Image PlaceholderSLCC Online & eLearning Services has adopted and/or created the following resources to help faculty prepare to teach remotely in the event of a campus disruption.

This resource is helpful for broadcast/internet lecture and hybrid type courses.

Using Canvas to Teach Remotely

Basic Course Template

SLCC now has a basic Canvas course template that can be imported from Canvas Commons into your Canvas course sites to make building student-friendly courses easier. It can be adapted and used for lecture, hybrid, and broadcast/internet lectures. To import the template, follow this Canvas Guide, entering "SLCC Basic Course Template" in the search bar. You can also contact elearningsupport@slcc.edu for help with finding and importing the template. 

Update Your Canvas Home Page

Update your homepage (first create a page and then make it your home page if you don't have one already) to include a message about how the course will work. What time and where do they log in for the virtual class time and/or come to campus? What do they do online? Include instructions on this page telling students how to contact you (using the Canvas Inbox-see below). Also include information for students on where to get Canvas and technical help by pointing them to the help icon (question mark) on the furthest left menu in Canvas or these student resources.

Use Email (Canvas Inbox) to Communicate with your Students

The Inbox in Canvas is like email, just done through Canvas, and it allows you to easily communicate with your students. Check your Canvas Inbox every one or two days to address student concerns. 

Send Announcements in Canvas

Post announcements in Canvas with written or recorded messages for your students. This is the fastest way to communicate with your entire class. You can use an announcement to welcome everyone to the course on the first day of class and give them important information about your course. Suggest to students that they update their notifications settings to allow announcements to be forwarded to their email address or phones. 

Use Microsoft Teams, or Zoom in Canvas to Hold Virtual Classes with Students

Web conferencing software allows you to meet all together with your class virtually. These tools all allow you to lecture, hold discussions, share PowerPoints, and have students make presentations.

Remember to remind your students often of the days and times that you meet. They may have not understood or forgotten the day and time, even though they signed up for that specific time when they registered for the course.

One note of caution: web conferencing can be a great way to meet with your students, but keep in mind that it also requires a lot of internet bandwidth and some students may not have enough at home for themselves, let alone other family members who may also need to be using the internet at the same time. Be flexible and try to record your sessions for those who lose connectivity.

There are Two different web conferencing programs that SLCC recommends for use in your course. They are:
  • Microsoft Teams
  • Zoom
NOTE: Per the OIT department, your SLCC WebEx video conferencing account will be unavailable after June 30, 2021.  By that time, you will need to have migrated to one of the other video conferencing hosting tools, Zoom or Microsoft Teams.

Which One Do You Choose?

Zoom and Microsoft Teams have a major advantage because they are easier to use across different platforms. Zoom is the newest addition to the web conferencing options available at SLCC. It is integrated with Canvas, has breakout rooms, and is easy for students to use. However, it may take a bit longer for you to learn all of its features. So, be patient if you start using it.

While you may have chosen your preferred software at this point, it is strongly recommended that you remain familiar with the other programs as well because there is always the potential that despite your best efforts, a program ends up not working exactly the way that you had practiced or it has some technical problem during your class. So, it is always a good idea to have a backup in mind.

There are other options for web conferencing not mentioned above, but it is best to stick with Microsoft Teams, and Zoom. The college offers technical support for these programs and they have privacy and security protocols in place to protect both you and your students.

Web Conferencing Software Tutorials

Each of these programs requires a slightly different setup in Canvas. So, look at the following guides for how to use each:

Note: There is another web conferencing tool that is integrated with Canvas called Conferences. This option is currently limited to just a few conferences at a time, so you will likely need to use one of the other tools. See this Conferences (BigBlueButton) Tutorial for basic information about getting started conducting a live virtual meeting with Conferences. For more detailed information on Conferences, there is also a screenshot tutorial of how to be a presenter in Conferences, and another video tutorial that demonstrates how to use some of the more advanced features, such as breakout rooms, whiteboards, annotations, and recording with Conferences (BigBlueButton).

Example directions for your students for Zoom:

Capturing Lectures and Sharing Pre-Recorded Lecture Videos and Audio in Canvas

If you would like to record lectures via audio or video and share them with your students, please see the following MyMedia (Kaltura) and Youtube training guides. MyMedia will allow you to upload pre-recorded media or to record within MyMedia. Then you can embed that media in Canvas for your students to watch.

Share Files in Canvas

The Files area in Canvas provides a place for storing course materials. Add files such as documents, PDFs, PowerPoint slides, or spreadsheets. Learn more about how to use, organize, and manage Files. Once you have uploaded files, the easiest way for students to access the files is for you to create a Canvas page for the particular week/class session that they should access the materials and link to the files on that Canvas page or in an announcement. You can put a link to that page on the home page or in modules. Learn how to link to files. (Though it is more difficult for students to navigate, you can have the Files link available for students to access in the left hand course navigation menu, but make sure that any files not intended for student viewing are restricted if you do so.)

Facilitate Asynchronous (not live) Class Discussions in Canvas

Setting up an asynchronous discussion in Canvas is an easy way to allow instructors and students to discuss (through writing or videos) the course content or assignments with each other, or for students to share work or ask questions. Learn how to create a discussion board.

Create (and Proctor) Quizzes, Exams, and Assignments in Canvas

Grade Assignments in Canvas

Accessibility in Canvas

Please see these two resources for more information about accessibility in Canvas.

Additional Canvas Resources


Pedagogical Best Practices for Teaching Remotely

The above sections contain technical tutorials for how to use the different parts of Canvas and web conferencing software to teach remotely. 

This section covers some of the pedagogy and best practices for effectively teaching remotely.

10 Tips for Setting Up and Conducting Your Virtual Classroom

Watch an engaging 10-minute video by Michael Wesch, a cultural anthropology professor, as he talks about how he set up his world religions course so that students had the most success. He talks about doing this for an online course, but most of what he discusses applies to any virtual modality including broadcast/internet lecture courses.



There is also a Guide in Canvas that looks at additional pedagogical best practices for remote teaching. You can use the links below to go to specific parts of the resource or you can just go straight to the Teach Anywhere: Best Practices for Teaching Remotely Resource.

The Remote Learning Environment

Remote vs. Online Teaching: This page discusses some distinctions between being a remote vs. an online teacher.

Orienting Students to the Remote Learning Environment: A guide for essential items you may consider adding to your course to help your students succeed.

Netiquette: This page can be used as a template for setting communication expectations for your course.

Technical Support: This page contains a list of technical support resources for your students that you can copy and paste into your course.

Best Practices for Web Conferencing

Web Conferencing Software: An Introduction: This page reviews the same information that was covered above about these tools, but it also contains a nice chart that compares the features of Zoom, Webex , and Microsoft Teams.

Audio and Lighting Considerations for Web Conferencing: This page discusses some audio and lighting considerations when setting up for your web conference. 

Before and During Class: This page offers specific advice about how to prepare for your classes that are meeting synchronously through web conferencing.

Remote Pedagogy and Communication

Using Videos in Your Course: Using videos and images in a course is a great way to add variety and present materials in multiple ways. This page contains information on the best practices for creating videos and resources available to you in creating them.

Methods for Creating Social Presence: Maintaining an active presence in your course is critical for student success, but especially for student retention. This page contains information about how to maintain connections with your students in the remote learning environment.

Writing Clear Instructions: This is a guide to writing clear assignment instructions for students. Even though you may still meet with them over web conferencing, it is important to make the assignment instructions as clear as possible in Canvas so that students can more easily complete their assignments.

Feedback Delivery Methods: This page discusses the various feedback delivery methods available to you in Canvas so that you can provide students with the feedback they need to succeed in your course.

Managing a Remote Course

Monitoring Student Progress: This page offers some strategies for tracking your students' progress in Canvas.

Workload and Time Management: This page offers a strategy for managing your workload and managing your time while delivering your course in a remote format.

Examples Gallery

This gallery consists of various examples for you to use (copy and paste) in your course(s).

Library Services and Resources

Librarians and Library Services are available to help you with your courses. Some of their services include:

Additional Resources

These are additional resources that might be of interest:


Readiness Checklist

Review the Readiness Checklist below and answer yes or no to each question to determine if you are ready to continue your courses remotely (where possible) in the event of an emergency.

1. Are you prepared to put your course materials in Canvas?

Yes

No

Question

 

 

I have a Canvas site for each of my course sections that contains the most current course information. (A Canvas site for each course is automatically generated at the beginning of each semester.)



I know that content from another Canvas site can be imported into my site and who to contact for help with that (either eLearning Support or my course coordinator).

2. Are you prepared to establish channels of communication with your students?

Yes

No

Question

 

 

I know how to communicate with my students in accordance with FERPA guidelines.



My students know how to contact me through the Canvas Inbox if they have a question.



I know how to send announcements in Canvas to my students.



I know how to conduct virtual office hours through tools available in Canvas such as Zoom, BigBlueButton.



Students know how to contact each other (using Canvas Inbox) and collaborate through Canvas

3. Are you prepared to establish ways to conduct your class remotely?

Yes

No

Question



I know how to use the Canvas LMS to make course materials (including readings, files, and links to outside resources) available to my students.

 

 

My students can read, listen to, and/or watch my lectures in Canvas.

 

 

I have chosen a web conferencing software (Zoom or Microsoft Teams) that I can use comfortably to conduct live classes with my students. Additionally, I have a backup web conferencing software that I also know how to use.

 

 

I can use Canvas discussion boards to conduct written or recorded video discussions with my students.

 

 

My students can turn in homework and assignments in Canvas.



My students can take quizzes and exams in Canvas.

 

 

I know how to respond to student work (give feedback and assign grades) in Canvas.



I have taken steps to ensure my online course materials are accessible to students with disabilities. (Contact the Disability Resource Center if needed.)

 

 

I know how to send final grades from Canvas to Banner (see tutorial for Grade Passback tool).

4. Are you prepared to set up remote access to important resources?

Yes

No

Question

 

 

I have a computing device at home that has the software and Internet connectivity I need to work remotely.

 

 

I know how to access Canvas on my smartphone and/or non-work computing device. (For full and best functionality, access Canvas through Google Chrome or Firefox browser, not the app, but you can install the Canvas app on your device for limited uses).



I know how to contact the 24/7 Canvas support hotline and I have taught my students how to contact the 24/7 Canvas support hotline (using the Help button (question mark icon) in the global navigation menu on the far left).



I know how to use SLCC’s online tutoring resources and I have taught my students how to use SLCC’s online tutoring resources.

If you answered “No” to any of these items, please see the resources provided at the top of the page to learn more information.

Resources adapted from SLCC materials, Northwestern University, George Washington University, Indiana University, Utah State University, and the University of Washington.


Questions?

If you have specific concerns which are not covered above, you may contact:





REV EZ 08/17/21