[AcadFac] First Day of Classes - Teaching Checklist & FAQs for Instructors
AcadFac <acadfac-bounces@lists.colostate.edu> on behalf of
Provost Office <provost_office@Mail.Colostate.edu>
Thu 8/20/2020 10:51 AM
To: acadfac@lists.colostate.edu <acadfac@lists.colostate.edu>; nontenurefac@lists.colostate.edu <nontenurefac@lists.colostate.edu>;
ddd@lists.colostate.edu <ddd@lists.colostate.edu>
Dear Colleagues:
I want to start by acknowledging and thanking you for all your hard work and incredible dedica on as we near our fall reopening. I know COVID-19 has presented us with a challenging few months, so I thank you for everything you are doing for our students, your
departments, your colleagues and CSU, and I know you carry an especially heavy burden this week.
I also want to thank those of you who were able to a end Monday’s Preparing for Fall: Faculty Town Hall, and I encourage those of you who could not a end to view the recording of the session posted on the Provost’s website. More than 700 people a ended the virtual session and one pressing need that rose to the top was for a brief In the Classroom - Teaching Checklist and a more detailed First Day
of Classes FAQs to help guide you through our pandemic protocols, and to help ensure the health and wellness of you and our students.
These two documents (linked below) were informed by your feedback, and with input from your deans and our Teaching Con nuity and Recovery Work Group:
In the Classroom - Teaching Checklist – one-page quick overview
First Day of Classes FAQs for Instructors – companion document with more detailed informa on
We will con nue to work with your colleges to assess needs and next steps to keep us moving forward against the challenges of this global pandemic. I wish you and your students the very best as we brave this next phase of our pandemic journey, and I will be thinking of you!
Sincerely, Mary
Mary Pedersen
Provost and Execu ve Vice President
FALL 2020 PREPARATION FOR TEACHING CHECKLIST FOR INSTRUCTORS
_____________________________________________________________________________
If teaching wasn’t hard enough, there are so many new, additional things to know in the COVID-19 environment. We provide this handy checklist for instructors to help you keep track of key, non-academic aspects to keep your teaching environment healthy.
Before you go to class (From the Provost’s guide for preparing for the start of class).
Indicate your health status (each and every day) by means of the Daily Symptom Checker: https://covidrecovery.colostate.edu/daily-symptom-checker/
Obtain your own face coverings (Department Office will have spares) Face shields are ok for use under limited circumstances only; they are not a replacement for a mask, which is required while teaching. More information is at https://covidrecovery.colostate.edu/living-and-learning/covid-19-information-for-faculty-and-staff/ (available from Department/College)
If you will be using a microphone, make sure that you have arranged to pick up your own mic or understand how to use the broadcast mic in the room. Review the COVID-19 Public Health Requirements video
Know the specifics of your classroom Pandemic Preparedness Team approved physical distancing layout, exit and entry plans if there is more than one door. Use verbatim language in your syllabus from the Provost’s Guide.
In the classroom
Wear your face covering when in the classroom. You may wear a plastic face shield in some circumstances. See these guidelines
Facilities Management and the Pandemic Preparedness Team have prepared your classrooms. DO NOT move furniture or seating unless you are in a lab or studio.
Disinfecting supplies will be located in or near your classroom
Expect students to follow public health requirements (masks, follow posted instructions, clean their seating areas) when they are in the classroom.
Remind students not to eat in the classroom. Students may pull their mask down briefly to take a drink.
Use the seating chart provided at this link
https://covidrecovery.colostate.edu/seating-charts/.
Preparing for Classroom/Course Situations
Know what to do if a student isn’t wearing a mask. Use these scripts.
Guidance for when a student or colleague tells us that they have COVID or have potentially been exposed is here.
FIRST DAY OF CLASSES FAQs FOR INSTRUCTORS
I. What does my classroom look like?
Facilities Management and the Pandemic Preparedness Team have gotten classrooms ready.
a. Desks or chairs in classrooms will be spaced six feet apart
b. Six-foot distances are marked by tape on classroom floors where students should sit
c. Large classrooms will have designated separate entrances and exits
d. Signs conveying expectations for public health measures and disinfecting in the classroom will be in teaching spaces
e. Disinfecting supplies for classroom desks, podiums, etc., will be placed in or near the classroom. Hand sanitizer and wipes will also be available across campuses.
II. Do I have to wear a mask while teaching? Can I wear a clear plastic face
shield?
a. Your department has ordered a supply of personal protective equipment. Please follow up with your department office for information about where to pick up these supplies.
b. Instructors must wear a mask or face covering while teaching.
c. National public health guidance regarding face shields has changed, and the
university is no longer recommending that instructors wear a face shield instead of a mask unless special circumstances are in play – more information about when you can wear a face shield instead of a mask is at
https://covidrecovery.colostate.edu/living-and-learning/covid-19-information-for-faculty-and-staff/.
III. Who is responsible for disinfecting areas in a classroom?
a. When you enter the classroom, you should disinfect the personal space you use while teaching, such as your table or podium.
b. Students should be directed to disinfect their chairs and desktops or tables.
Disinfectant is provided in a central location. Facilities Management is also regularly cleaning classrooms.
IV. Will hand sanitizer be available in the classrooms?
a. Hand sanitizer will be available in central locations in academic buildings, including within some classrooms.
b. If hand sanitizer is not in the classroom, it can be located at a station nearby. Facilities will be monitoring the supply stations and replenishing supplies.
V. Can students eat and drink in the classroom?
b. If a student or instructor needs to drink during class, they can briefly pull down their mask to sip.
VI. How will seating charts work?
a. Students should be asked to sit in assigned seats. This will greatly help contact tracers if the instructor or a student in the class reports that they have symptoms or
becomes ill.
b. Seating charts for your classrooms are available at this page: https://covidrecovery.colostate.edu/seating-charts/.
c. Facilities has marked the floors with an X where students should sit. Some chairs may be noted with signs that students should now sit there.
d. Students may briefly pass each other on their way to their assigned seat without becoming a close contact.
VII. What do I need to know about contact and contact tracing in my classroom?
a. Students may briefly pass by each other on their way in and out of the room or as they go to their assigned seats without becoming a close contact.
b. Even if a student or instructor becomes ill, not everyone in a classroom will
automatically be identified as a close contact, per the CDC definition. Close contacts are defined as being less than six feet away from someone who is ill for at least 15 minutes.
c. Because classroom furniture has been arranged with physical distancing in place, this reduces the chances of creating close contacts in the classroom.
d. These links are helpful: https://covidrecovery.colostate.edu/addressing-exposure-and-illness/ and
https://covidrecovery.colostate.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/28/2020/08/close-contact-aug-18-final.pdf.
VIII. Can I provide paper copies of documents to my students?
a. Passing out documents is strongly discouraged.b. The best practice is to share documents electronically.
IX. What expectations has the university communicated to students about the
classroom?
Signs have been placed in all classrooms to alert students of the university’s expectations of them. Those are to:
a. Complete the daily symptom tracker before arriving to class: https://covidrecovery.colostate.edu/daily-symptom-checker/ b. Practice physical distancing, maintaining six feet from others
c. Stay home if they experience COVID-19 symptoms or believe they have been exposed d. Wear a mask
e. Follow directional signs when entering and exiting buildings. Some classrooms have more than one door and may be noted as entries and exits
f. Tell the students the seat they select will be their seat for the remainder of the semester (See VII – How will seating charts work? below)
g. Disinfect their area (their desktop, workstation, seats) h. Follow other public health orders
X. What do I do if a student isn’t wearing a mask?
a. Wearing a mask is required at all times on university grounds. Masks are mandated by public health orders from the state and county, which apply to university grounds. Accordingly, the university’s expectations are that all students, faculty, staff and visitors wear a mask.
b. For guidance around how to engage with a student who isn’t wearing a mask in the classroom, see this script:
https://oeo.colostate.edu/media/sites/160/2020/08/Script-for-Academic-Faculty-around-face-coverings-and-students-in-class.pdf.
c. Students may apply for a mask exemption under very limited circumstances based on a disability, as outlined by a legal standard on a case-by-case scenario. Students who have been granted an exemption may be required through this process to wear an alternative, such as a face shield. Students who qualify for the exemption will be provided with a sticker to wear. The sticker will be provided by the Student Disability Center as a visual clue that the student has permission to use an alternative. An image of this sticker for your reference will be made available later this week.
