The Mathematics Department offered the following training in August 2020, in the period August 12-21 (some workshops were offered more than once). For Zoom recordings and related resources, follow the links below. At the bottom of this page you will find a collection of general resources for Distance Education.

Online teaching essentials
Facilitators: Jonas Reitz, Samar ElHitti, Bruce Kan
This 90 minute session will cover the essential elements of an online course, drawing on examples from Blackboard and the OpenLab, and will touch on resources, tools, and trainings available to help support you.

Hosting your online course
Facilitators: Samar ElHitti, Bruce Kan
In this session, we cover where to house your online course, including lecturing (synchronous vs asynchronous) and office hours, along with other technologies that support effective online instruction and communication. Emphasis on Blackboard, Blackboard Collaborate Ultra and Zoom.

Online assignments: delivering, collecting, assessing  and returning
Facilitators: Samar ElHitti, Bruce Kan
In this session we cover how to use technology to distribute work to your students, as well as collecting them back and grading them. Emphasis on Blackboard, Dropbox and Notability.

Getting started on the OpenLab with Math Dept Model Courses
Facilitators: Jonas Reitz, Kate Poirier
Interested in teaching on the OpenLab? This 90 minute session will explore the features of Model Courses, designed and customized for select courses with built-in resources for distance learning (MAT 1275/1372/1375/1475/1575/2680).   This session has an associated online module “Cloning a Model Course for your section.”

Cloning a Model Course for your section on the OpenLab 
Online module (asynchronous), 2.5 hours.
This online module will take you through the nuts and bolts of cloning a Model Course on the OpenLab and customizing it for use in your section (MAT 1275/1372/1375/1475/1575/2680). 

Exams in an online environment
Facilitators: Samar ElHitti, Bruce Kan
In this session we discuss techniques for effectively giving exams to your students including oral defense sessions and other strategies to promote academic integrity and critical thinking. Emphasis on Blackboard, Dropbox and WeBWorK.

Onboarding your students for a smooth online class experience
Facilitators: Samar ElHitti, Bruce Kan
In this session we take a look at your class from the students’ perspective and discuss important interventions you can implement that can lead to a smooth semester.

Two additional workshops were offered in support of MAT 1275CO. All are welcome.

Teaching MAT 1275CO
Facilitator: Bruce Kan

WeBWorK training
Facilitator: Bruce Kan

Resources

City Tech:

Blackboard:

OpenLab:

  • Math Department Instructor Resources (this site): Department-specific resources for Distance Learning.
  • Teaching With OpenLab: Self-paced module with many resources for teaching with OpenLab (structured as as self-paced module, but does not need to be completed in order – there are many great resources here!)
  • Course Hubs.  A Course Hub is a central repository of resources for a course, including online lessons created by City Tech faculty, help and support materials, and more.  Course Hubs are designed for use by all faculty, whether using Blackboard or OpenLab (they are publicly accessible on the OpenLab).  Course Hubs will be available for select courses (MAT 1275/1275CO/1372/1375/1475/1575/2680) and will be introduced in the faculty training. 
  • Model Courses.  If you’re interested in using the OpenLab for your Math courses, a Model Course is a great place to start.  Model Courses are designed to help you get up and running on the OpenLab by providing pre-built course sites for many popular courses (currently MAT 1275/1275CO/1372/1375/1475/1575/2680), complete with resources and sample assignments, structured to support distance learning.  Model Courses will be introduced in the faculty training.