Dear Faculty Colleagues,
Last week, President Frenk announced the University’s plans to pivot during the first two weeks of the spring semester to remote instruction as part of our adaptive response to keeping our community healthy. In order to support a successful shift to temporary remote teaching, I would like to share a number of resources provided by members of the University community.
Academic Continuity Guide Website: The Academic Continuity Guide has been updated with information and resources specific to teaching in a remote format for the beginning of the Spring 2022 Semester.
Preparing to Teach a Spring 2022 Course: This helpful document includes tips and suggestions for what you can expect for the first two weeks of the semester, how to facilitate live virtual class sessions on Zoom and Blackboard, how to provide course materials to students, and how to support students during these remote teaching weeks. The document’s appendix includes technical support and tutorials for using Zoom and Blackboard as part of your remote teaching.
Online Teaching Workshops: During the week of Jan. 10, we will offer a series of online teaching virtual workshops focusing on making the first two weeks of the semester successful. The workshop session topics and schedule have been posted to the Academic Continuity Guide, and you can view the session offerings and attend any sessions that will support your teaching needs..
Tools for Lecture Capture: I encourage you to plan on recording your classes and making them available synchronously and asynchronously. For some courses, alternative mechanisms for providing access to course materials will be needed. You can record your classes via Zoom, Microsoft Teams, or Blackboard Collaborate, the same tools you use for video conferencing. Closed captioning of your lecture can be enabled on these services to assist students with certain impairments and meet our obligations under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Please review the instructions for enabling captioning
. Additionally, I recommend including this language regarding class recordings in your syllabi.
Online Course Accessibility for Students: Please remember to contact and email students to ensure they have all the details on how to access your courses, especially during the first two weeks of the semester. You can do this through Blackboard or CaneLink. If you are not utilizing Blackboard, email students directly prior to the first day of class to provide information on online course accessibility, details, and materials. We will continue to schedule 25 minutes between classes to support any necessary extra preparation.
IT Support: To help ensure a successful period of remote teaching and learning, there will also be increased IT presence during the first two weeks of the semester. If you need any support with Blackboard, please email blackboardhelp@miami.edu or call (305) 284-3949 for the Learning Platforms help desk. For all other IT-related issues, please email help@miami.edu or call (305) 284-6565.
Finally, I’d like to encourage you to attend one of the upcoming virtual town halls for an update on COVID-19, variants, testing, isolation and quarantine, and other important guidelines:
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Medical Campus virtual town hall on Thursday, Jan. 6 at 5:30 p.m. Register and submit questions in advance.
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Coral Gables and Marine Campuses virtual town hall on Monday, Jan. 10 at 5:30 p.m. Additional details, including registration information, will be provided by email later this week.
Please continue to check coronavirus.miami.edu for the latest information for students, faculty, researchers, and staff. Thank you all for your flexibility and support as we continue to adapt to the rapidly evolving COVID-19 landscape. I am grateful for your commitment to providing the best possible learning experiences for our students as we embark on the spring semester.
Sincerely, |
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