Keep on Teaching

Sometimes the unexpected happens. When it does, VCU will be prepared to keep on teaching and keep on learning. Were we to have a blizzard or some other surprise event, no doubt we will eventually experience a moment where all in-person academic meetings will need to transition to a remote format. If all or part of VCU instructional locations become unavailable or need to be closed, academic continuity can maintain course progression.

Technical Support

The IT Support Center provides support for hardware (i.e. laptops, etc.) and other enterprise services (i.e. Google Docs, VPN, forms, etc.)

ITSC@vcu.edu or (804) 828-2227

Instructional Support

Available Monday-Friday, 8:00am-5:00pm, and by appointment outside of those hours.

Complete this short form for support from ALT Lab/Online@VCU.

General Information

Please share these Keep Learning student support resources with your students.

Keep up to date on all COVID-19 communication from VCU.

Keep on Teaching Form

There's still time to submit the My Plan to Keep on Teaching form. You will need to be logged into your VCU account to access the form.

Please see this message from the Provost to learn more about the form and what will be done with the responses.

The Goal = Academic Continuity

This toolkit was developed to provide faculty with options to keep teaching and for faculty to consider providing options for students to support them as they keep learning. The tips, strategies, tools, and resources below are not intended to be a comprehensive lesson in online course pedagogy. The core purpose is to support faculty with a rapid transition to remote instruction that will promote course completion. As outlined below, VCU aims to approach all aspects of academic continuity with flexibility, care, compassion, kindness, creativity, and positivity. 

General Principles

Be proactive- As you prepare for change, a proactive approach before the urgent need arises is always the preferred approach.  Nothing beats getting prepared in advance for any unexpected situation that may require in-person courses and other academic work to be rapidly converted to a remote or online format. The more you prepare in advance, the easier the transition.

Prioritize care, compassion, kindness- Some of your students may need to miss class, find alternate ways to submit assignments depending on their technology/wifi access, or request an extension for an assignment/exam. Knowing that you care about them and their success may make all the difference in their motivation, persistence, and ultimate success in course completion. 

Stay calm- Students look to you for leadership. If students see that you are calm and that you are assuring them everything will be ok with the course, that will go a long way to keep them positive and engaged. You set the tone for helping your students stay calm.

Keep it simple- Please do not expect to launch a fully online course that would typically take 18 months to develop. Choose tools that are already in use by both you and the students.You do not need all the bells and whistles to be effective. Keep it simple and choose technology tools that will support your particular learning goals and needs. 

Practice pedagogical flexibility- In times of rapid transition to remote teaching, flexibility goes a long way. Pedagogical flexibility allows us to get creative with assignment design, exam format, options for students such as choosing from a list of projects, interactive discussions, avenues for student submission of their work, etc. At its core, teaching is a creative process. 

Support our student community- keep in mind under-served and marginalized students may experience disproportionate stressors including lack of resources or need for an accessible format. Your support and flexibility can make all the difference in student success.

Seek support from colleagues- We encourage faculty to stay in communication with colleagues both in your own department and also across the university for ideas on how best to transition to remote teaching. There are likely some discipline-specific needs that may be solved with creativity in brainstorming with faculty teaching similar content. 

Getting Started & Key Tips

1. Be proactive, create a virtual plan now. The good news is the more we prepare, the better the transition will go.
2. Remind your students that all communications go through VCU email. We recommend announcing this in every single class meeting and through any virtual communication you have with students (Blackboard, email, etc.).
3. Make sure you have a way to contact all of your students (e.g., accurate email address).
4. Take stock of learning goals and stay flexible:
   1. Review your learning outcomes. What do you want your students to know and be able to do when they complete your course? Are there any adjustments that can be made while still meeting those goals?
   2. Review your syllabus to establish your immediate needs.
      1. What needs to be changed to work online? (content, interactions, assessments, etc.)
   3. Think long term- what changes need to be made to major projects that were assigned before you had to transition your course?
   4. Flexibility: As mentioned above, think about how can you stay flexible in your teaching strategy? For example, perhaps a course project requiring students to attend events or visit public galleries or museums gets converted to a remote project using online museum archives.
   5. Keep accessibility needs in mind as you plan for a remote teaching and learning environment. For students with documentation, you will already know what accommodations are needed for your course. But you may need to look over documentation again and think about how this translates to remote teaching and learning. For example, extra time on quizzes and exams will require instructor planning for online delivery.
5. Get your tech needs in order:
   1. We suggest hosting at least one face to face class using a remote format to give yourself a chance to think through your approach, the student experience, and possible tech needs. This test run usually brings relevant tech and even non-technical issues to the forefront. By facilitating one remote format class meeting, both faculty and your students will be better equipped to adjust for a rapid transition should that situation arise.
   2. Equipment- Do you have a desktop computer, laptop, or tablet device for use at home? Does your wifi work well at home? Perhaps you need to order a webcam and/or microphone headset now?
   3. Set up systems that support your rapid transition to Keep on Teaching:
      1. For some types of work, like if you are working in an application or service that can only be accessed on-campus, you might need to use the Virtual Private Network (VPN). Utilizing the VPN allows a user to appear as if they are logging in from within VCU's network. Two-factor authentication, Duo, is required for the use of the virtual private network (VPN). Currently VPN sessions will time out after 48 hours, at which point you will need to reinstate the connection.
         
         If you are accessing tools such as Zoom, Kaltura, Google G Suite (Gmail, Docs, Drive, etc.), submitting or managing tickets in Cherwell, a VPN connection is not required. We would like to reserve the VPN service only for people accessing applications that require it.
         
         This page contains additional information about VCU's VPN.
      2. Tools- You may want to set up your Zoom account (you have access to Zoom Pro as a VCU employee) or check out Google tools you may use to Keep on Teaching. (see below for tools)
6. Talk Early, Talk Often
   1. Communicate with your students.
      1. Students will likely face some confusion and uncertainty as courses rapidly transition to remote format.
      2. Be clear about your new expectations. Sometimes we think our expectations are clear, but students are not so certain.
      3. Be clear about where and when things will occur. Predictability and clarity on due dates, sticking to the previous plan when possible, will help students succeed.
      4. Help students understand what they’ll need to do to succeed and what resources they’ll need.
7. Maintain your course schedule
   1. Sticking to the course schedules provides you and the students with a predictable map for where you are headed. Students will need to maintain as much structure as possible so that they do not get behind in courses that used to meet in person.