Faculty Development

How do I create a plan?

**This page is from an old version of CSUN's Faculty Development website. Find an updated version on the current Teaching Toolkit on Canvas.**


The first step to teach remotely is to think about all the parts of your course that may need an alternative modality now that you aren't in a face-to-face environment. It is okay to change because what you had planned may no longer work remotely.

Use the worksheet below as a guide to your brainstorm process. What changes do you need to make in your class to accomplish your learning objectives remotely? As you fill out your own worksheet, select the items in the accordion list below to learn about technologies available at CSUN and online equivalents to instructional components of a face to face class. You can also see some sample completed worksheets from faculty with various comfort levels with technology. 

Teaching Remotely Worksheets 

Blank Worksheet

 

What adjustments do I need to make in my course in order to teach remotely? 

The components outlined below list the most common and critical aspects of a face to face class which often have points allocated towards the final grade. As you learn about online alternatives to instructional practices that are familiar, pay attention to the various instructional technologies available at CSUN that can help you teach remotely. As you make decisions, keep accessibility in mind and refer to campus accessibility services and resources for assistance. Also, the library has lots of helpful resources to support teaching remotely, including scanning and embedding instructional materials. When looking for more in-depth information about creating technology-enriched practices in teaching, refer to Faculty Development's eLearning Resources page.

 > Return to Teaching Through Disruption 

 

Announcements

Which primary mode of communication will you use with your students?

Alternatives/ Technologies

  • Email
  • Announcements
  • Tools to Explore:
    • Solar roster (CSUN email)
    • Class email list (CSUN email)
    • Canvas Announcement
    • Canvas Inbox

Considerations

  • Let students know the ‘best means of communication between you and the students
  • When can students now expect a response from you (e.g., within 24-48 hours)

Resources

Assignments: Papers/Homework

How will students submit assignments and receive feedback from you?

Alternatives/ Technologies

  • Online Submissions
  • Tools to Explore:
    • Canvas Assignments
    • Turnitin in Canvas Assignments
    • Google Drive
    • MyCSUNBOX

Considerations

  • Clearly state the due dates in each assignment
  • Give your students clear directions (with the purpose, steps & grading criteria), including instructions on how to submit them and let them know how you access your feedback. Designing assignments transparently can reduce student anxiety. Learn more about transparent assignments in the Teaching with Transparency page.

Resources

Discussions

If your class relied on discussions and debates and you allocated points for this expectation, will you still require this and/or how will you score engagement?

Alternatives/ Technologies

  • Synchronous Discussions
  • Asynchronous Discussions
  • Tools to Explore:
    • Zoom (synchronous)
    • Canvas Chat Tool (synchronous)
    • Canvas Discussions (asynchronous)

Considerations

  • Breakout rooms in Zoom can be used for discussions in small groups
  • Canvas Discussions can be customized for interactive communication on your class topics.

Resources

Grading and Feedback

How will you provide feedback on assignments and let students know their grades?

Alternatives/ Technologies

  • Grade all online submissions in Canvas
  • Speedgrader in Canvas lets you view and grade student assignment submissions in one place
  • Tools to Explore:
    • Gradebook
    • Speedgrader

Considerations

Canvas has many tools you can use for grading student work: Assignment MarkupEmbedded Rubrics,Options for Feedback Comments and Anonymous Grading.

Resources

Group Projects

If group work is still required, how will you help facilitate group meetings?

Alternatives/ Technologies

  • Online team collaboration
  • Tools to Explore:
    • Canvas (Groups, Collaborations)
    • Google Drive
    • Zoom
    • Microsoft Teams

Considerations

  • All CSUN students have access to Zoom to create meetings
  • Students can work together on the same document using Drive or Microsoft teams

Resources

Guest Speakers

How could guest speaker content still be delivered?

Alternatives/ Technologies

  • Live and/or recorded personal guests
  • Curated content from across the internet
  • Tools to Explore:
    • Zoom
    • MyCSUNBox
    • YouTube
    • Canvas

Considerations

  • Invite guests to present live on Zoom
  • Upload video content from video open sources such as TED Talks

Resources

Labs/Studios

If students need to experiment to learn, what alternatives can be considered?

Alternatives/ Technologies

  • Take part of lab online
  • Provide video demonstrations of techniques
  • Investigate virtual labs
  • Provide raw data for analysis
  • Explore alternate software access
  • Tools to Explore:
    • Canvas
    • Camtasia
    • Snagit
    • YouTube
    • MyCSUNBox
    • Publisher Content (i.e. MyLab Math)

Considerations

Your video lectures can be stored in Box, or uploaded to YouTube and embedded in Canvas.

Resources 

Lectures

What is your plan to continue sharing & discussing content knowledge with students?

Alternatives/ Technologies

  • Synchronous Online Lectures

  • Recorded lectures and screencasts
  • Tools to Explore:
    • Zoom
    • SnagIt
    • Camtasia
    • Canvas
    • MyCSUNBox
    • YouTube

Considerations

  • Use Zoom for synchronous video lectures
  • Your video lectures can be stored in Box, or uploaded to YouTube (Unlisted) and embedded in Canvas
  • All instructional videos need to be captioned. CSUN faculty and staff can request captioning by visiting the NCOD Media Captioning webpage.

Resources

Office Hours

Alternatives/ Technologies

  • Asynchronous Discussions
  • Instant Messaging
  • Tools to Explore:
    • Zoom
    • Canvas Q&A Discussions
    • Canvas Chat

Considerations

  • Explore Zoom features: breakout rooms or the waiting room for privacy
  • Set up a Q&A Discussion Forum for general course questions
  • Let your students know when you will be available to be reached via Canvas chat
  • If you anticipate having difficult dialogues, Faculty Development resources with practical advice on how to manage those difficult moments may be of use

Resources

Quizzes/ Exams

What assessments will be in place to evaluate student learning related to your course objectives?

Alternatives/ Technologies

  • Online assessments
  • Tools to Explore:
    • Canvas Quizzes
    • Google Forms

Considerations

  • Explore Canvas Quiz settings for graded exams
  • Visit the Online Testing Strategies to Promote Academic Honesty webpage to learn about online exam design practices. 
  • Keep in mind higher-stakes online exams can add to student anxiety. Consider offering practice tests that are low stakes allowing students to ensure their internet is sufficient, adding to their comfort for the actual exam.

Resources

Resources

Aside from your assigned text, do students need additional course resources that you would usually pass out during class?

Alternatives/ Technologies

  • Open Educational Resources 
  • Tools to Explore:
    • Canvas (Files, Pages, Links, Modules, Text Headers, Course Menu Navigation)

Considerations

  • Use Modules and Headers in Canvas

  • Disable unnecessary items in your Course Menu
  • See if there is an option for ebook or online access for your textbook with the Oviatt librarians
  • Test how your material looks on mobile devices keeping in mind that students use the Canvas Student App

Resources

Student Presentations

How will students present their work to the rest of the class, if that is still required?

Alternatives/ Technologies

  • Online live presentations using Zoom
  • Recorded student presentation
  • Tools to Explore:
    • Zoom
    • MyCSUNBox
    • YouTube
    • Canvas
    • PowerPoint
    • Keynote
    • Google Slides

Considerations

  • Make students co-hosts in a Zoom meeting so they can lead a presentation
  • Students can explain, teach, or showcase a concept recording videos over slides

Resources 

Syllabus

Where will students access your revised syllabus and how will they know which one is the most recent?

Alternatives/ Technologies

  • Place your syllabus and course documents in Canvas (Word, PDF) or Link to a Google Doc
  • Email your syllabus file
  • Tools to Explore:
    • Canvas (Files Pages and Syllabus Tool)
    • Google Doc
    • CSUN email

Considerations

  • Update your syllabus with information specific to online learning. If you have to significantly change your assignments (e.g., online exams instead of in-class exams; open note exams) please consider how you will specifically operationalize cheating in your course now. What's the line between collaborating and copying? If your approach to academic dishonesty was to simply point to the CSUN policy (and that's it), a disruption in your course and new assignments means more clarity may be needed now. Faculty Development's Teaching Toolkit includes a comprehensive Academic Honesty webpage to make this adjustment easy for you. 
  • Make sure your syllabus is easy to find in your Canvas course
  • Consider adding Rules for Netiquette for online discussions

Resources