Instructional Continuity

Not able to have classes as planned? When you cannot have class meetings as planned due to personal illness, university closure, or a guest speaker, you can use Canvas, Canvas Studio, Zoom, and other university online resources to keep your classes going. This a quick guide, you may want to check the sections of the ETS Instructional Support pages for more detailed information.

Make a Plan (Before You Need One, If Possible)

  • Establish and communicate a plan for missed classes/closure and include it in your syllabus. 
  • Send an announcement/email to your students at the beginning of the semester to let them know what will happen in the event of closures, etc. 
  • Draft communication announcing the move to the syllabus plan if absence or university closure is imminent.
  • Allow for students that may have limited access such as slow internet, no computer, etc.
  • Consider adjustments to your attendance policies
  • Verify that you can access all University resources from home/remote location

You may also want to record/verify the contact information of key colleagues in your department and college, including names, secondary email addresses, and phone numbers.

Get the Apps on your Mobile Device

Messaging/Communication

  • Use Banner to get a list of your students’ email addresses.
  • . ()
  • (.
  • Create a class Team in .

How can I share/upload course materials?

  • Use such as , and .
  • Don’t forget to publish your  and other Materials. 
  • Access Collier Library remotely--visit teaching for instructions for remote access to databases and other resources, including instruction and research support.

How can I offer real-time (synchronous) lectures/meetings for my students?

  • Zoom
    • Request a Zoom license by emailing ets@una.edu
    • Schedule meetings with the
      • Zoom has changed their settings so that only the host has screen sharing you can change this during your meetings--
  • Use Canvas Conferences to a real-time web conference your students can . Students can also create Canvas Conferences to collaborate with their peers.
  • .

How can I record (asynchronous) lectures/videos for my students?

How can I collect Student Assignments online?

  • . Creating an Assignment creates a column. Be sure to select a Submission Type of “No Submission” if you do not expect students to submit work in Canvas. Use to grade and comment on Assignments, Discussions, and Quizzes.
  • Use Turnitin to detect plagiarism in student submissions.

How can I give students quizzes/exams online?

How can I share grades with students?

  • . This replaces the muting functionality of the old gradebook.

What if Canvas isn’t available?

  • .

Pedagogical Resources for Teaching Online

  • (scroll to about the middle for specific resources)

Technical Support Contact Information

If you need help with Internet Access, E-Mail, Login/Password Issues (UNAPortal and Canvas) Microsoft Office, Telephone System, and Helpdesk Services, please visit UNA Information Technology Services.

Please visit the UNA ETS Instructional Support page for more detailed guides. If you cannot find a solution on this site, the quickest way to receive support for instructional assistance or help inside Canvas, is to submit a ticket using the Canvas Help system.