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Spring 2021 Course Creation Resources

The CLT is pleased to offer a range of options for faculty to get individual support, group training, and self-service resources as you prepare for the Spring 2021 semester.

Information Session

On December 3, 2020, the CLT and collaborators Kerry Noonan (Core) and Hannah Cartmel (CC Montreal) held an information session discussing the resources and support services covered on this page. You can watch a recording here (Champlain authentication required; you will be prompted to provide your CC email address and authenticated through Google).

Pathways to Success

Navigate your course design on your own or with CLT support for success!

Infographic featuring pictures of leaves and a step-by-step overview that includes the following. STEP 1 My vision. Faculty articulate their vision for the course: the desired cognitive and affective learning outcomes and skill they want students to master. Faculty consider their audience, their teaching philosophy and classroom culture.they hope to create. STEP 2 My course plan Faculty block or outline the course units and key assessments based on desired course outcome. Faculty look across the units and establish a unit flow with regularly scheduled synchronous and asynchronous learning activities STEP 3 My syllabus Faculty reflect on their vision and delivery plan to create a syllabus. Faculty will consider key best practices such as DEI, UDL, High Impact Practices, and the college syllabus guidelines STEP 4 My collaborators. Faculty work with colleagues and campus and community partners to obtain resources, coordinate learning experiences, obtain helpful academic technology and ensure all course materials are accessibility compliant STEP 5 My Canvas production. Faculty upload their syllabus to Canvas and create learning modules STEP 6 My course management. Faculty set up assignments in Canvas with due dates and values and set up the gradebook. STEP 7 My Time-savers. Faculty explore Canvas time-saving features. The college will conduct a tech review to ensure that all Canvas components are set up properly and will serve faculty and students well.

Support Options

Infographic featuring a chart of resources for new faculty, all faculty, clinics, and video library. For clinics, please see the calendar linked below. For videos, please see the YouTube channel linked below. New faculty resources include mentors assigned by Deans and PDs, Deans and PDs requiring or encouraging that new faculty participate in a three-step process through the CLT that includes big-picture vision, design, and canvas production, CLT 1:1 support, and self-guided materials. Options for all faculty include self-guided materials such as how-to videos, checklists, drop-in training sessions, and a roadmap, as well as 1:1 support, flipped classroom workshops, and technology webinars.

Check out the CLT Events calendar for more information on workshops and clinics, including dates of the above events, as well as the invitations sent to your own Champlain faculty calendar. No matter what options you choose, you can always make an appointment with us.

Check out the video library on our YouTube channel!

Checklist

Faculty new to flex-hybrid can use this self-guided checklist to make sure your syllabus and Canvas course are ready to go! Please make a copy for your own use. (Link requires Champlain College login.)

Faculty who are continuing with flex-hybrid can use this checklist. Please make a copy for your own use. (Link requires Champlain login.)

Thanks to the faculty, staff, and student team, including Hannah Cartmel (CC Montreal), Kerry Noonan (Core), Taylor Drinker ’21, and CLT staff, who created these lists.

New to Flex-Hybrid?

If you are new to flex-hybrid teaching, and especially if you are also new to Champlain, we recommend a structured coaching process. This process is also available to returning faculty and those who have taught flex-hybrid before, but would like ongoing coaching.

Infographic titled Our Process is Easy - Spring '21 Course Planning. There are arrows progressing through three stages: Big Picture Desired and Course Outcomes, Learning Experience Design, and Learning Experience Technology slash Canvas Applications. Text in the Big Picture stage reads "Meeting with Rebecca: Aligning faculty philosophy of education and vision for the course with stated outcomes and pedagogical approaches". The second stage, Learning Experience Design, is described as "Meeting with Caroline: Exploring synchronous and asynchronous strategies for effective and efficient instruction and assessment." The third and final stage, Learning Experience Technology slash Canvas Applications, is described as "Meeting with Freddy: Ensuring that courses meet Champlain College standards and each faculty member's vision through the effective use of Canvas and other academic technology."

Make an appointment to get started! You can also view our materials on getting started with flex-hybrid (including the definition, as well as design principles like Backwards Design and Flipped Learning for flex-hybrid) from Fall 2020 here.

Key Tutorials & Videos to Get Started

CLT’s Canvas Tutorials

(If you prefer written information, please explore our guide to getting started with Canvas here, which will direct you to our other written resources.)

Note: you might notice that the CLT’s tutorials do not include the “basics”. That’s because we could not possibly do it better than California theater educator and actress Ashlee Espinosa, whose playlist of Canvas tutorial videos covers almost anything you need to know about Discussions, Assignments, Inbox, Modules, and more.

CLT’s Zoom and Meet Tutorials

CLT’s Flex-Hybrid Pedagogy Tutorials

Find More Tutorial Videos

New! Check out more of the CLT’s growing YouTube channel! Explore our other categorized playlists to find the tutorials you need on topics like videoconferencing, Google tools, accessibility, and more. Also check out the Flex-Hybrid Capacitor YouTube Channel, created by Champlain students, faculty, and staff under the coordination of Mark Zammuto and Tyrese Colquhoun ’21. The “Flex Capacitor” includes lots of quick time-saver videos on videoconferencing technology and what students would like faculty to know about flex-hybrid and virtual learning.

Again, we recommend Ashlee Espinosa’s YouTube channel for introductions to all of the major Canvas functions, as well as tips for virtual teaching and videoconferencing.

A Note from the Library Team

Check out the Library Service Continuity FAQs & Teaching Resources!

From Emily Crist, Director of the Library:

The Library is here to help connect Faculty to the academic resources (e.g., streaming video, e-books, and digitization services) needed for Spring 2021 flex-hybrid instruction. Faculty are encouraged to book an appointment with the library for resource request support. These appointments are designed to give individualized assistance in navigating the available options for acquiring resources. It can be a complicated and confusing process, and the library is here to make that process as smooth as possible. Book appointments by clicking this link, which is also available in the Ask a Librarian box on the homepage of the library website. 

If you have questions about accessible PDFs and other materials, librarians can help direct you to resources.

What Students Want Us to Know

Dy’mon Guthrie ’21, for the Flex-Hybrid Capacitor YouTube channel

The three best things in remote: Those listed here were cited [by Champlain students interviewed about remote learning in Spring 2020] as top of mind and without prompt:
– Course Organization…clearly presented in either modules or homepage. The key word here was structure.

– Faculty Engagement – faculty that are competent in managing an online environment [and] synchronous classroom, and accessible…

– Class Meeting (synchronous) – used as a means of student engagement

– Assignments and Content – Well organized courses along with work that allows more freedom and discretion in researching, more interactive projects, group projects, [and] limits to screen reading.

Don Haggerty, Professor, Stiller School of Business (condensed)
Read Don’s complete report, including specific student feedback and suggestions, here

Invite everyone to be involved: “It is hard to see if more than one person wants to talk. Asking the question again after the loudest student answers allows others to have their voices heard…the quieter and more polite students will always allow others to speak first, and without being able to be there in the classroom it can be hard to see that and give them the opportunity. Asking the same question again helps. Ask a question and count to 5! There might be a delay for some people or they need to get their mics on. Don’t assume they don’t want to participate, they might just be unsure of when they are to respond if you keep talking.”
Taylor Drinker ’21

Appointments and Events

You can always make an appointment with a CLT staff member or Canvas mentor!

Check out the CLT Calendar! Our scheduled training and coaching offerings, including webinars, flipped learning workshops, and the What’s the Fix? drop-in topic-specific coaching sessions, appear there. Event invitations will also appear in your Champlain calendar. Simply click the event to get joining information!