These are unprecedented circumstances and these documents help you navigate not just teaching higher education online, but doing so during a global pandemic when not all students have access to the Internet at home.

Quick tips for college teachers transitioning to digital learning

UC Berkeley professor of media innovation
Don’t be nervous, advises Greg Niemeyer, an associate professor of media innovation at UC Berkeley, who made this 15-minute video to help colleagues who are struggling with transitioning to teaching via Zoom. He also advises playing around with the format of class to keep students engaged. For example, meeting for three hours in person is fine when you’re chatting and taking breaks. But three hours online means a lot of sitting and staring at a screen, so try shaking things up.

A platform to bring college science labs online

Labster
It’s obviously difficult to convert science labs into digital learning. Some science instructors have been experimenting with a paid platform that gives students a 3D laboratory simulation, where they use virtual beakers and test tubes and can see the results of their experiments in real time. The platform purports to teach techniques, skills, and underlying theory with storytelling approaches.

Change your Zoom settings for more security

CNET
Many teachers are spending a LOT of time on the video-conferencing software Zoom. Researchers and journalists have been noticing that there are a number of potential security issues on the platform which has had a huge surge in use with so many people working remotely. One issue is “Zoombombing,” when uninvited guests can break into your meeting or class. This article gives you four settings to change to prevent this, including using the “Waiting Room,” feature so you can see who is trying to join the meeting before allowing them access, and using a per-meeting ID, not your personal one.

What does the transition to “remote learning” mean?

CFT Newsroom
AFT Guild President President Jim Mahler, also president of the CFT Community College Council,  offers moral support, saying keep it simple and don’t stress. Written for college classroom faculty with traditionally scheduled on-campus classes, but the principles apply to all educators making this difficult transition.

Online teaching strategies for higher education

Educause
This education technology association provides advice on things like teaching in a time of crisis, the culture shock of switching to teaching remotely, how to have effective discussions and ways to make students feel more connected.

Resources for college instructors switching to online

Association of College and University Educators
Teachers need to make a quick transition to teaching online. The people at the Association of College and University Educators has come up with six key area of resources and ideas for teaching remotely. They include welcoming your students online, organizing your online course, and engaging students in readings and microlectures.

Strategies for teaching online in the community colleges

Portland Community College
Teachers at Portland Community College have put together a list of tips for teaching online effectively, including holding office hours, engaging students, and monitoring student performance.

University Council-AFT curated resources for faculty

UC-AFT has published thoughtful documents from members and official sources.

• Teaching Effectively During Times of Disruption
  This writer advises you to remember this is an “emergency response, rather than expecting yourself to spin up a well-developed online course.” There are some tips for teaching online beyond the technical and possible assignments.
• Teaching in the Context of COVID-19
  This document on teaching effectively during times of disruption reminds you that this “requires creative and flexible thinking about how instructors can support students in achieving essential core course learning objectives.” It includes pedagogy specific to distance learning, how to handle student presentations, and tech tutorials in Zoom and Canvas.
• Consortium on Graduate Education Community Doc for Online Teaching
  This is a crowd-source document to help teachers moving to distance learning. It includes readings, free online teaching tools, and advice on teaching writing online as well as teaching oral communication online. There is also a section for equity considerations and accessibility, and one for ethical considerations about Labor Practices for Online Teaching. Users are encouraged to add information and tips you think would be helpful.
• Global Society of Online Literacy Educators
  The members of this organization are from a range of institutions and pedagogical approaches. This forum provides a place to ask questions about teaching online—you are asked to provide as many details as you can about what platforms you have available, if you want to have a discussion forum, web conferencing, etc.; and what you want to do – meet with the students, hold or discussion or have a conference.