The Covid-19 pandemic created an acute time of change and upheaval in higher education. As DePaul University transitioned back to on-campus classes, the entire academic community – students, faculty, and support staff – continued to work through significant shifts in how we learn and teach. Students report experiencing more stress; faculty report more demands on their time; and support staff report additional responsibilities and attendant stress in their roles.
To address these challenges and establish a common set of guidelines, leaders in Academic Affairs, Student Affairs, Office of Mission and Ministry, and the Center for Teaching and Learning came together to develop a framework we are calling “Adapting for Student Success.”
Adapting for Student Success Framework
Feelings of stress and overload are complex, and no framework will resolve them completely. At the same time, we believe that faculty, students, and support staff can take action – both individually and collectively – to reduce the stress that comes with juggling and supporting multiple classes.
Students may be taking courses from multiple departments at the same time, and faculty may be teaching to different audiences. Establishing a set of consistent practices across the university and within programs can serve as a foundation for common expectations. From this foundation, faculty may identify features of their course that are fixed, along with other features that may provide the opportunity for some flexibility and student choice.
Adapting for Student Success Course Guidelines
-
Post your Syllabus in D2L.
Even if you hand out a printed copy of your syllabus on the first day of class, sharing this document via D2L ensures that students can reference it whenever they need to.
-
Include Attendance and Late Work Policies in your Syllabus.
Students navigate a range of course expectations each term. Providing a clear set of guidelines around attendance, class participation, and late work, aligned with
DePaul’s Class Participation/Attendance Policy, helps students understand the structure for learning in your course. As a best practice, we recommend having norming conversations about these types of policies in your academic unit. Where possible, creating consistent expectations across courses supports both students and instructors.
Class absences, lack of participation, and missing assignments are often the early warning signals of something amiss with students. The
Dean of Students can serve as a resource when faculty notice these warning signs.
- Teach in the Course Modality in the Published Schedule.
While it is difficult to tell students that they can’t just “Zoom in for class” when they request to do so (especially when they point out that your class meets in a room with Zoom capabilities), sticking to the course modality that students registered for honors their learning expectations and instructors’ preparation needs.
- Complete OneDePaul Attendance Verification.
Instructors are sent reminders to complete Attendance Verification at the beginning of each term. Filling out this survey ensures that DePaul complies with federal regulations for financial aid and alerts students take action if they’re not going to continue in your course.
- Provide Feedback on a Low-Stake Assignment by Week 3.
The purpose of low-stakes assignments is to provide students with an early indication of their performance in a course and to provide instructors with information about the knowledge and skills students are bringing to the class. Designing an early low-stakes assignment will provide you with helpful information to complete the OneDePaul Academic Progress Survey.
- Complete OneDePaul Academic Progress Survey.
Instructors are sent reminders to complete the Academic Progress Survey in the third week of the term. By completing this survey, you’re providing students and their advisors with a clear checkpoint for how they’re doing early in the course.