We will update this page with new communications throughout the semester.

Past Updates

JUNE 4, 2020

We continue to add resources to help you prepare for the fall semester. Just as important, we are available to answer your questions as you determine your goals for your courses. Whether you have technical or pedagogical questions, you can reach our faculty support team at help@syr.edu. This team comprises staff from Information Technology Services, the Center for Teaching and Learning Excellence, and the Center for Online and Digital Learning. We are working together to help you succeed.

To learn more about the additional resources for fall course transition, you can join us for office hours every Tuesday at 6 p.m. ET and every Thursday at 10 a.m.

Today’s topics:

• Reminder: Course transition services
• Faculty conversation blog
• Classroom technology guide
• Lights, camera, action: Recording from home

Reminder: Course Transition Services

In addition to resources provided by our faculty support team, Syracuse University has partnered with Blackboard Academic Services to provide fall course transition services to faculty throughout the summer. We encourage you to fill out the Fall Course Development Form to request support or to submit questions about specific aspects of online instruction and preparation. We also have provided some frequently asked questions and relevant links for your reference.

Faculty Conversation Blog

Would you like to connect with your fellow faculty members to discuss approaches to teaching and learning? We have created a blog on Answers to facilitate conversations about topics of interest to our faculty (you will need to log in with your NetID and password). To get started, you can join this conversation about questions regarding the upcoming semester.

Classroom Technology Guide

ITS maintains detailed information about technology in registrar classrooms across campus. From Bowne to Watson, you can learn about the resources available in each space. Individual training sessions also are available for faculty and staff who need further assistance with learning to operate classroom computers.

Lights, Camera, Action: Recording from Home

Not every video requires Hollywood-level production. If you have a phone or tablet that can record video, you have everything you need to create videos for your course. Check out these tips for home recording.

Please continue to visit the Academic Continuity Resources toolkit, which we will update as needed throughout the summer. In addition to our regular communications each Tuesday and Thursday, you also can refer to our archive of previous messages and follow ITS on Instagram and Twitter.

Thank you for all you do for your students and for Syracuse University. Go Orange!

JUNE 2, 2020

In addition to resources provided by Information Technology Services, the Center for Online and Digital Learning, and the Center for Teaching and Learning Excellence, Syracuse University has partnered with Blackboard Academic Services to provide fall course transition services to faculty throughout the summer. We encourage you to fill out the Fall Course Development Form to request support or to submit questions about specific aspects of online instruction and preparation. We also have provided some frequently asked questions and relevant links for your reference. We look forward to working with you!

Today’s topics:

• Ongoing course transition webinar series
• Essential principles of course design
• The language of online learning: Hybrid vs. hy-flex
• Research computing resources

Ongoing Course Transition Webinar Series

Thank you to those who joined us for last week’s course transition services kickoff with Blackboard. If you missed last week’s discussion but would like to learn more, you can join us every Tuesday at 6 p.m. ET and every Thursday at 10 a.m. ET to learn about your options for creating course content and how you can get assistance transitioning your course online. During this webinar, we will discuss best practices for:

• Developing and uploading your curriculum.
• Submitting content to the instructional design team.
• Reviewing course design prior to course launch.
• Course design and delivery.

We also will allow time to answer your questions. We hope to see you there!

Session Information

Guest: https://us.bbcollab.com/guest/ef94333338094644acd102a03d449597 
Anonymous dial-in: 571.392.7650 PIN: 837 207 1471

Essential Principles of Course Design

Whether teaching in-person, online or using some combination of the two, you can design great courses by following five essential principles:

• Alignment: The course objectives, assessments and assignments should align, much like peas align in a pod. Review the Summer Online Course Checklist to learn more.
• Transparency: Evidence shows that making assignments transparent can positively impact students’ course performance and remove barriers to student success. Enroll in the Transparent Teaching for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Access organization in Blackboard for more on this topic.
• Student-focused: In student-focused learning, the focus is on how students learn best. The instructor is a guide or mentor, not a lecturer, sage or speaker. Student-centered learning ensures that students practice skills and reflect on new knowledge to encode it for use later.
• Predictable: Predictable learning puts similar learning activities at similar times in a face-to-face course and in similar locations in an online course. If the class commences with a question, every class commences with a question. If the course module includes a discussion, that discussion always appears in the same place. This practice increases student mental bandwidth for learning as it frees students from having to respond to new stimuli in each class.
• Scaffolded: Scaffolding refers to external supports provided by an instructor and adjusted to a learner’s current level of ability to help the learner develop a particular skill. We discuss scaffolding in the Academic Continuity Resources toolkit.

The Language of Online Learning: Hybrid vs. Hy-Flex

As you continue to explore online teaching and learning, you might encounter terms with which you’re unfamiliar. For example, what is the difference between a hybrid course design and a hy-flex course design? Learn more about these course design options as you plan for the fall semester.

Research Computing Resources

Research computing at Syracuse University is a collaborative effort among the research community and technology groups from across campus. Available resources include high throughput computing, virtual private cloud computing and GPU-based computing. To learn more, visit researchcomputing.syr.edu or email researchcomputing@syr.edu.

Please continue to visit the Academic Continuity Resources toolkit, which we will update as needed throughout the summer. In addition to our regular communications each Tuesday and Thursday, you also can refer to our archive of previous messages and follow ITS on Instagram and Twitter.

Thank you for all you do for your students and for Syracuse University. Go Orange!

MAY 28, 2020

As we prepare for the fall semester, we are excited to offer coordinated course preparation support through a partnership among Information Technology Services, the Center for Online and Digital Learning, the Center for Teaching and Learning Excellence, and Blackboard. We outline the scope and process for taking advantage of these services below. As always, you can contact help@syr.edu with any questions. We look forward to working with you.

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The Summer Institute for Technology-Enhanced Teaching and Learning (SITETL) is moving online this year and is open to all Syracuse University faculty members, instructors and teaching graduate students. The event will take place on Wednesday, May 20, from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. SITETL will consist of two sessions: one general session in the morning for all participants and an afternoon session with four tracks focused on different topics. If you have any questions, please contact Michael Morrison at memorr02@syr.edu.

Research Computing Resources

Research computing at Syracuse University is a collaborative effort among the research community and technology groups from across campus. Available resources include high throughput computing, virtual private cloud computing and GPU-based computing. To learn more, visit researchcomputing.syr.edu or email researchcomputing@syr.edu.

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This is not the semester that anyone envisioned. We realize that everyone’s situation is slightly different in terms of family, resources and more. Even so, please remember that you are not alone—we are all in this together. We look forward to helping you make the best of a challenging situation.

March 12, 2020

To support the transition to online course delivery effective at the end of the academic day on Friday, March 13, we will continue to send regular communications to ensure you have the most up-to-date information related to online teaching and learning. If you haven’t already, please bookmark the Academic Continuity Resources toolkit available at at Syracuse.edu/coronavirus/academic-continuity.

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