For faculty converting classes online due to the COVID-19 emergency, we are doing educational triage. This is not the time to convert or create a professionally-created online course. Most of our students come to SDCE because of the face-to-face interaction with their instructors and they are not necessarily students who are looking for distance education. However, the intent with providing alternative remote teaching is to keep our students engaged, and closer to meeting their goals then if we were to do nothing.

You are not required to use Canvas or other online DE tools. Even if all you or your students have a land-line, a regularly scheduled conference call can be scheduled to keep in touch. Even if you are just using email as a communication tool to send assignments or links to activities and communicate to keep in touch, that is ok.

Starting with the basics of converting your class online start with these steps:

1. Pick a tool to communicate with your students. All faculty have student emails, so that is likely the best way to communicate with them. Click here for resources on communicating with your students. Canvas also has a method to communicate with students as well. If you haven't yet done so, start with a message to students saying you are working on it and to check back often on email.

2. Set up a schedule for students to meet. This typically would be your normal course day and time. Communicate that students are expected to meet online at this time.

3. Pick an online tool to host your online course with students. We will review tools in this section in more detail, but start with the simplest tool you are comfortable. For example, you can use email for both the communication tool and also the space to host your online course by having students complete their assignments and email them back to you. What's outlined below offers suggestions on how to convert your class should be considered simple ways to get through this semester and does not represent a recommended strategy for comprehensive course design.

Using email to communicate with students

To send out emails to your students, take the following steps:

• Students are notorious for not checking email; ideally you would have prepared them ahead of time to check email, but if not, realize they may be slow to read emails or they may not be getting them if emails are sent to an old address.

• Some students may not have updated their email in the SDDCCD MyPortal or Canvas to the one they most frequently check since their original registration with the course. Encourage them to do so by following these steps:

  1. 1. log into https://myportal.sdccd.edu/

     2. Click on "CE Student Dashboard"

     3. Click on "Personal Information"

     4. Click on the "Email Addresses" tab

     5. Enter your preferred email address

• It is recommended that you use your official SDCCD email address, not an external address (such as Gmail or Yahoo!). FERPA restricts what you are allowed to send over email, including assignment feedback and grades. The content of what you send and/or using an external address may violate FERPA.

• The amount of emails you receive could get a bit overwhelming. Be prepared that whatever you send out, will need to be managed.

• To send emails to your students:

  1. 1. log into https://myportal.sdccd.edu/

     2. Click on "CE Faculty Dashboard"

     3. Looks for the "Continuing Education Faculty Schedule" and click on your course.

     4. A dropdown window will appear, click on "Class Roster"

     5. Scroll to the bottom and click "Select All" or individually select all the students you want to email.

     6. Click "Notify Selected Students"

     7. Select all the student emails, then copy them

     8. Open up your email browser at https://mail.sdccd.edu/ and log in to your faculty email

     9. Start a "New" message

     10. Click "Options"

     11. Select "Show Bcc" and click "OK"

     12. In the Bcc field, paste the emails. By putting the emails in the Bcc field students will not see all other student emails

     13. Add the subject line and body and send

Using Canvas and/or Zoom to host your online course

Every in-person or online class at SDCE automatically has a Canvas "shell" available to use. Use the list of ideas below to consider how you might reproduce what you would have done in the classroom, online using Canvas and/or Zoom. This table presumes a basic familiarity with Canvas and Zoom. If you need to back up a bit and learn more Canvas and Zoom fundamentals, click on these links to learn more about Canvas and Zoom.

• Conducting a lecture: host a live Zoom meeting and record it. Post the recording to Canvas for students to view later.

• Have a discussion: host a live Zoom meeting; or create a discussion board on Canvas.

• Conduct group work: host a live Zoom meeting and use the breakout rooms tool to allow students to meet in smaller groups; or create a group discussion board in Canvas.

• Give a quiz or test: use the Canvas Quiz tool to administer the test online.

• Collect student assignments: use the Canvas Assignment tool to collect student work online. This is a much more efficient way to collect work rather than have students individually email the work.

• Communicate with all students: use the Announcements tool in Canvas. This tool will send emails to students based on their preferences in Canvas. Be sure to let students know how to update their Canvas Notifications settings so make sure they get them to their preferred email.

• Making the content accessible to all students: click here for ten tips on how to provide instruction with accommodations for a student with a disability here.