Faculty Resources

Winding down the Spring 2022 term

If you have Zoom recordings that you want to keep be sure that you download your Zoom recordings. As a reminder, after 120 days Zoom automatically moves recordings into the Trash bin. They are stored there for 30 days and can be recovered during that time.

The best method for saving Zoom recordings for future use is to request an Echo360 space and upload your saved recordings into Echo360.

****As a reminder, it is recommended to use Echo360 to store videos rather than uploading them directly in your Moodle or Blackboard course space. Echo360 has automatic speech recognition and the ability to add and edit transcripts for accessibility. Storing videos in Echo keeps your course space file size down (which helps with copying and exporting content) and ensures that students on different platforms or devices can easily access and view the videos.

Summer 2022 Preview Week

Summer Session I and Full Term Summer course sites will open in Moodle and Blackboard for Preview Week on Thursday, May 12th at 9am.

By the start of Preview Week faculty should have their Syllabi posted in their Blackboard or Moodle course space and a "Getting Started" or "Course Overview" section available for students that provides them with information on how course is structured (face-to-face, hybrid, online), meeting dates and times if applicable, instructor and/or TA contact information, and an overview of the materials needed and technologies used in the course. See the Preview Week Suggestions document for screenshots and recommendations for what to include for a successful student Preview Week experience.

Faculty can opt out of Preview Week by closing your course:

• To close your Moodle course: Make your Moodle Course Unavailable
• To close your Blackboard course: Reach out to instruct@umass.edu

Workshops and Events

There are many workshops, events, and activities offered throughout the year. Good places to learn about upcoming offerings are the CNS Events Calendar and the University Events Calendar.

• CNS Faculty Development and Programs - workshops and events designed to foster research and professional success of CNS faculty
• Instructional Design, Engagement and Support (IDEAS) - learn about various instructional technologies including using Echo360, Blackboard, Moodle and VoiceThread and practices such as designing for accessibility and student engagement strategies
• Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) - join a contemplative pedagogy meeting or participate in other workshops on evidence-based pedagogies. 
• Library workshops and events - includes sessions on Digital Media Lab technologies, open educational resources, library collections, and strategies for integrating the library into your teaching 
• Office of Faculty Development (OFD) - offers faculty workshops and events focused on engagement, scholarly excellence, and leadership
• Partnership for Worker Education - includes workshops on Word, Excel, Teams and OneDrive along with other technologies and skills
• UMass ADVANCE - Annual Distinguished Lecture and Fall and Spring Workshops
• Institute of Diversity Sciences - participate in Research Seminars and the Research-Practitioner Network
• Office of Equity and Inclusion - find out about upcoming DEI events across the institution
• The Graduate School - offers year-round professional development events for graduate students and postdocs
• Institute for Social Science Research (ISSR) - offers consulting and training workshops in research methodology and data analysis
• Public Engagement Project – offers workshops on topics relevant to communicating your science

Instructional Resources

• The CNS Teaching Support page provides suggestions and resources for flexible learning design, engagement strategies, inclusive teaching practices, and supporting students. Links and resources have been updated and added to for the Spring term. 
• Resources for creating an inclusive syllabus have been updated for the Spring 2022 term. 
• Supporting Students - Spring 2022 Strategies provides additional student support recommendations and resources. 
• Strategies for teaching to remote students in a traditional classroom created by the IDEAS team
• Classroom technologies for supporting flexible classes. (Developed in the Fall but still applicable this Spring!) 

Designing Your Course for Flexibility

• Record or broadcast classroom lectures/activities if/as appropriate 
  • You can check in SPIRE to see if your classroom is Echo360 enabled, or you can view the full list of Echo360 enabled classrooms.  
  • If using Echo360 remember to request an Echo360 space to store your lectures. 
  • Some classrooms have been outfitted as “hybrid” spaces to more easily allow for the use of Zoom. 
  • You could also consider using your own laptop (with the built-in camera or a plug-in video camera) to record the class using Zoom or the personal version of Echo360.  
  • The Digital Media Lab does have microphones, video cameras and other equipment you can borrow for recordings. 
• Whenever you use Zoom use the automatic captioning feature. You can also turn on captioning in both PowerPoint and Google slides. The captions may not be perfect but you can always edit them in your Echo360 or Zoom recordings.  
• Use Moodle to supplement the course. Post your syllabus, schedule, links to videos, assignments, etc...  Enable students to access Moodle course materials 2-3 weeks in advance. Remember that you can control access to items in Moodle by using the Restriction settings and enabling an availability date.  
• If you have Library materials you would like students to access consider incorporating Digital Course Reserves into your Moodle or Blackboard course space.  

For support with any of these instructional technologies or strategies CNS faculty are encouraged to contact April Bellafiore, Director of Multimodal Education.