Ready to add the FSU Emergency Module to your course?
Disruptions to learning can take many forms, from hurricanes or icy snow to a global pandemic. While recovery often focuses on caring for those impacted and making up missed class time, preparing your course ahead of the inevitable disruption will help you and your students better navigate learning in times of crisis. On this page, you will find resources to help you incorporate emergency preparedness in your course design, facilitate communication with students in crisis, and continue teaching after the immediate threat is over and it's safe to do so.
Designing a Resilient Course
Incorporate emergency preparedness in the design of your face-to-face or online course by importing the FSU Emergency Module and creating an asynchronous module you can deploy in an emergency.
Import the FSU Emergency Module into your Canvas course.
The FSU Emergency Module contains class surveys you can deploy at the beginning of the semester (to gather alternate methods of contacting students in an emergency) and again after the emergency (to help you determine the impact the event has had on your students' ability to continue learning). The module also includes a page with helpful FSU, local, state, and national emergency resources and an optional, post-emergency discussion prompt designed to create a space for students to process the event and support one another.
How to Use the FSU Emergency Module Import the FSU Emergency Module
Create an asynchronous module that can be published in an emergency.
Create a module that contains a recorded lecture, reading, or other assignment. In the event of a prolonged (more than 3-day) university closure, you can deploy the module and post an announcement, letting students know it's available and providing any related instructions. The module can also allow you time to assess whether converting your course to a more online-based method of delivery is necessary.
Review tips for using Canvas to teach during university closures.
When an emergency necessitates converting your in-person course to an online delivery mode, it's important you are already familiar with a few Canvas and content delivery basics (eg, navigating Canvas, uploading your syllabus and files, and communicating with students). Once you are comfortable with the basics, you can learn how to create assignments, track grades, and assess student learning. Engaging learners is a critical component of teaching online, and we offer several resources for converting offline activities to online.
Using Canvas to Teach During University Closures
Assessing Instructional Needs
After the emergency, you can assess the instructional needs of your students by deploying a post-emergency survey, monitoring communication from the university via email and the FSU Alert page, and connecting students in crisis with resources.
Publish the post-emergency survey and discussion prompt.
Publish the FSU Emergency Module's post-emergency survey and discussion prompt, along with an announcement encouraging students to check in via the survey and discussion board. Depending on the type of emergency, be aware that some students may not have access to power, cell phone service, or internet. If students had to evacuate, they may have done so without textbooks and course materials.
How to Use the FSU Emergency Module
Monitor university communication channels.
Regularly check the FSU Alert page for updates on the status of campus and other communications, reminding your students to do the same. We recommend you subscribe to FSU Alert text messages, download the SeminoleSAFE mobile app, and save 850-644-INFO (4636) on your phone, so you can access campus updates in the event internet connectivity is disrupted. Students in online courses may reside in regions impacted by emergencies that don't affect our campuses. If you teach an online course, watch for communication from our office about students enrolled in your course whose primary address is in an area impacted by a natural disaster.
Connect students in crisis with resources.
Remind students to make use of the emergency resources listed in the FSU Emergency Module as needed. If you have a student experiencing emotional distress or other hardship related to impacts from the emergency event, FSU’s Case Management Services team may be able to help. The FSU Institute for Trauma and Resilience Studies offers a free Resilience After Adversity course with practical tools for coping after adverse events.
Case Management Services Resilience After Adversity Course
Make sure you have the support you need.
While working to care well for and be flexible with your students, don't forget to take care of yourself. Reach out to your dean or supervisor as soon as you are able, letting them know your situation and asking for support if needed. The Employee Assistance Program is available to all university employees and provides free, short-term counseling, referrals, and an emergency loan fund. For practical tools for coping in the wake of adversity, enroll in the free Resilience After Adversity course from the FSU Institute for Trauma and Resilience Studies.
Employee Assistance Program Resilience After Adversity Course
Course Recovery
When it's time to resume teaching, take advantage of online tools and resources to help you make up missed class time, adjust assignment availability and due dates in Canvas, reschedule proctored exams, and assist students with an incomplete grade.
Make up missed class time with online tools and resources.
You can use the Zoom web conferencing tool within Canvas to schedule and conduct additional class sessions and group activities. Use Kaltura to record a lecture or embed instructional video in your course. Discussion boards, along with other student engagement tools such as Hypothesis, can help you engage students even if they are unable to be physically present in the classroom. The University Curriculum and Distance Learning Committees suggest some options for replacing face-to-face contact hours with real-time (synchronous) or time-delayed (asynchronous) online activities (see list of options below).
Options for Engagement in Online Courses
- Synchronous class session held at a scheduled time
- Instructor-prepared online lectures presented in an appropriate format (eg, written documents, audio and/or video files, and/or introductions and explanations for any publisher-created materials)
- Instructor’s commentary on the readings, with links to illustrative images, media, or text
- Participation in discussion boards (eg, posting, reading, and responding to peers)
- Participation in a video discussion forum (eg, posting, listening, and responding to peers using video engagement tools)
- Weekly asynchronous forum where the instructor expands upon the lecture, answers questions, and/or facilitates post-lecture
- Q&A and general student interaction
- Online discussion of course materials (eg, recorded lectures/videos or reading material) moderated by an instructor
- Detailed, personalized responses to tests and quizzes
- Weekly announcements
- Peer grading and feedback on work products
- Virtual office hours focused on course content (eg, clarifying theories or references, explaining solutions to problems) rather than administrative details such as grading policies or assignment descriptions
- Test review (eg, discussion board Q&A, study group)
- Assignments or projects that promote collaboration among students
- Introductory biography activity
Post-Emergency Course Recovery
Adjust due dates and graded assignments in Canvas as needed.
Be prepared to adjust assignment availability and due dates for graded items in Canvas. If you need help exempting a student's grade from the Canvas gradebook, see our article on excusing a student from a graded assignment.
Reschedule proctored exams as applicable.
When an emergency closes campus, the number of proctored exam sessions scheduled through the FSU Testing Center can vary from hundreds to thousands. If your FSU Testing Center exam is affected, our testing staff will contact you with rescheduling options for your exam. Be sure to let us know if you no longer need the Testing Center to proctor your exam. Contact our FSU Testing Center team by emailing testing@fsu.edu or calling 850-644-3017. For online alternatives to in-person proctored exams, see our Canvas Support Center article below.
FSU Testing Center Online Alternatives to In-Person Proctored Exams
Follow these steps for students with incomplete grades.
If it's the end of a semester and you have a student finishing with an incomplete grade, make sure they can submit remaining work after the semester concludes. Students will not be able to access your course unless you follow steps to manually enroll them (see Allow Students to Finish Incomplete for instructions). The Use Grade Rosters in Faculty Center page provides step-by-step instructions for entering incompletes in the grade roster, and you can find university policies related to incomplete grades in the Grading System section of the chapter on Academic Regulations and Procedures in the Undergraduate Bulletin.
Contact us for help.
Need help with Canvas, a Canvas tool, or converting a face-to-face course to an online format? Call 850-644-8004, submit a support ticket, or schedule a consultation.