Dear CGU Faculty,
At our FEC meeting yesterday we had a great discussion about the importance of supporting faculty and students to prepare for the possibility of moving our classes and meetings online in response to threat of COVID-19. We are committed to our students finishing out the semester and are ready to help support you and your students in that effort. We recognize that there are varying levels of comfort and knowledge with doing so, and want you to know we are here to help.
Here are some of the options we discussed, and we encourage you to experiment this week:
- Option 1: Teach an entire class through Zoom, from a location other than the classroom and during the regularly scheduled time. This gives the most realistic sense of what would happen if faculty and/or students cannot make it to class.
- Option 2: Broadcast a regular class on Zoom, from the regular classroom with students, using a laptop or a cell phone. This provides a sense of what might happen if some proportion of students cannot come to class but regular classes are still held.
- Option 3: Conduct a test from home in the morning or evening with a few students or colleagues to gauge ease of teaching remotely from home. In this scenario, you will invite people into the virtual classroom, talk to them, show their screens, and, if possible, use the whiteboard function.
We have faculty who teach online and they are a great resource. Our staff in the Office of Information technology (OIT) is here to help you (see contact info and links to resources below). They are ready to hold webinars, tutorials, and share online resources.
If you are thinking you would like to try one of the above, or some other trial, please do the following:
- Talk with your Chair and Dean/Director about your proposal.
- Discuss it with your students to ensure they are ready.
- Seek support from our OIT.
- Let us know how it went. There is much to learn as we experiment.
Canvas and Zoom tools are fully supported by our Office of Information Technology. They have established a resource guide website to address the challenges and possible solutions of continuing coursework if meeting with students face-to-face is not possible. As epidemic outbreaks, natural disasters, or other unexpected events can disrupt scheduled courses, the tools and strategies described here can minimize the effects of those unexpected situations. Please note that the website is evolving and will be regularly updated.
Please contact OIT Helpdesk at helpdesk@cgu.edu or (909) 607-1874 if you have any technology questions.
Do let us know how we can help!