Planning Ahead

1. Just in Case vs. Just in Time

“Just in Case” lessons are those that you create in advance and that can be put into action at any point in the semester. Typically this will mean that they don’t replace what you had planned for in-class learning that day, but instead augment learning in another way (i.e. a lesson that covers material you typically don’t get to in a semester, or introduces them to a resource or tech tool that they wouldn’t normally interact with).

“Just in Time” lessons are put together in a last minute fashion, but still tend to require prior planning. These types of lessons can often be used to replicate the in-class setting online. For example, a Just in Time lesson would be replacing that day’s classroom lecture with a Zoom recording that you create and load into Canvas Studio. Although the Zoom lecture wouldn’t get recorded until the day before (or the day of) the cancelled class, it’s critical that you have prepped this strategy in advance as it involves a learning curve in facilitating the required technology.

• Elements of a Successful Just-in-Case Workshop
• Seat Time Equivalency Estimates (Curry College)
• Quick Course Redesign

2. Evergreen Activities

Evergreen refers to “a plant that retains green leaves throughout the year”, and an evergreen activity follows this same principle- it has no date constraints and can be used anytime during the semester. These are “Just in Case” lessons that often focus on content that isn’t essential to student’s passing the course, but is useful to augmenting their learning. Here are some examples:

• A more in-depth lab safety reading and quiz
• A collaborative writing assignments that requires students to work together in Office 365 to construct an outline
• Watching a documentary that relates to the course content and having students discuss in a Canvas Discussion Board

3. When planning activities in response to a campus closure, consider the following:

• What do you want your students to know, understand, or be able to do after the activity is over?
• Is there an online activity that closely mimics what you had planned to do in class?

4. Utilize already existing campus resources:

• Library – Subject Guides, Databases, Online Journals, Streaming Video & Multimedia
• Canvas Tutorials – The Office of Teaching and Learning Technologies has put together a bank of Canvas resources for faculty. The Instructure Community is also a great place to find resources on using Canvas tools for instructional continuity, such as posting the Syllabus, creating a Discussion Board, using Canvas Studio, or sharing and structuring course resources via Pages.
• Office of Academic Services – OAS has some online guides about study skills, time management and organization. These are great resources for student review.
• Keep in mind that on campus and physical space hours and staffing will be compromised in the case of inclement weather or emergencies, but so much is available to students and faculty online.
• If you are planning your absence (conference, travel, etc.), keep these offices in mind for face-to-face class. The library offers database/journal research, web evaluation, information literacy, and Google search workshops for courses. OAS can also create a writing or studying workshop.

5. Get ideas from other institutions and faculty:

• Teaching Continuity Planning Website (U. of Toronto)
• Instructional Continuity website (Georgetown)
• Instructional Continuity Planning website (UNC Charlotte)
• Continuity of Instruction website (RIT)
• Prepare for When Classes Can’t Meet (U. of Washington)
• Guide to Academic Continuity Planning (California State University)
• Preparing a Backup Plan for Emergency Closings (Lesley University)