Whitworth University Communication
For latest university-sponsored coronavirus information, please see https://www.whitworth.edu/cms/administration/health-and-counseling-services/health-center/coronavirus-information/
Equity Letter to Faculty
Dear Faculty,
I want to take a moment to thank each of you for the incredible work you are doing to continue teaching with high quality in our new format. I know each of you has been working diligently under very difficult and unprecedented circumstances.
I know that all of you deeply care about Whitworth students. I write to you today to ask that as we continue to make our courses available online, we consider being mindful of equity issues for our students.
This crisis has made many inequities previously invisible in our communities much more visible and more acute. I want to encourage us all to be mindful of these inequities and their impact on our students to learn and to succeed in their courses.
I know all of you are being willing to be flexible as our students struggle with many challenges, from having to move to a different mode of learning, to continuing to develop self-discipline, daily accountability, working in environments that are less conducive to learning (i.e., not having adequate spaces to study or to participate in live Zoom classes, challenging intergenerational households), lack of technology (i.e., computers not equipped to handle online learning, no Internet access, or low bandwidth, no printers), food and housing insecurities, loss of income personally or of family members, concerns for health of loved ones, etc. The truth is that this is not unlike the concerns and challenges many of us (faculty) are facing as well.
In the spirit of helping you be sensitive and helpful to our students, here is a list of things to consider:
ACCESS TO TECHNOLOGY
- A sector of our students is struggling with getting access to adequate technology to succeed in online learning. For some of them Internet access is spotty, or very slow.
- As you prepare your materials consider the amount of bandwidth that might be needed to complete what you are asking students to do.
- Remember that students may not have access to a printer.
- Remind students that their phones can be used as scanners by taking a picture of what they need to send you.
- Equity research seems to indicate that it is more likely that students have a smart phone than a powerful computer or internet. So consider this information when you make adjustments to your course.
- However, also remember that not everyone has a smart phone or computers and/or Internet.
LIVE VIRTUAL CLASSES CONSIDERATIONS
If you are doing live virtual classes (synchronous)
- Consider issues of bandwidth and instruct students of options. For example, let them know they can join through audio only. Don’t assume they know; let them know about the options they have and give clear instructions of how to access these options.
- Consider that some students are not in an environment in which they are able to join the class virtually due to a variety of reasons. Do not require them to participate in live virtual classes (you can recommend it but consider not requiring it).
- Give them the option of watching a recording of the class.
- There are FERPA concerns with recording live virtual classes for student to watch later, so consider telling students the following:
- Participation in live virtual classes is not mandatory (required).
- You can participate using audio only if bandwidth is a concern. They can call in. Provide them with a phone number they can use to participate through audio only.
- Live virtual lectures will be recorded so those who cannot join during the designated time of the live lecture can access the recording at a later time.
- Joining the live virtual lecture represents an agreement to the recording of the class. If you do not wish to be part of the recording, please watch the recording later and do not join the live virtual lecture.
COURSE MECHANICS AND COURSE EXPECTATIONS
- Don’t necessarily add more work for students to complete (beyond what was originally expected at the start of the course) unless you are not holding virtual classes (then it can be justified). That is, make sure what you are asking them to do is similar in terms of the time commitment that was expected of them prior to Covid-19.
- Consider that students also are having to learn new technology and for some of them this is very overwhelming. The more specific and clear you can be to help them navigate the new technology, the better. This is particularly true for students with lack of resources and for UREP and First Generation students.
COMMUNICATION AND EQUITY
- To address equity it is extremely important that we maintain high communication levels with students. Provide as many alternatives as possible for them to communicate with you.
- If you have a Gmail account, you can learn about Google voice (free), which allows you to set up your phone in a way that students can text you or call you without actually having you cell phone number. It is a bit complicated to set up, but it is doable). Or alternatively you can set up a Gmail account and then set up the Google voice.
- Practicing this high touch approach is very important to help students maintain a sense of belonging to the institution and might have a significant positive impact in our ability to retain students this coming Fall.
- If you need instructions on how to do this, email lhernandezjarvis@whitworth.edu, and I can send them to you.
- Encourage students to let you know a.s.a.p. of any challenges they may be facing so that you can address them. If the challenges are not things related directly to your class make sure you share the information with those on campus who might be able to help, or direct students to contact those people directly. Remind them that Student Success Center, the Counseling Center, and Educational Support services are still operational and ready to support them.
PSYCHOLOGICAL WELL BEING
- Some students are overwhelmed and “feel they are doing this all on their own and by themselves.” Let them know (repeatedly) that you are there to walk this journey with them.
- Student Success has created a great website to help students navigate the transition to online learning. Encourage them to visit the site (put a link to it on Blackboard, or your syllabus, or in an email to them) Here is the link: https://www.whitworth.edu/cms/administration/student-success/online-learning/. Make it easy for them to know where to get help.
- Show students that you care by sharing with them other resources that they might need. The student Success Center has put together a website with a list of resources. Here is the site: https://www.whitworth.edu/cms/administration/student-success/covid-19-resources-for-navigating-challenging-times/.
Lorna Hernandez Jarvis, Ph.D. (pronouns she, her, hers) Chief Diversity Officer and Associate Vice President of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Instructional Resources staff will be posting videos related to teaching in alternative delivery modes. Recorded sessions can be accessed here (https://tinyurl.com/wqdg35v). Sessions will be added to the site as they are completed, so check back for recent additions.
Instructional Resources staff will be also available throughout the week to assist faculty.
Ken Pecka, kpecka@whitworth.edu, x3292, cell: 509-270-6600
Judy Dehle, jdehle@whitworth.edu, x4382
Patrick Lordan, plordan@whitworth.edu, x3680
Additionally, this is a great time for colleagues who have proficiency in various distance modes to help less experienced colleagues. Thank you to those who are already helping in this way.
Below is a preliminary list of topics that will be covered to assist faculty in modifying their courses:
1. Remote Instruction On The Fly: How to set your expectations
2. Bb Functions You’ll Be Grateful You Know! – Adding content, Communicating, Grading
3. Bb Student Engagement Functions— Discussion Board, Wiki, Blogs, Journals
4. Content Organization and Management in Bb
5. Bb Assessments – Assignments, Quizzes, Tests, Surveys, Gradebook
6. Library Resources from a Distance— Remote access to library resources; Database access, Media resources, Research, Copyright
7. Technical Readiness – Computer, Connectivity, Office365, OneDrive, Password Manager, Voicemail management, Other equipment
8. Advising with Self-Service – Tools for advising students
9. Student Accommodations in an Online Environment – Katie McCray, Educational Support Services
10. Panopto Lecture Capture – Configuration, Recording, Deployment, Editing
11. WebEx Videoconferencing
Caroline J. Simon
Provost and Executive Vice President
509.777.3755
McEachran Hall
Online Resources
Zoom Safety
We’re always striving to deliver schools and teachers around the world a secure and successful virtual classroom environment. To provide more clarity around our privacy practices, we’d like to share recent updates to our Privacy Policy. We’d also like to highlight advanced security features and resources to secure your virtual classroom using Zoom.
 Dear Valued Customer, We’re always striving to deliver schools and teachers around the world a secure and successful virtual classroom environment. To provide more clarity around our privacy practices, we’d like to share recent updates to our Privacy Policy. We’d also like to highlight advanced security features and resources to secure your virtual classroom using Zoom. Protecting the Privacy of K-12 Students We are particularly committed to protecting the privacy of our K-12 users. We have a special policy that describes how Zoom handles personal data of K-12 students using Zoom through their schools, which are signing up for Zoom services for their students. Click here to view the full Zoom for K-12 Schools & Districts Privacy Policy. Virtual Waiting Rooms We highly recommend enabling the Waiting Room feature. This security enhancement is one of the best ways to protect your Zoom virtual classroom by giving you control over who can join your class and when. The virtual Waiting Room can be enabled for every class (in your settings) or for individual classes at the scheduling level. Watch this brief video to learn how to enable Waiting Rooms and manage participants. Watch Now → Best Practices for Securing Your Virtual Classrooms Zoom has helped thousands of schools and teachers around the world quickly shift to remote virtual learning. Based on the feedback we’ve received from our education community, we’d like to highlight some best practices for securing your virtual classrooms. Read Blog → Please reach out to our Support Team at support@zoom.us if you have any questions. Thank You! Team Zoom |
Whitworth Library COVID-19 (novel coronavirus) Updates and Resources
Moving Classes Online on Short Notice: Some Strategies
Dr Karl Stolley, karl.stolley@gmail.com, Associate Professor of Information Technology and Management, Illinois Institute of Technology
Consider, first and foremost, student internet access away from campus. It’s entirely possible that students living away from campus might have only a smartphone (if that) for accessing the internet. And that phone may be on a costly metered/limited data plan.
The Scholarly Teacher: Completing a Face-to-face Course Online Following a Campus Mandate
Global Society of Online Literacy Educators Crisis Support
Date: Tue, 10 Mar 2020 19:59:55 +0000
From: “Warnock,Scott” <sw93@DREXEL.EDU>
Subject: Re: Global Society of Online Literacy Educators crisis support for migrating/transitioning courses online
After some astoundingly quick work by our GSOLE team, we offer you the following support in the event you are faced with sudden COVID-19-related school closures that disrupt your school’s onsite instruction:
* The Just In Time Hub is a gateway to our various resources, including those below as well as excellent written materials to help you think through course conversion/migration; we’ll be updating with other materials on the fly: www.glosole.org/justintime.html.
* Just Ask GSOLE provides a direct link to discussion forums moderated by GSOLE online writing/literacy instruction experts who can answer your specific questions: www.glosole.org/justaskgsole.html/
* Walk-In Webinars is a direct link to live Zoom sessions hosted by GSOLE members; the schedule of facilitators is listed there along with specific topics: www.glosole.org/walkinwebinars.html.
If you have questions, please direct them to JustAskGSOLE@gsole.org. You can also follow GSOLE on twitter @gsoleducators <https://tinyurl.com/t4nynzs> for updates on GSOLE’s efforts and visit our general website at www.gsole.org for other material and information.
We hope these resources will be helpful to you.
Scott Warnock, PhD
Professor of English
Director, University Writing Program
Drexel University
President, Global Society of Online Literacy Educators
president@glosole.org
Teaching Effectively During Times of Disruption
Dealing with the Unexpected: Teaching When You or Your Students Can’t Make it to Class
The teaching center at Vanderbilt University has put together a site with resources and advice about how to reframe key teaching tasks in an emergency, and also provides resources related to health and safety in times like this.
How to Be a Better Online Teacher: Advice Guide by Flower Darby, published by the Chronicle of Higher Education
Transitioning Classes Online at the University of Arkansas (Blackboard Relevant)
Best Practices for Teaching Writing Online
In this twitter thread, Sara Webb-Sunderhaus, the director of First Year Writing at Miami of Ohio, shares some really helpful thoughts about teaching writing online gleaned from her experience over the past dozen years.
Teaching Theatre Online: A Shift in Pedagogy Amidst Coronavirus Outbreak
Originally created by Dr. Daphnie Sicre (Daphnie.Sicre@lmu.edu), Loyola Marymount University
Going Online vs. Designing an Online Course
Ten very good points from Rebecca Burnett-Fox:
Remember the following as you move online:
1. Your students know less about technology that you think. Many of them know less than you. Yes, even if they are digital natives and younger than you.
2. They will be accessing the internet on their phones. They have limited data. They need to reserve if for things more important than online lectures.
3. Students who did not sign up for an online course have no obligation to have a computer, high speed wifi, a printer/scanner, or a camera. Do not even survey them to ask if they have it. Even if they do, they are not required to tell you this. And if they do now, that doesn’t mean that they will when something breaks and they can’t afford to fix it because they just lost their job at the ski resort or off-campus bookstore.
4. Students will be sharing their technology with other household members. They may have LESS time to do their schoolwork, not more.
5. Many will be working MORE, not fewer, hours. Nurses, prison guards, firefighters, and police officers have to go to work no matter what. As healthcare demand increases but healthcare workers get sick, there will be more and more stress on those who remain.
6. Some of your students will get sick. Others will be caring for people who are ill.
7. Many will be parenting [or caring for others].
8. Social isolation contributes to mental health problems.
9. Social isolation contributes to domestic violence.
10. Students will be losing their jobs, especially those in tourism and hospitality.
From https://anygoodthing.com/
Other Resources
Self-care Strategies for Online Teaching and Learning
How to Entertain Your Young Children During School Closures
Pirate Pedagogy 