Preparing for Academic Continuity

Preparing for Emergency Disruptions in Normal Classroom Instruction


NOTE: Several suggestions below involve the use of HuskyCT. If you wish to request a HuskyCT site for a class, please see these instructions


Priorities

1.	Establish a communication plan for your class

2.	Make class materials available to absent students

3.	Provide a way for students to fulfill course requirements

Priority #1: Establish a communication plan for your class

Option 1: Emailing your class using PeopleSoft



	Click on class roster icon

	Click button for "notify all students. (at bottom of class list)

	Enter a subject and message Click "Send notification" button NOTE: these messages will be emailed to the students' university Huskymail accounts (not HuskyCT).

Option 2: Using the communication tools in HuskyCT

CAUTION: Any communication tool you wish to use with your students in HuskyCT must be visible from the Student View tab.

	Help files for hiding or unhiding tools *(webpage) (PDF) (Flash movie)*

*Announcements tool*



	Click on "Announcements" tool from Build or Teach tab ** Be sure tool is not hidden. (To unhide tool, see this help file)

	Click on "Create Announcement" button

	Fill in fields as appropriate CAUTION: Be sure to select "All roles" under recipients and check the Announcements tool from Student View to view posted announcement

Mail tool

	**IMPORTANT NOTE: The Mail tool in HuskyCT does not interact with the university mail systems (Huskymail for students and Exchange mail for faculty and staff). Students must log into HuskyCT and click on a course title to see mail sent using the HuskyCT Mail tool in that site.



	Click on "Mail" tool from Build or Teach tab ** Be sure it is not hidden (To unhide tool, see this help file)

	Click on "Create Message" button

	Click "Browse for recipients" button

	Choose recipients using select all roles option This will not include Demo Student, so receipt of message cannot be checked from Student View tab

	OR

	Choose recipients using select all individuals and groups option NOTE: This will only select the individuals ON THIS SCREEN.If your entire class list is not showing, you need to adjust the paging (look for the adjust paging icon )

	NOTE: To be able to check for mail message from Student View, "Demo Student" needs to be selected as one of the recipients.

	Click Save button at bottom of choose recipients screen

	Enter Mail subject and Message If needed, click "Add Attachments" button to browse for a file Click "Send" button

Priority #2: Make class materials available to absent students

Option 1: Post files in HuskyCT

	"Add Files" to Folder Pages	*See these help files (webpage) (PDF) (Flash movie)*

	"Add Files" to Learning Module	*See these help files (webpage) (PDF) (Flash movie)*

	NOTE: Any file type can be posted in HuskyCT (Word, PPT, PDF, video files, audio files, image files, etc.), but converting Microsoft office files to PDF is easier for the user.



Option 2: Send files as email attachments (not using HuskyCT)

	The PeopleSoft tool for mailing the class does not allow for attachments. For this, you will need to use a mail account such as your Exchange mail account.

	Exchange mail requires email addresses in the "To:" box to be separated by semi colons. The huskymail addresses in the PeopleSoft mail tool are separated by commas. The following steps can be used create a list of email addresses compatible with Exchange.

	- use the "notify all students" option shown above in Priority #1, Option 1
	- copy the addresses out of the "To:" box
	- paste the list of comma separated names to Word
	- use the Find and Replace function to change the commas to semi colons
	- copy this new list and paste it into the "To:" box when creating a message in Exchange

Preparing Content for Student Use

	In addition to using the Microsoft Office suite to create materials for students, instructors may wish to provide audio content for students unable to attend class.

	*- Adding audio to PowerPoint 2003*

	- Adding audio to PowerPoint 2007

	Audio files can also be generated during class using a microphone and recording device, or created outside of class using a free sound editing program called Audacity.



	Other methods available for creating digital content include scanning (to PDF, image, or using OCR). Equipment for all these options are available in the Instructional Resource Center in room 422 of CUE

Priority #3: Providing a way for students to fulfill class requirements

Option 1: Use HuskyCT Assignments tool for submitting completed assignments

	The Assignments tool in HuskyCT enables students to submit documents to a "dropbox". File submissions can be any type (Word, PDF, PPT, Excel, image, video, audio). Once uploaded, the instructor can review these submissions and provide comments and a grade for the student to see.



	For additional assistance setting up an assignment or viewing and grading submitted assignments, please contact the Instructional Resource Center (486-5052, irchelp@uconn.edu)

Option 2: Using HuskyCT Mail tool, or other email account for submitting assignments

	Mail attachments can be used in both HuskyCT Mail and other mail accounts. Be sure your students know what account they are expected to use to submit their assignment.

Option 3: Use HuskyCT Assessments tool to take quizzes

	The Assessments tool in HuskyCT can be used to administer quizzes and surveys. The question types available include Multiple Choice with one answer selection or multiple answer selections, True-False, Matching, Fill in the Blank, Short Answer, Jumbled Sentence, Calculated, and Paragraph. All questions types but Paragraph will be graded automatically

	When the assessment is created, the instructor chooses when it will be available, how long students have to complete the quiz, how many times it can be taken, and what information can be seen after the quiz is submitted and graded.

	For assistance with this tool, please contact the Instructional Resource Center at 486-5052 or irchelp@uconn.edu

Option 4: Use HuskyCT Discussion tool to engage in classroom discussion

	The Discussion tool in HuskyCT can be used to create threaded discussion topics, blog topics, and journal topics. Discussion topics can be released to the whole class, or just a portion of the class. They can also be set as gradable.



Where to get help


	486-5052
	irchelp@uconn.edu

	Additional help files and information are available on the IRC website, blog, and wiki.