Classroom Expectations

This section provides information on the classroom expectations of faculty when teaching a course. These expectations include the classroom environment, equipment, attendance requirements, student accommodations, use of the LMS, grading, and other similar topics.

Classroom Environment

The classroom environment should be one of inclusion and mutual trust and respect where students know they are able to speak freely in a learning environment. The sections below assist faculty in creating an inclusive learning environment. Remember, just as you want clear expectations for your job, students want clear expectations for your class.

Classroom Environment Tips

• Outline your class expectations in the “instructor information” section of the appropriate syllabus.
• Be consistent with expectations throughout the course, for all students.
• Provide a class schedule at the beginning of the term with expected topics to be covered each day, due dates of major assignments and tests, and other information to help students understand what they need to do from the first day. This will also instill confidence in you as the instructor.
• Keep a positive tone in messages, the syllabus, and news items: instead of saying Students may not use a cell phone, try rephrasing it to something more positive, Cell phones should be muted during class. If an emergency arises and you need to take or make a phone call, please step out of the classroom to do so.
• On the first day of class, provide students a list of behaviors that lead to success in your course (i.e. students who complete all end-of-chapter questions tend to perform significantly better on the tests). You should try to avoid scare tactics (look the left / right conversation).
• Communicate any course-specific guidance to students. For example, if the class has a lab or clinical component, explain that food and drink are not allowed in lab or clinical areas.

Engaging Students in Class

Students can be engaged in a class in a variety of ways. Engagement is not synonymous with technology. For instance, a passionate mini-lecture with embedded opportunities for discussion can be just as interesting as an interactive lesson using educational technology. Here are a few tips for increasing engagement in classes, to include both traditional and nontraditional methods.

• Pepper all lectures or class sessions with questions for students to ponder and answer.
• Help students see the importance of the lesson and how they may use it in the future.
• Block class time to switch between a variety of tasks, such as lecture, group work, presentations, activities, and independent work.
• Create interactive lessons or activities using available educational technology. You can find more on this topic in the “Additional Resources” section of this module.
• Ask students to present on a topic, teach a portion of a topic, or create a quiz for classmates to review important information.
• Consider projects or other assignments that apply varying levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy to challenge students.

Diversity & Inclusion

Faculty should work to create an inclusive learning environment for our diverse student population. Let students know that you are interested in their perspective and create an environment in which it is comfortable for students to share opinions, stories, and other information. Faculty should be cautious in introducing topics that do not pertain to the course.

Select images, reading topics, leaders, events, historical figures, and other course materials that reflect our diverse student population - one with all genders, ages, and ethnicities.

Strategies for Creating a Comfortable Shared Learning Environment

• Openly discuss your commitment to the shared learning experience.
• Respond to all students respectfully.
• Reach out to students periodically to assess their view on the learning environment.faculty
• Encourage participation for students who rarely speak up.
• Establish guidelines in advance for respectful communication in the course.

Classroom Equipment

Classrooms are equipped with dry-erase boards, computers, a projector, and other technology for you to use when teaching class. Some classrooms have additional technology, such as webcams. If you use the classroom technology during a class session, please make sure that you log out of devices and turn them off. If you change a connection (such as connecting to your laptop), please make sure you reconnect everything in the normal manner prior to leaving the classroom.

If you are teaching a course remotely, a York Technical College Zoom background is available.

Use of the LMS

All faculty and students at York Technical College use the Desire2Learn / Brightspace learning management system (referred to as D2L), regardless of course modality, to share the course syllabus and other pertinent information, document attendance, and post grades. Courses offered through distance education are expected to leverage the D2L platform to present course materials, host synchronous class sessions, and document assignment submissions and feedback. Additionally, the learning management system should be used for communication during a course and to engage students frequently through discussions with their peers and instructors.

Student Accommodations

The Americans with Disabilities Act requires that reasonable student accommodations be honored in courses. If you receive notification of a student accommodation (called: Faculty Accommodation Notification) through the Special Resources Office, you are expected to adhere to those accommodations. The SRO works collaboratively with students to provide accessible, relevant, and high-quality services to students with disabilities, diagnoses, and circumstances that may interfere with the learning experience.

Students must self-identify as needing accommodations. Faculty should not presume a student has a disability or requires accommodations based on an identified need.

If a student uses terms such as accommodation, IEP, 504-plan to explain previous learning experiences, they should be immediately referred to the Special Resources Office. Instructors should also contact the SRO with the appropriate information so the SRO can follow-up with the student.

The need to provide students with disabilities is grounded in law.

• Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA)
• Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973
• ADA Amendments Act of 2008 (ADAAA)
• Subsequent interpretation and application of laws from the Office for Civil Rights
• United States Education Amendments of 1972

Accommodations Notification

Students with accommodations are required to provide the approved accommodations to instructors at the beginning of a course, or as soon as possible, if identified after the course starts. Faculty should review the approved accommodations and ensure they are followed. If an approved accommodation seems to alter the class or course objectives, the faculty member should reach out to the SRO to determine options for a student. Student accommodations are covered under FERPA and a student’s privacy should be respected.

Accessibility of Course Content

At York Technical College, we believe that all course content should be presented in multiple formats to create an inclusive learning environment for all students. A student may have a situational need or strong preference as to how information is received, and by providing accessible course files, we are giving students options and creating a more inclusive classroom environment.

Faculty are encouraged to present information in multiple formats (video and presentation or presentation and written), and are expected to create materials that meet accessibility standards regardless of course delivery method. Additional training, informational documents, and guides on these requirements are available on the Faculty LibGuide for Accessibility.

The College provides a tool called Ally inside each D2L course to assist faculty with accessibility of Word, PowerPoint, and PDF files. This tool provides an accessibility score and also identifies areas of weakness in a file and provides directions on how to improve the accessibility score.

Accessibility Expectations

• Font should be accessible (Sans Serif, Arial, Calibri) and be a minimum of 12 point for Word/Excel and a minimum of 24 point for PowerPoint and presentations.
• Images, tables, and figures must have alternative text (alt-text) that thoroughly describe the image, figure, or table.
• When creating Word documents, be sure to use the Headings on the top ribbon. This helps students keep track if they’re using a screen reader.
• Presentations - all slides need a different title. Do not duplicate titles. Text should be a minimum size of 24 points.
• When creating lists, use the bullet point or numerical list feature in Word, PowerPoint, and D2L.
• Videos are required to contain closed - captions. You are encouraged to create videos instead of podcast or audio-only files. If you do create podcast or audio-only files, a transcript is required. It is recommended that videos or content presentation be no longer than 15 minutes in length.
• Do not use color to convey messages. While color may enhance the visual appeal, if there is no differentiation of content aside from color, then students with vision difficulties may miss important parts of the message. For example, on diagrams of the body, veins are blue and arteries are red. However, faculty should be careful to provide other context for these body structures such that a color-blind student has equal access to the material.

Late Assignments

Faculty are provided the freedom and flexibility regarding acceptance of late assignment submissions in their courses. The information provided on the syllabus for students is: Assignments / exams may not be accepted late; however, if late assignments/exams are accepted late, full credit may not be awarded. Any approved make‑up, late, or revised work must be completed in accordance with department and instructor provided guidelines. Students are responsible for communicating any extenuating circumstances with their instructor. Instructors may refer students to other campus departments to address concerns impacting academic performance.

Grading Expectations

Students expect their work to be graded in a timely fashion and to be provided information related to how the grade was determined and what changes they can make in the future. The expectations below address these concerns, and also provide information and guidance related to posting midterm and final grades, early alerts, and grade changes.

Grading Timeframes and Posting Grades

Faculty are expected to have assignments, quizzes, tests, and projects graded within a reasonable amount of time, generally not more than 1 week after submission. Courses offered in a 4-week or an 8-week format should have work graded as quickly as possible to ensure students receive necessary feedback quickly.

The recommended turn-around times are:

• 4-week courses - 3 days
• 8-week courses - 5 days
• 16-week courses - 7 days

Faculty should ensure that the gradebook in D2L is updated frequently and regularly throughout the course. The gradebook should provide students an accurate picture of their class standing at any point in the course.

Feedback

Feedback on assignments should address the student by name, be specific, and be thorough enough such that students understand what was done well and how they can improve in the future.

Feedback Best Practices

• Address the student by name.
• Provide explanation.
• Offer further assistance.
• Provide a point breakdown or rubric with an explanation of deductions.
• Include what was done well and what can be done to improve future grades, if applicable.

Entering Grades

Instructors enter grades for students at various points in the semester and in various systems. In addition to entering grades in the D2L gradebook, instructors also need to enter midterm and final grades. Each semester, final grades must be entered by the deadline on the academic calendar so that graduation, financial aid, and other processes are not delayed.

Early Alerts

At York Tech, we process early alerts to identify students potentially at-risk. Early alerts are entered into Navigate around the 20% point of the term. At this point, all courses should have at least one assessment / graded activity (homework, quizzes, in class assignments, lab activities, tests, etc.). Based on a student’s behavior, attendance, performance, and grades, instructors will enter either “at risk” or “not at risk” for each student. Directions on how to do this in Navigate can be found in the employee portal or provided by your department chair.

Midterm Grades

At the midpoint of a course, instructors should enter the current grade in the course into Navigate. This grade is not reflected in the students’ GPA or on their transcript, but is used to identify students who are not performing successfully or may be at-risk of failing.

Final Grades

Final grades are recorded in WebAdvisor by the date and time communicated by the Department Chair. Once entered and submitted, instructors are unable to alter a final grade unless they follow the grade change process. Final grades in the D2L gradebook and WebAdvisor must match.

How to Enter Final Grades in WebAdvisor

Please follow the process outlined here to submit final grades in WebAdvisor.

1. Log in to WebAdvisor. Click on the Faculty tab.
2. Click Grading on the left-hand side of the screen (in the Faculty-Student Information).
3. Under the term drop down box at the top of the screen, choose the appropriate term (ex. 2018FA or 2018FA2) and click Submit.
4. Choose Final in the drop down box at the top of the screen. Select the class to be graded. You must put a check in the box. Click Submit.
5. Assign the letter grade for each student.
6. Final Grades Only: Enter your final letter grades under the grade column.
   1. If you enter an F, the last date of attendance is required. The date entered should be the last day a student attended class.
   2. If you record an “I” (Incomplete), you must enter the expiration date provided by academic records each term.
   3. Grades of “W” and “WF” also require a last date of attendance.
7. Click “Submit” when you have finished entering grades. You can take a screenshot or print a reference copy for your records.

Incompletes

Incompletes grades represent postponement of course completion until 6 weeks into the next semester. If a student needs an incomplete in a course, the instructor can assign that as the final class grade when submitting final grades. An expiration date must also be included. Faculty will be provided with the expiration date for the Incomplete. If the student completes the course within the period established, instructors will need to submit a grade change prior to the expiration date, or the grade will automatically convert to “F”. Instructors should discuss Incompletes with their department chair to ensure all departmental processes are followed.

Grade Changes

If a grade needs to be changed after submission of final grades in WebAdvisor, a Grade Change Form must be submitted. This form is available electronically and in division offices. To process a grade change, instructors will need the student’s name, CID number, course information, previous/new grades, and a reason for the change.

A Grade Change Form should be submitted to the division office for approval after all assignments have been completed and D2L reflects the accurate grade.

Canceling Classes

Sometimes, canceing a class is unavoidable. In the event that you need to cancel a class, please do the following:

• Notify the department chair of the absence and reason for the absence as far in advance as possible. Your chair may be able to find someone to cover the class for you instead of needing to cancel.
• After notifying the department chairs, notify the students via email or other class communication means.
• In the D2L classroom, post an announcement / news item for students regarding the cancellation and alter them to anything they should complete.
• Follow the class cancellation guidelines for your division/department. Some divisions use an electronic form and others request that you email the division office.

Student Conduct Concerns

Despite our best efforts, conduct concerns with student behavior, academic integrity / misconduct, or classroom disruptions may occur. For academic integrity/misconduct, please view the information under Academic Integrity in Section IV of this book.

Classroom Disruptions

If a student causes a classroom disruption with inappropriate comments or other behaviors, you should redirect the student by saying something like, “that’s an interesting point, but I think it is best discussed after class.” While this type of tactic frequently works, there are times behavioral problems are more significant in nature.

You should address behavioral issues as soon as possible, treating students with dignity and respect. Request that the student meet you outside of class and share that you are worried that their behavior is impacting their success and the success of their classmates.

Dismissing a Student from a Single Class

If necessary, you may dismiss a disruptive student for the remainder of a single class period. You must follow up with the student prior to the next class period to discuss the disruptive behavior and to clarify expectations and consequences if the behavior continues. If the student makes further disruption, it may result in a second dismissal and referral in writing to the Dean of Students, James Robson (jrobson@yorktech.edu).

Threatening or Safety Related Behavioral Concerns

If a behavioral incident occurs that disrupts the learning environment, poses a safety risk, or if a student refuses to leave the room at your request, contact the Public Safety Office (803.327.8013) immediately and contact your department chair immediately after the class period ends. The situation should also be reported using the Incident Reporting Form in the Employee Portal, after discussion with your department chair.

The Incident Reporting Form should not be used for minor incidents that can be resolved through a conversation with the student. The form can be submitted as a notification that does not require follow-up, or the instructor can request follow-up from the Dean of Students.