Teaching Center Update: Remote Teaching Support - March 13, 2020

This message was sent by Cynthia Golden, Associate Vice Provost and Executive Director of the University Center for Teaching and Learning, to remote teaching contacts.

March 13, 2020

Dear Colleagues,

You are receiving this special message from the Teaching Center because you have been identified by your dean as point person for your campus or school during this time of temporary, remote teaching. We hope that you will help us disseminate important information about maintaining instructional continuity to faculty and to those who support them, as well as alert us to ways in which we can help.

  1. We will send regular communications via this list. Please feel free to distribute to your colleagues.
  2. The Teaching Center’s web pages will continue to be a central point for information on teaching and educational strategies and software that can be used during this time. It is being continuously updated and most basic questions that faculty have can be answered at the Teaching Center webpage.
  3. One of the most important things faculty can do early next week is to initiate communication with their students. Even if all the details aren't in place yet, instructors can simply let students know when they can expect more specific information. This can ease student anxiety and save faculty from receiving individual questions.
  4. The Teaching Center is offering a series of remote office hours starting Sunday, March 15. Sessions will be structured as either open topic or broad topic Q&A discussions and delivered remotely via Zoom. Teaching consultants and educational technologists will be available to answer instructors’ questions on a first-come, first-served basis. 

Remote Office Hours Schedule:  

You can learn how to connect and find additional resources at the Teaching Center webpage.

We are also planning a virtual workshop series and will distribute this information as soon as it’s confirmed. 

Sincerely,

Cynthia Golden and the staff of the University Center for Teaching and Learning
Email: teaching@pitt.edu