Ryerson faculty and instructors prepare for remote course delivery this fall
In unprecedented times, the Ryerson community has sought ways to stay nimble and be innovative as the fall semester approaches.
As Ryerson prepares for a predominantly virtual fall semester, faculty members and instructors have been taking crucial steps to ensure remote course delivery is both engaging and as seamless as possible for students.
Everyone is tackling new territory, but the community remains dedicated to innovative and flexible approaches to education. Continuing work that began in the spring when the university first began adapting to COVID-19, here’s how Ryerson’s teaching staff is cultivating enriching learning experiences in the months ahead:
Keep Teaching Taskforce
Ryerson’s Keep Teaching Taskforce (KTT) will continue its mandate of ensuring faculty and instructors have the most up-to-date resources and support for remote teaching and assessment. Composed of leaders from the Centre for Excellence in Learning and Teaching, the Ryerson University Library, the Chang School of Continuing Education, Computing and Communications Services (CCS) and the Office of the Vice-Provost, Academic, the KTT previously facilitated teaching continuity and exams for the winter and spring terms, and plays a key role in helping faculty and instructors adapt their curricula and evaluations for virtual delivery.
Remote Teaching Resources and Workshops
Since March, the Centre for Excellence in Learning and Teaching has successfully presented over 40 faculty and instructor workshops tailored to remote teaching, such as Creative Approaches to Live Online Lectures and How to Facilitate and Design Remote Course Assessments. In preparation for the fall semester, they’ve also launched a summer workshop series covering various critical topics, like D2L Brightspace, Ryerson’s current learning management system, and Zoom.
In addition to providing individual course consultation, The Centre for Excellence in Learning and Teaching has created a Remote Teaching hub that features new information on self-guided course design, as well as a variety of remote teaching resources, workshop videos and technical guides – including this six-part guide for adapting a course.
Professional Development Opportunities
The Chang School has been paramount to Ryerson’s transition to remote learning and teaching by providing guidance on how to adapt traditional in-person classes to remote settings. They’re also offering several professional development opportunities for Ryerson faculty members and contract lecturers to enhance their teaching skills, particularly as they relate to adult and online learning. Training courses in online pedagogy, technology and effective course management are just a few of the offerings available.
Library Resources
The Ryerson University Library has also pivoted to support both faculty and students remotely. The team has created a Supplementary Course Material Guide, which provides information on the Library’s online educational materials. They’ve also expanded the digital course readings (eReserve) service to support faculty by providing course readings in digital, accessible formats.
The Library has also built on its existing digital infrastructure and has increased ebooks, ejournals, streaming content and data set collections. Further, this fall, students will be able to connect with their subject-specific librarian for support, and will have online access to key academic Library services and experiential learning opportunities.
For instructors, the Library provides access to resources and services that support teaching and learning, especially in the virtual context. Reference and research help will continue remotely throughout the term, as will digital and information literacy instruction sessions and workshops. Librarians will also continue providing virtual research skills instruction to classes to help round out lessons for students.
The “Keep It Simple” Method
We know that the fall semester is going to be different, so let’s not complicate it. With this in mind, Ryerson has continuously championed the “Keep It Simple” method, which involves using the most straightforward options for the courses being taught. This includes choosing reliable and stable technology solutions that are well known to both students and faculty, reconsidering assessment methods that have limitations in online learning environments, and communicating regularly with students to provide clear information and updates.