Teaching Resources

Each Program in MPAP has a unique arrangement for advisement of undergraduate and graduate students. If you are the primary instructor for a course and you would like to contact a student’s advisor or if you feel as though a student is falling behind in his/her course work or is consistently absent from class for any reason, you can find a link to ‘Alert Advisor’ in the class roster on Albert. If you are the teaching assistant, consult with the instructor as they can alert the advisor regarding your concerns. You are on the “front lines” and the department relies on hearing from you when students are in need of advisement or in crisis. Our academic advisors are also aware of the many resources available to students across the University and are eager to help. 

Please note: If you encounter a situation where one of your students will not be able to progress through the course for which you are serving as a TA or as primary instructor, remember that all sensitive, personal and health matters should be addressed with the student’s advisor or the Student Services Office, Pless Hall, 2nd Floor (212-998-5065)

A student, based on special circumstances, may be granted an incomplete grade for a course. Students and instructors will need to file the Incomplete Grade Agreement Form indicating the work that needs to be completed and a deadline for when the work is to be turned in. 

While this handbook contains some guidance on teaching and tools for preparing for you course, more information regarding teaching procedures, including academic policies, grading and evaluation matters are available on the Steinhardt Academic Standards Website. 

Faculty Center 

As an NYU instructor, you have access to a personalized faculty center, a one-stop-shop for all of the information relevant to your course(s). 

How to Access Faculty Center 

1.      Log into your NYU Home account 

2.      Click on the “Albert” tab (this will open a new page) 

3.      You are now in the Albert portal. On the top menu, select “Faculty/Advisor.” 

Once you have successfully logged in, you will find that the Faculty Center function provides you with: 

•         Your course roster(s) organized by semester. 

•         Your class details, including the course description, class meeting pattern, enrollment status, waitlists, etc. 

•         Your grade roster, which allows you web grading capabilities. 

The University has created a variety of web-based resources which contain additional information. 

Submitting Final Grades 

Grades should be posted and submitted to Academic Records three days after your final exam or final class session. Web grading through Faculty Center allows for: 

•         Complete grade rosters wherever there is an internet connection 

•         Designate a proxy to enter grades on behalf of instructor 

•         Partial posting of grades (the concept of grade as you go) 

•         Electronic grade changes 

•         Names of graduating students highlighted in violet 

•         Grades available to students 30 minutes after grade is submitted to the Registrar 

Now that you know a little more about the capabilities, here are the step-by-step directions. 

How to Submit Grades 

1.      Log into your NYU Home account.

2.      Click on the “Albert” tab (this will open a new page). 

3.      You are now in the Albert portal. On the top menu, select “Faculty/Advisor.” 

4.      Click on the Grade Roster icon next to your course (this too will open a new page)

5.      A list of your class roster will load and you can then assign grades using the drop down box under the “Roster Grade” column. Be sure you see all of your students in the list by clicking on the “View All” link at the bottom of the roster. 

6.      Once you have assigned all of the grades you wish to post, go to “Grade Roster Action” and select the Approval status Submit Grades to Registrar, then click Save. Note: It is not necessary to assign grades for all students. Instructors can return to the Faculty Center at a later time and assign grades to the remaining students. 

7.      When the Registrar’s Office posts the grades, the grade roster will indicate Posted and the grades will appear on the student’s transcript. 

If you use the Gradebook function in NYU Brightspace, you can also pull your grades from Classes into Albert for official grading in faculty center. More information can be accessed on the ServiceLink Website. 

More detailed instructions on web grading, assigning a proxy, and using the partial post function, are available in the Albert: Faculty Grading Help Document (and it includes visual aids).

General Uses of Brightspace

NYU Brightspace, our new learning management system (LMS), is replacing NYU Classes in fall 2021. Review the faculty/staff page and student page for checklists, getting started guides, self-paced learning, and training. Faculty members, schools may have additional resources to help you get started. Please contact your Ed Tech support team for details . You can access Brightspace through your NYU Home account, under the Academics tab. Instructions and an NYU Brightspace  FAQ are available.

Once you have initiated an NYU Brightspace site, your students will not be able to enter the site until you activate it, allowing students to view the content. 

Textbooks 

To select your course materials, simply do the following:

1. Go to brightspace.nyu.edu.

2. Select “NYU Bookstore” on the menu at the top.

3. Click on your upcoming term and the classes you are registered to teach

4. Scroll to the bottom of the page and use "Quick Re-Adopt" if you've used the same books in the past. 

5. If you are new to the course, enter the ISBN, title, or author to search for the book/material you want to use.

6. If you do not plan to adopt any materials, please let the Bookstore know so it can list the class as "No texts required“

Bookstore staff are available to assist at 212.998.4653 or wsq.text@nyu.edu .

Access the Bookstore FAQ here.

Top Things to Remember Regarding Use of Copyrighted Materials 

• NYU has adopted a Statement of Policy on Photocopying Copyrighted Materials 

• Use of copyrighted materials in coursepacks is not a fair use under the Copyright Law and NYU’s Policy; in order to comply with the law and the Policy, all coursepacks must be submitted for processing to the NYU Bookstore 

• Use of NYU Brightspace is covered by the Copyright Law and NYU’s Policy 

• To reduce coursepack costs to students, review your materials to see if they can be obtained for free by linking to materials already licensed by NYU’s Libraries 

• In general, providing links to materials on the web does not require the permission of the copyright holder. It is a good rule of thumb to use linking to provide access to copyrighted materials whenever possible, rather than posting PDFs or otherwise reproducing web materials. 

For more information please read the Copyright and Fair Use Page.

Meeting with Students 

As an instructor you will be the first point of contact for your students. Frequency of meetings outside of class, in the form of office hours or otherwise, is at the discretion and organization of each individual instructor. Individual Programs are responsible for arranging meeting space for adjuncts, but there is also a faculty work space available for all adjuncts in the Education Building, 35 West 4th Street - in the rear of the 2nd Floor student lounge. If you have trouble locating the entrance to the work space or if the door is locked, contact the administrative aide in suite 205.

Classroom Space & Media Support 

In general, all classroom space, including space for recitation sessions, is assigned by the Registrar’s Office; faculty and doctoral students do not get to choose their classroom(s). TAs and instructors can, however, request room swaps early in the semester (space permitting) and they can request additional audio/visual equipment and support if the room they are assigned is not already equipped. You should contact MPAPSpace to request a room change. Instructors should not reach out to the Registrar directly for this request.

Information regarding classroom technology is available at the NYU Campus Media Website. This site makes it easy to search by classroom address to determine your classroom’s technological capabilities. 

If the room you are assigned is not fully equipped for your course, you can order additional equipment as long as you notify Campus Media 48 hours in advance of the scheduled class. Standing orders for equipment needed on a weekly basis should be ordered well in advance of the start of the semester. You may reserve classroom equipment from Campus Media.

The request should include the following: 

1. Your name 

2. Course name and number

3. Building and room number 

4. Description of the equipment needed 

5. Dates the equipment is needed and the start and end time of the course 

Campus Media delivers requested equipment to classrooms with the exception of laptops, which must be picked up at the Silver Center, Lower Level 7A. Some classrooms are already equipped with A/V devices. Note that you must request a remote in order to use the VCRs and DVDs in most teaching classrooms. 

Finally, if you experience difficulty with media equipment while teaching, call the number listed beside the room entrance and provide your location (The number for the Silver building is 212-998-2655). An IT specialist will arrive within a few minutes. 

Library Privileges for TAs and Adjunct Instructors 

Doctoral students have regular graduate student loan and computer library privileges. However, TAs have an additional 48-hour loan privilege of audio/visual library materials for teaching use at the Avery Fisher Center for Music and Media. 

The Avery Fisher Center normally allows only on-site use of VHS, CD, DVD and audiocassettes. To borrow audio/visual library material, you should fill out the Avery Fisher Request Form and wait for confirmation of the request before picking up the order.