The most important pieces of information faculty should consider when preparing to teach online or hybrid courses is knowing the expectations for online and hybrid delivery at Nazareth. Review our guide to course formats at Nazareth College to ensure that the delivery you envision matches our description.

Then, faculty should: 

1. Make a plan for the course, following backwards design
2. Engage students consistently through synchronous & asynchronous course components
3. Assess student learning frequently

Here are some basic course design resources for those who are looking to begin the course design process independently: 

Make a Plan 

• Course Planning Template
• OSCQR Online Course Rubric (v 4.0) 
• NYSED Definition of Online Time on Task  
• Rice University Course Workload Estimator 

Engage your Students 

• Online and Hybrid Course Design Checklists - ideas to guide online course development 
• Teaching Technologies Support Site - learn to use our tech platforms
• Zoom Web Conferencing - use Zoom to conduct live virtual sessions

Assess Student Learning 

• Online Exams - how to create and use 
• Academic Integrity - ensuring the identity and integrity of online exams
• Alternative Assessment - our team fully supports the use of alternative approaches to assessment when possible

Hybrid course development can often be more challenging than creating a fully online experience. Finding the perfect balance between onsite, synchronous sessions and asynchronous work takes time. These resources provide a good starting point as you begin to plan for hybrid learning. 

• A Flexible Teaching Model: A Seamless Pivot from F2F to Online Teaching - This article advocates for a hybrid approach focusing on content delivery, collaborative, active learning, synchronous and asynchronous experiences; and a strong social presence. 
  
  
• Designing a Curriculum for Hybrid Classes - This article examines different definitions of hybrid learning (including synchronous and asynchronous remote teaching), and offers "dos" and "don't's" when designing and implementing hybrid curriculum. 
  
  
• Stanford Teaching Commons - Synchronous and asynchronous activity ideas to support a successful onsite and online coursework blend 

Think that online learning means the end of active, collaborative student learning? Think again. Many of the resources below include strategies that faculty should already be familiar with, including taking steps to build a virtual community, making sure to plan instruction that includes collaborative opportunities, and leveraging active learning strategies in a virtual space.

• Stop Giving Them Answers:  Make Them Think - This article offers three activities with step-by-step instructions on how to get students to think deeper.  The strategies can be implemented in both synchronous and asynchronous formats.
  
  
• Getting Students to Engage with Course Readings - This article provides four active learning techniques to not only get students to do the readings but also help them think critically about what they have read.
  
  
• Active Learning in Hybrid and Physically Distanced Classrooms - This blog post outlines some unique options for engaging students in active learning.
   
• Facilitating Student Engagement Through Educational Technology: Towards a Conceptual Framework - This paper draws on a range of student engagement literature that specifically includes technology as an influential factor.

Online learning can feel isolating. In addition to instructor presence, another way to improve the virtual learning experience is to intentionally create a virtual community in your online classroom. 

One strategy is to get to know your students personally, whether through scheduled 1 to 1 meetings or an introductory assignment which provides students with an opportunity to share personal information.

Below are some resources which may help faculty to create a learning community in their online and hybrid courses: 

• Building Classroom Community Spirit Online (Inside Higher Ed)
  
  
• Critical Inquiry in a Text-Based Environment (Garrison, Anderson, & Archer, 2000) - This seminal article established the Community of Inquiry framework for online instruction.
  
  
• Five Ways to Build Community in Online Classrooms (Faculty Focus) 
  
  
• You Can Still Engage Your Students When Teaching Online: Here's How  - covers the importance of building community, best practices for running breakout groups and other ways to engage learners.

Classrooms can be setup to live-stream classes held on our physical campus to virtual students. Zoom-enabled classrooms have Zoom installed on the presenter computer and a connected webcam on a tripod to capture the classroom presentation.

Technology Support 

Please contact the Technology and Media Services Desk at 389-2111 or usl@naz.edu with hardware questions about specific classrooms, or to request a temporary Zoom kit for a classroom where live-streaming is not currently available. The TMSD is the contact for on-demand technical support during class sessions.

• This live-stream instructional model offers an example of how to design your class to reach all students while maintaining space requirements.
  
  
• Faculty should review the Live-Stream startup procedure before class to understand the process and settings for hosting virtual meetings in the classroom.

• This instructional video also covers the steps outlined in the written live-stream start up procedure guide to help our faculty 'see' the process in action.
  
  

Pedagogical Support 

Trying to effectively teach students who are located in two locations - in a classroom and virtual - simultaneously is an incredible challenge. How can instructors ensure that the virtual students are engaged and feel like a part of the in-person learning community? 

Reference these resources for strategies that may help. 

• 6 Strategies for Teaching Online and In Person Simultaneously (Inside Higher Ed) 
  
  
• Building a HyFlex Course to Support Student Success - this one hour recorded webinar focuses on a HyFlex model which we do not offer at Naz, but many of the strategies apply to our live-streamed courses 

The Teaching & Learning Technologies offers three professional development courses for Nazareth faculty focused on online and hybrid course development. The courses support faculty at various skill and experience levels and are offered as fully asynchronous delivery to allow flexibility. 

Interested in taking a course? Sign up here. 

Virtual Learning Boot Camp
This course will focus on ways to enhance virtual learning and move towards a more traditional online or hybrid course structure. 

Essentials of Online & Hybrid Instruction
This 6-week online intensive supports Nazareth College faculty who are developing an online or hybrid course for the first time. We walk you through course development from start to finish, weaving online learning pedagogy and course design theory with technical skill development. 

Beyond Essentials: Instructional Strategies in the Virtual Classroom 
This course supports faculty who have taught--or currently teach--online by exploring more advanced skills and techniques that can positively impact student learning in an online or hybrid environment.

All three courses are currently offered in a fully asynchronous delivery option with required consultations with the Instructional Design team at various points.

The Federal Distance Education and Innovation Policy was recently revised. A key change to the policy more clearly defines regular and substantive interaction (RSI) in online courses in order to differentiate online delivery from correspondence courses. This distinction can impact the availability of financial aid for students taking online courses. 

What is regular & substantive interaction in an online environment? 

Substantive interaction is defined as engaging students in teaching, learning, and assessment, consistent with the content under discussion. 

Regular interaction is defined as instructor-initiated contact with students that is consistent, scheduled, and predictable.  

What does this mean for my online course? 

The policy further explains that RSI should be present in all online courses in the following ways:

1. There must be at least two forms of substantive interaction including but not limited to: 

• Providing direct instruction
• Assessing or providing feedback on a student’s coursework
• Providing information or responding to questions about the content of a course
• Facilitating a group discussion regarding the content of a course or competency
• Other instructional activities approved by the institution’s or program’s accrediting agency

2. An institution ensures regular interaction between a student and an instructor or instructors before completion of the course by: 

• Providing the opportunity for substantive interactions with the student on a predictable and regular basis commensurate with the length of time and the amount of content in the course 
• Monitoring the student’s academic engagement and success and ensuring that an instructor is responsible for promptly and proactively engaging in substantive interaction with the student when needed, on the basis of such monitoring, or upon request by the student

RSI Dashboard Illustration created by the SUNY Online Team

Of course, including regular and substantive interaction in online courses is more than a federal requirement. It is also a hallmark of effective teaching. Research shows that teacher presence is critical to student success in online courses. (Garrison, Anderson, & Archer, 2000)

Nazareth College adopted the OSCQR Online Course Rubric (v 4.0), and our online and hybrid course design checklists already include RSI components to support successful course design and delivery. We strongly encourage any faculty member teaching online or hybrid courses to reach out to the Teaching & Learning Technologies office for course design guidance.

Students are expected to attend all scheduled meetings of courses for which they are registered beginning with the first day of the semester or class. Departments or individual faculty may set attendance requirements for their courses. Attendance expectations apply regardless of course delivery (online, hybrid, or face-to-face).

According to the New York State Education Department, credits refer to the number of semester hours applicable toward the total required for graduation. Expectations for contact time are met through online interactions with the instructor and engagement in structured online activities with other students (e.g., discussions, assignments, group projects). Online courses must meet the total instructional and student work time required as onsite course equivalents.

For more information, see our Attendance and Credits and Hours information pages.

Ensuring the identity of students who complete courses online at Nazareth College is a requirement of our accrediting bodies and the Higher Education Opportunity Act. We must prove that the student participating in an online course is indeed the student who we have on record as earning credit for the course. 

Our current policy is to authenticate student identity through the use of an individual, secure login and password issued for each student by the College. MyNaz account users must abide by the Information Technology Services Computing Code of Conduct. A MyNaz account is required to access online coursework through our learning management system. 

Respondus Monitor was implemented in 2019 as one method for re-verifying student identification when an online test is conducted.  As tools become more sophisticated, Nazareth will expand our abilities to verify student identity. 

Interactions in online courses can be easily misinterpreted due to the lack of visual and auditory cues. Students and faculty can benefit from having clear expectations for conduct outlined at the start of each online course. Traditionally, netiquette guidelines usually cover these expectations for behavior. 

Faculty can use the Core Rules of Netiquette developed by Virginia Shea (2004) or develop their own guidelines.

Nazareth College is a member of the National Council for State Authorization Reciprocity Agreements (NC-SARA). When students participate in distance learning, it is Nazareth College policy that the address submitted on their application/program approval form will be presumed to be the same as the location of the student when completing online coursework. For more information, please visit our Student Right to Know site. 

Nazareth College holds membership in the New American Colleges & Universities consortium. Undergraduate students are eligible to complete selected online courses as part of this partnership. Visit the NAC&U section of the Nazareth website for a list of partner schools and more information about the cross-registration agreement.

Onsite test proctoring is not available for students unless they have an approved academic accommodation on file with our Student Accessibility Services office. An alternative for online test proctoring is the Respondus Monitor academic integrity solution. 

By using Respondus Monitor, a faculty member can require students to show their student ID and record their online test session via webcam. This allows the student to complete their test online from home, and provides the instructor flexibility to review the recording to ensure the student followed testing directions.  If you are interested in hearing more about Respondus Monitor, contact the Teaching and Learning Technologies team or visit our support site.

Nazareth College requires the use of our designated learning management system (Moodle) for the delivery of all online and hybrid courses. Using one system offers learners a clear structure, IT support, and consistency in their online experience. Please see the Faculty Senate approved course delivery formats document for detailed information about course types.