Continuity of Teaching and Learning – Summer/Fall 2020

1. Sign up for the College emergency and closing alerts: FCC Alerts.
2. Blackboard LMS allows you to administer and teach your courses online by providing students with access to course materials and the ability to interact with their peers / you through the LMS. Please review the Blackboard technology requirements and help resources.
3. Blackboard Mobile Apps: Instructor and Student Mobile apps are available for you and your students to communicate with each other.
4. FCC Office 365 has a range of tools available for instructors and students for teaching, learning, and collaborations including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneDrive, and Stream.
5. Video Conferencing tools help you to:
   • Record your lecture and post it for students to view later.
   • Set up student groups for online collaborations.
   • Facilitate a real time class session that can be recorded and posted for students who may not have been able to attend your live session.
   • Meet with students individually for office hour sessions.
   • FCC administrative needs such as advising.
6. Assess your course technology needs and access ahead of time so you are not caught off guard. Remember that access to on-campus labs, equipment, computer labs, and library services will also be affected. For example, do you and your students have a reliable internet connection at home? Do you and your students have a laptop or mobile device to engage with the course content?
7. Use technology tools that are familiar to you and your students.
   • Emergency events create a lot of stress. Be gentle and flexible with yourself and your students.
   • Keep the transition simple: Introducing too many new tools and approaches may cause confusion and leave even less energy for learning.
   • Use asynchronous tools when possible. Having students participate in live online conversations can be useful but be mindful of potential technology challenges based on personal location and/or accessibility needs of students. Bandwidth requirements for discussion boards are much lower than those for live video tools like Collaborate.
   • Ensure accessibility of your Blackboard course for students with disabilities, as required for equal access under disability laws.

A. Setting Up Your Course in Blackboard

1. If you would like assistance for setting up your course in Blackboard, please contact OLII and we will be happy to discuss best practices and assist you in setting up the content.
2. Keep the navigation for your course simple so students can find things easily. Inside of “Course Materials”, create modules for your material and place all the content needed to complete that module within the module folder.
3. Be aware that you may have students accessing your course using mobile devices and bandwidth may be a challenge. Use discussion boards where possible in place of Collaborate or video conferencing software.

B. Communicating with Students

1. It is strongly recommended that students change their Blackboard notification preferences to alert them when a new Announcement is posted in the course. When you create an Announcement, select the box to have the announcement emailed to your students. Remind students to check their myFCC email regularly.
2.  Communicate any course changes such as assignment due dates or content availability with your students. Let students know your availability and when they can expect a response to their emails. Generally, an online instructor is required to respond to emails within 24 hours. These are special circumstances and that may not be possible, so let students know if this is the case.
3. Set up a course Q&A discussion forum within your online course so students can post questions to you. If one student has a question, it is safe to assume that several others have the same question. By setting up a discussion board forum for questions, you can avoid having to answer the same question multiple times. Instruct your students to search / use this forum should they have a course related question.
4. In an online course, documenting that a student has logged into an online class is not sufficient, by itself, to demonstrate academic attendance by the student. If a student has only logged into the online course by the date that attendance is due, then you should report this student as “never attending.”
   
   Academically related activities that count towards attendance can include, but are not limited to:
   • physically attending a class where there is an opportunity for direct interaction between the instructor and students
   • submitting an academic assignment
   • taking an exam, an interactive tutorial or computer-assisted instruction
   • attending a study group that is assigned by the school
   • participating in an online discussion about academic matters, and
   • initiating contact with a faculty member to ask a question about the academic subject studied in the course
5. Use the Gradebook to communicate student performance in your courses. If a student is struggling in your course, consider sending a Student Success Alert (SSA) using the SSA link available in Blackboard (left navigation).

C. Rethinking Online Assignments and Activities

Leverage auto-graded quiz options, online assignment submission, grading features and rubrics, and community building discussion forums in Blackboard for class assignment and activities.

1. Use online assignment submission feature instead of having students email you their work. Blackboard will track student submissions, automatically rename files (to include the assignment name, the student username, and the filename the student originally submitted), and enable you to notify students who have not submitted their assignment.
2. Include the due date while setting up the quiz, discussion, or assignment. Blackboard sends reminders of upcoming work and helps students in their time management using these due dates. Keep due dates consistent over the term - Sundays 11:59 p.m. ET is recommended for assignment due dates.
3. Consider revising your assignments to give students more time to complete their work. Access to reference material and the availability of research options may also be impacted by the situation. Determine if more time should be given and communicate this to your students.
4. Recognizing that online assessments come with the risk of potential academic dishonesty, consider mitigating this risk using one or more of the following methods:
   • Emphasize students' responsibility to uphold academic integrity and share the Code of Student Conduct Policy and Procedures with them.
   • Consider having students sign the Academic Integrity Pledge.
   • Create assessments within Blackboard using single-question formats with time-limits. This format dissuades cheating and researching answers. Keep mind that you can set the time-limits to adjust for students with extended time accommodations.
   • Offer multiple assessment alternatives, and allow students to choose how they will demonstrate what they know and can do.

D.CREATING OR FINDING ONLINE CONTENT

1. You may need to convert some of your classroom lectures to an online format. Section your lecture into a combination of text, readings, and short videos with captions (about 7-10 min).
2. Record your lecture using PowerPoint (Resources section below), Blackboard Collaborate, or other tools (microphone needed). You can use captioned videos from other sources such as YouTube or other free resources (please review videos in advance and use only those with accurate captions).
   
   For meeting accessibility requirements, post the recorded video (MP4) to Microsoft Stream to create/ edit captions (see the instructions in the Accessibility Section).
3. If a textbook is required as part of your course, you can post accompanying publisher PowerPoints and reference materials online for students.
4. Avoid large file sizes and zip files.
5. If a live session is required due to a core learning outcome, have a Blackboard Collaborate Session during the regular time that your class would have met on campus. This will help maintain the continuity of learning, as students are accustomed to being in class at this time. Make sure to record the session and post the recorded video (MP4) with captions for students to access later.
6. Contact Library Services if you have questions related to copyright of the materials you plan to post online (see the Resources Section).
7. There may be content already available for you to pull into your courses. See the Content Resources for Remote Teaching and Learning page on the Faculty Essentials guide and reach out to a Librarian for help in finding content.

E. Ensuring Accessibility

The most common academic accommodation is extended time for exams/quizzes as noted on a current Student Success Plan (student accommodation plan). Blackboard allows faculty to provide extra time on all timed assessments (quizzes, midterms and final exams). Ensure that all videos and multimedia used in your course (own videos and external sources) are captioned.

1. Ally:The Ally tool is part of all Blackboard courses. The tool icon next to documents in your courses provides alternative formats for your students to access depending on their preferred learning style.
2. Microsoft Stream (for video captioning and hosting):To address video accessibility requirements, Microsoft Stream allows for creating automated captions that you can edit for accuracy.
   1. Instructors can post videos they create to their FCC Microsoft Stream account within Office 365 and share them: Post video with auto-generated Closed Captions.
   2. The Stream video link can be posted to your Blackboard site for student access to your captioned videos: Post your video link to Blackboard.
3. Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD): Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) at FCC assists and supports eligible students with disabilities. Please contact SSD in advance if you have questions regarding how to best accommodate students with disabilities while ensuring continuity of teaching and learning.
4. FCC’s Web Accessibility Guide provides additional information and resources.

Review Documents for Additional Guidance.

1. Trainings

Below is a list of trainings provided by Online Learning and Instructional Innovation and IT to support the transition of courses online using specific Blackboard tools, as well as Skype.

2. Individual Consultations

To provide you with the support as you transition your credit courses online and/or into alternative formats, In CTL and Academic Departments are creating an evolving list of Super Users. Please review the Super User List and contact a Super User for your Department for your course-specific question.

1. Library Services
   The Library is available online to support you and your students, and all resources can be accessed at www.frederick.edu/library. In addition, the link to the Library page is automatically embedded in your Blackboard Courses under the “Library Resources” button. The most relevant resources include:
   • Research Databases, all accessible off-campus, can be found at https://guides.frederick.edu/az.php
   • Research Guides, available in most subjects, can be found at https://guides.frederick.edu
   • Links to online tutorials and the Virtual Library Orientation can be found at https://guides.frederick.edu/tutorials
   If you or your students have any questions or need help finding resources go to https://answers.frederick.edu to submit questions. Librarians will be monitoring the queue during our usual hours Monday – Thursday, 8:00am – 7:00pm; Friday, 8:00am – 4:00pm; and Saturday, Noon-3:00pm.
   
   Live Chat is now available Monday – Friday: 11am – 3pm, and an email form may be submitted at any time.
2. Online Tutoring and Learning Resources
   • Virtual Academic Coaching
     Students can request a 1-hour virtual academic coaching appointment with FCC learning assistants through the learning centers website www.frederick.edu/tutoring
   • Online Tutoring: Students have access to online tutoring for many introductory courses, including English and writing across the curriculum, accounting, math, statistics, biology, chemistry, economics, and computing.
       → To connect, students log into Blackboard and click “Online Tutoring,” under “Tools.” - Powered by ThinkingStorm Online Tutoring.
   • For answers to questions related to tutoring, or to ask a question, go to https://answers.frederick.edu.
3. Remote Teaching and Learning Resource Guides
   • Resources for Finding Course Content
   • Resources for Online/Remote Assessment
   • Resources to Help Students Learn Online
4. Web Resources and Articles
   • Going Online in a Hurry: What to Do and Where to Start
   • PowerPoint Record Audio | PowerPoint Export narrated slides as MP4 video (480p)
   • Assessments in Blackboard (USC Resource)
   • OER Course Content, Assignments, and Resources (LumenLearning)
   • CrashCourse Educational Videos in a variety of subject areas offered in Youtube
   • Faculty Professional Development: MarylandOnline Webinars
5. FCC Handouts (Login to FCC for access)
   • How to Create Asynchronous Sessions Online Using Blackboard Collaborate
   • Captioning a Collaborate Session with Stream
   • Using Microsoft OneDrive
   • Using Remote Desktop
   • Scheduling Skype Meetings using the Web Scheduler
   • Blackboard - Copy a Course
   • Blackboard - Export Course
   • Blackboard - Archive Course
   • Blackboard - Adding Publisher Content
   • Blackboard - Creating a Discussion Board
   • Blackboard - Add Assessment Availability Exceptions
   • Blackboard - Create Deploy and Grade Test
   • Blackboard - Build Tests from Test Banks or Pools
   • Blackboard - Export and Import Test
   • Blackboard - Adding Publisher Tests and Pools
   • Blackboard - View Collaborate Recording
   • Blackboard - Download a Collaborate Recording
   • Blackboard - Captioning a Collaborate Session with Stream