Dear Colleagues,
We hope you are well. We are writing with information about resources and support available this week.
Please check out these two new resources that are posted on the CTL website Brooklyn.cuny.edu/ctl:
- Resources: Supporting Students in Your Classes - with information for faculty to help students navigate remote instruction. You can find this resource linked from the homepage of the CTL:
- Netiquette for Remote Instruction - a resource on netiquette, or etiquette for the internet. Please educate/remind your students that all Brooklyn College and CUNY policies applies to all of us, even when we’re interacting online.
Tomorrow, the amazing AIT staff continues to offer robust support for Blackboard:
10:30-11:30 a.m. - Blackboard Q&A
12:30-1:30 p.m. - Blackboard Collaborate Basic
2:30-3:30 p.m. - A Tour of Blackboard for first-time users
- https://us.bbcollab.com/guest/90f0762e4af84748b9e5185ea4fc4497
- Learn the basics of creating and developing a course on Blackboard, including setting up a materials delivery structure, create announcements and create, review and grade assignments, and use common collaborative interfaces such as Discussion Board and Blogs.
Later in the week, the Center for Teaching & Learning will be holding pedagogy-focused sessions at these times:
Helping Students and Pedagogical Puzzles, Open Q & A
Faculty in need of one-on-one pedagogical support can Schedule a Consultation for Remote Instruction. Appointments are scheduled within 48 hours.
Take good care of you and yours,
Maddy
Maddy Fox, Ph.D.
Director, Roberta S. Matthews Center for Teaching & Learning
Assistant Professor, Children & Youth Studies and Sociology
Dear Colleagues,
Here we go! We’re back in action tomorrow!
It’s been a flurry of very hard work over the past week. More than 300 faculty have attended the trainings offered by CTL and the heroic Library AIT team. We’ve heard from you via email, phone, and (of course) video conference, and what we’ve witnessed is only a sliver of the work and preparations going on. The show of faculty solidarity and commitment has been incredible.
It is time now for our attention to turn to our students. Dean Ken Gould wrote an email to the faculty of HSS about our role as educators in this moment. We highly recommend you check it out: Supporting Our Students (pdf). It is also posted under Additional Resources on this site.
We will be continuing to provide support over these next days and beyond.
Tomorrow and Friday the CTL will be hosting an online session focused on addressing pedagogical questions and helping students transition to remote learning. As faculty, part of our role is to help our student login, navigate, and participate in our online classroom spaces. The schedules for tomorrow are posted below.
10:30-11:30 a.m. - A Tour of Blackboard for first-time users
- Carlos Cruz will be continuing to help faculty with Blackboard
- https://us.bbcollab.com/guest/90f0762e4af84748b9e5185ea4fc4497
- Learn the basics of creating and developing a course on Blackboard, including setting up a materials delivery structure, Create announcements and create, review and grade assignments, and use common collaborative interfaces such as Discussion Board and Blogs.
1-2:30 p.m. - Helping Students and Pedagogical Puzzles, Open Q & A
1:30-2:30 p.m. - Blackboard Collaborate Basic
Instructions for Joining the Blackboard Sessions
- Click on the provided link for the Blackboard Collaborate Ultra session.
- Type your name to join the session as a guest.
- Press the Join Session button.
- Click on the list icon that appears on the upper left side of the screen.
- Press Use your phone for audio button to find the phone number and conference ID call.
Faculty in need of one-on-one pedagogical support can Schedule a Consultation for Remote Instruction at the CTL for pedagogical questions – appointments scheduled within 48 hours.
Remember to consult here for regularly updated resources.
Thanks all!
Take good care of you and yours,
Maddy
Maddy Fox, Ph.D
Director, Roberta S. Matthews Center for Teaching & Learning
Assistant Professor, Children & Youth Studies and Sociology
Dear Colleagues,
We hope you’re doing ok. Here is the schedule of trainings from AIT and the CTL for tomorrow March 18th.
10:30-11:30 a.m. - A Tour of Blackboard for first-time users
- https://us.bbcollab.com/guest/90f0762e4af84748b9e5185ea4fc4497
- Learn the basics of creating and developing a course on Blackboard, including setting up a materials delivery structure, Create announcements and create, review and grade assignments, and use common collaborative interfaces such as Discussion Board and Blogs.
Noon-1 p.m. - A Tour of Blackboard Enhanced
1:30-2:30 p.m. - Blackboard Collaborate Basic
3-4 p.m. - Blackboard Online Test and Automated Regrading
Instructions for Joining the Blackboard Sessions
- Click on the provided link for the Blackboard Collaborate Ultra session.
- Type your name to join the session as a guest.
- Press the Join Session button.
- Click on the list icon that appears on the upper left side of the screen.
- Press Use your phone for audio button to find the phone number and conference ID call.
For general and pedagogical questions we will be holding a question and answer session in the early afternoon.
Information about how to access to all of these sessions will also be posted on the this website.
If you would like to request one-on-one consultation please use this form to sign up: Schedule a Consultation for Remote Instruction. We will do our best to get back to you within 48 hours.
Remember to consult this page for regularly updated resources.
Thanks all!
Take good care of you and yours,
Maddy
Maddy Fox, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Children & Youth Studies and Sociology
Director, Roberta S. Matthews Center for Teaching and Learning
Dear Colleagues,
Here is the schedule of trainings from AIT and the CTL for tomorrow March 17, 2020.
Please note – the CTL website is regularly updated with resources and information appropriate for both asynchronous and synchronous remote instruction. If you’re having any trouble logging in to a platform, check out this new How To Log In resource added to the website today (thanks, James Eaton!)
10:30-11:30 a.m. - A Tour of Blackboard for first-time users
- https://us.bbcollab.com/guest/90f0762e4af84748b9e5185ea4fc4497
- Learn the basics of creating and developing a course on Blackboard, including setting up a materials delivery structure, Create announcements and create, review and grade assignments, and use common collaborative interfaces such as Discussion Board and Blogs.
Noon-1 p.m. A Tour of Blackboard Enhanced
1:30-2:30 p.m. - Blackboard Collaborate Basic
In the afternoon we will be hosting Q & A sessions as follows:
In addition, we will be available for one-on-one consultations from 3-5 p.m. Please use this link to sign up: Schedule a Consultation for Remote Instruction
Thanks all!
Take good care of you and yours,
Maddy
Madeline Fox, PhD
Assistant Professor, Children & Youth Studies and Sociology
Director, Roberta S. Matthews Center for Teaching and Learning
Dear Colleagues,
I hope this email finds you well. I write to provide you with an update as guidelines develop and shift in these fluid times.
Distance Learning
As you know, Brooklyn College is currently in an “instructional recess” for in-person classes, and we will begin offering those courses through distance learning starting on Thursday, March 19.
For distance learning, the US Department of Education indicates that faculty must “communicate to students through one of several types of technology – including email – and [that] instructors must initiate substantive communication with students, either individually or collectively, on a regular basis.” The DOE adds: “an instructor could use email to provide instructional materials to students enrolled in his or her class, use chat features to communicate with students, set up conference calls to facilitate group conversations, engage in email exchanges or require students to submit work electronically that the instructor will evaluate.” These modalities are supported by CUNY-licensed software. Faculty should confer with students to identify the most effective and equitable way to implement distance learning.
As we try to move all courses to remote delivery, we need continued creativity and ingenuity in finding distance learning solutions for almost everything. I am available to brainstorm, as are our Academic Instructional Technology staff and librarians. Unfortunately, courses that cannot be moved completely to distance learning will, in all likelihood, have to extend into the summer months.
As you develop your courses, please bear in mind the following the under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), CUNY colleges are still required to provide equal access to our University’s academic programs – even in a distance learning environment.
Campus Offices of Disability Services (ODS) continue to serve as key sources of technical assistance. Additional links to resources and further information will be available on the CTL website starting tomorrow.
Assistance with Distance Learning
We have consolidated student email addresses and phone numbers for your retrieval and posted detailed information about how to retrieve them.
From today, March 16, onward, all faculty training is online through the Center for Teaching and Learning at brooklyn.cuny.edu/CTL. Training opportunities for faculty will continue to be updated on the Center for Teaching and Learning website daily.
Student Grades
Because many students are concerned that distance learning may affect their academic performance, the University has authorized the following changes to CUNY’s academic calendar, effective immediately.
Last Day to File for Pass/No Credit/Fail Option – For eligible students who meet the requirements of our Pass/Fail/No Credit Option policy (pdf), the University will move the deadline elect pass/fail to Thursday, May 14, 2020. Students should consult with their academic and financial aid advisor to confirm if such election will still allow them to count the course towards their major/degree requirements, if credit is earned with a grade of P.
Course Withdrawal Period – Last Day to Drop with a Grade of “W.” We will move the deadline from April 1 to May 14, 2020.
Incomplete Grades – Students who receive an INC grades in the Spring 2020 term will be allowed to submit work for resolution of INC grades for courses taken in Spring 2020 through the Fall 2020 semester, and the new deadline for faculty to submit Incomplete Grade forms to the Registrar’s Office for resolution will be December 23, 2020.
I have sent detailed University guidance to your chairs and deans on internships and clinical placements. If you have not been informed, please contact your chair or dean directly.
Study Abroad
The University has focused on bringing back students studying abroad. We anticipate that programs planned for summer 2020 will be cancelled, so do not promote them. We will provide further information when we receive guidance.
Research Continuity [Updated March 13, 2020]
To the extent possible, Principal Investigators (PIs) should continue their research. Federal sponsors are flexible with regard to administrative, cost, and reporting requirements. The research enterprise must continue to follow regulatory guidance. In some cases, PIs may consider suspending their projects or not starting new projects, but only when doing so would not pose risk of harm to human or animal subjects, or to public health. Please visit the CUNY COVID-19 Research Continuity page for more details.
We very much appreciate all you are doing to adapt and ensure the continuity of the academic programs during this difficult time. Please reach out to your dean or to me directly if you have questions of concerns. We are eager to assist you. Please take very good care of yourselves.
With all my thanks,
Anne Lopes
Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs
Brooklyn College
Dear Colleagues,
We are offering the following online training sessions for Distance Teaching and Learning tomorrow.
Blackboard Online Sessions (Academic Instructional Technology)
Instructions to access the Blackboard Workshop Training online for March 16, 2020.
Instructions
- Click on the provided link for the Blackboard Collaborate Ultra session.
- Type your name to join the session as a guest.
- Press the Join Session button.
- Click on the list icon that appears on the upper left side of the screen.
- Press Use your phone for audio button to find the phone number and conference ID call.
A Tour of Blackboard for first-time users, Monday, March 16, 10:30-11:30 a.m.
- Press the link below to access the Collaborate session
- https://us.bbcollab.com/guest/90f0762e4af84748b9e5185ea4fc4497
- Learn the basics of creating and developing a course on Blackboard, including setting up a materials delivery structure, Create announcements and create, review and grade assignments, and use common collaborative interfaces such as Discussion Board and Blogs.
Blackboard Collaborate Basic, Monday, March 16, Noon-1 p.m.
A Tour of Blackboard Enhanced, Monday, March 16, 1:30-2:30 p.m.
In addition, the Center of Teaching and Learning will be offering training online about various platforms from 3-9 p.m. Please check the Center’s website for details after noon tomorrow.
Thank you,
Anne Lopes
Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs
Brooklyn College
Dear Colleagues,
First, we hope that you and yours are safe and well. We are sending extra strong well wishes to our BC student who has a confirmed case and is currently hospitalized. May that student recover swiftly.
Though the day did not exactly start as planned, we are all adjusting with speed and compassion.
Here’s the plan: we will be offering a remote training today at 4 p.m.
Please use this link to register and let us know your needs/interests:
We will open two Google Meet online meeting rooms:
- 4 – 5 pm Blackboard training
https://meet.google.com/pqj-raoy-izs
Dial in: +1 541-626-6089 and enter this PIN: 128 590 585#
- 4 – 5 pm Other Digital Tools training
(for other platforms including Google Meet, MS Teams, PPT, Dropbox). Please use the form to indicate your specific needs.
https://meet.google.com/fyt-igdv-evg
Dial in: +1 570-989-0144 PIN: 721605554#
Click Join Session when you are prompted.
Note: You will need to use Chrome or Firefox as your browser. They can be downloaded for free if you don’t already have them installed on your computer.
If you are interested in attending these training sessions by computer all you need to do is click on the hyperlinked titles of the trainings and the online meeting space will pop open in your browser. Voila!
Please, please do register but all you need to do to join the online training space is to click on the hyperlink of the training you are interested in or dial in by phone.
If you are already trained, and you have a question that you cannot find the answer to here on our website, the Remote Support Sign-Up link also provides a way to register your interest in a one-on-one consultation. If you need one-on-one support, please sign up via the form and we will get back to with information about scheduling.
We will publish more info soon about ongoing remote trainings – including evening times.
We anticipate speedbumps. Thank you for your patience with us as we figure all this out!
PS – as noted above, if you are joining a Google Meet session today, you will need to use Chrome or Firefox as your browser.
Take good care,
Maddy Fox
Director, Center for Teaching & Learning
