course. You can also visit the Digital Accessibility at ECU website for additional information and helpful guides on how to make all of your course content meet digital accessibility guidelines.

How do I run lab activities?

One of the biggest challenges of teaching during a building or campus closure is sustaining the lab components of classes. Since many labs require specific equipment, they are hard to reproduce outside of that physical space. Considerations as you plan to address lab activities: 

  • Take part of the lab online – Many lab activities require students to become familiar with certain procedures, and only physical practice of those processes will do. In such cases, consider if there are other parts of the lab experience you could take online (for example, video demonstrations of techniques, online simulations, analysis of data, other pre- or post-lab work), and save the physical practice parts of the labs until access is restored. The semester might get disjointed by splitting up lab experiences, but it might get you through a short campus closure. 
  • Investigate virtual labs – Online resources and virtual tools might help replicate the experience of some labs (for example, virtual dissection, night sky apps, video demonstrations of labs, simulations). Those vary widely by discipline, but check with your textbook publisher, or sites such as Merlot for materials that might help replace parts of your lab during an emergency. 
  • Provide raw data for analysis – In cases where the lab includes both collection of data and its analysis, consider showing how the data can be collected, and then provide some raw sets of data for students to analyze. This approach is not as comprehensive as having students collect and analyze their own data, but it might keep them engaged with parts of the lab experience during the closure. 
  • Increase interaction in other ways – Sometimes labs are more about having time for direct student interaction, so consider other ways to replicate that level of contact if it is only your lab that is out of commission. (Courtesy of Indiana University)

How will I assess student learning?

It is fairly easy to give small quizzes to hold students accountable or do spot-checks on their learning, and this might be ideal to keep students on track during class disruptions. Providing high-stakes tests online can be challenging, however; they place extra stress on students, and test integrity is difficult to ensure. If you know there is a date for resuming on-campus classes, consider delaying exams until you return. 

General tips for assessing student learning during class disruption: 

  • Embrace short quizzes – Short quizzes can be a great way to keep students engaged with course concepts, particularly if they are interspersed with small chunks of video lecture. Consider using very-low-stakes quizzes to give students practice at applying concepts—just enough points to hold them accountable, but not so many that the activity becomes all about points. 
  • Move beyond simple facts – It is good to reinforce concepts through practice on a quiz, but generally it is best to move beyond factual answers that students can quickly look up. Instead, write questions that prompt students to apply concepts to new scenarios, or ask them to identify the best of multiple correct answers. 
  • Check for publishers’ test banks – If you are already using a publisher’s textbook in your course, check to see whether the publisher has question banks that can be loaded into Canvas. Even if you don’t use these questions for your exams, they can be useful for simple quizzes. Some textbooks also have their own online quizzing tools that can help keep students engaged with the material.  IMPORTANT: Some publishers and educational technology vendors may offer last-minute deals on technologies and homework platforms. However, most often these platforms are not appropriate for use with student data. To ensure the security and privacy of student data, and to ensure that you and your students receive the technical support you need, only use tools that have been approved for use. If you’re unsure whether a publisher’s content or tool is approved for use at ECU, contact ECU ITCS. 
  • Update expectations for projects – Campus disruptions may limit students’ access to resources they need to complete papers or other projects, and team projects may be harmed by a team’s inability to meet. Be ready to change assignment expectations based on the limitations a crisis may impose. Possible options include allowing individual rather than group projects, having groups record presentations, or adjusting the types of resources needed for research papers. 
  • Consider alternate exams – Delivering a secure exam online can be difficult without a good deal of preparation and support, so consider giving open-book exams or other types of exams. They can be harder to grade, but you have fewer worries about test security.
  • Look back at the course objectives – There are often lots of ways to see if students have mastered the learning objectives for each instructional unit.  this might be a good opportunity to look with a fresh lens at new and/or creative ways to let them show you what they have learned (Some content courtesy of Indiana University).