Emergency Teaching Protocol

CTLI recognizes the importance of continuity in teaching and learning during disruptions to normal operations, while acknowledging that appropriate responses will depend on the nature and circumstances of the disruption. With careful planning, MSU educators can use the communication frameworks, pedagogical strategies, and resource links on this page to help maintain academic continuity during disruptions to regular university operations. 

Regardless of the nature of the disruption or its anticipated duration, instructional continuity rests on three phases. Any time an educator is made aware that external factors will affect the normal delivery of their course, they should begin by implementing this protocol:

1. Plan: Rather than trying to create a 1:1 replication of a normal instructional day, devise a way to meaningfully have students engage with the core materials and principles that would have been presented during the affected period.
   1. Begin with prioritization. Identify essential learning outcomes and required tasks for the affected instructional period and prioritize just those portions.
2. Communicate: Establish a clear, widely accessible communication mechanism for your course that can be the single source of truth throughout the disruption. Rely on freely available, MSU-provided systems like Outlook email or D2L. Provide clear expectations regarding schedules, modalities, deliverables, and office hours.
   1. Clearly share all needed course-specific URLs (Zoom meeting links, links to D2L modules, links to online resources or library materials).
   2. Clarify and repeat all due dates or attendance expectations, being clear to highlight any changes to previously established norms.
   3. Establish a communications timeline, telling students when to expect the next update.
3. Monitor: Deliver your modified content and monitor by:
   1. Tracking student submission rates
   2. Noting common stumbling blocks and frequent questions
   3. Staying abreast of MSU communications and relevant news reports
   4. Adjust pacing and expectations as needed and communicate those adjustments clearly
   5. Provide reasonable flexibility (such as a mechanism for late work) as the disruption unfolds
   6. Route students to support, as needed

In times of disruption, students do not expect perfection, but they will appreciate clear and frequent communication. 

As the day goes on, note what common questions students seem to have. Re-use your communications from before (e.g. "Email Students in a Class" tool, D2L Announcements) to post a follow-up FAQ.

Monitor MSU official communications and news reports and share relevant updates with your students about campus and plans for the next class session. 

• CTLI's website has a suite of instructional resources and points of communication.
• Reach out to the IT team if you need assistance with the transition to remote learning. You can fill out the form, and help is also available on IT’s support website or at 517-432-6200.