Community Engaged Teaching during Suspension of Face-to-Face Classes

This post is part of our Keep Teaching blog series meant to help IU instructors move their classes online quickly due to COVID-19. For more detailed resources, see the Keep Teaching website.

Community engaged teaching has some special considerations during the request to move classes online and curtail in-person interactions. When your students cannot complete their service, significant course content becomes unavailable to you and your students.

General resources are available at the Keep Teaching website to help you move your class online quickly. And The Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning created complementary resources on our blog and webinars focused on the key tools for taking classes online. See the CITL events page for registration details.

We created the following points specifically for community engaged teaching and learning to plan your class for the two weeks after spring break or for the rest of the semester:

• Notify your partners not to expect students from March 16 through April 3 and that you will contact them when you have more information from the university. Also ask about their ability to take students. Partners may have their own plans around COVID-19.
• What if my class is project based? Teach students how to use Zoom for remote check-in and progress updates with community partners. Send draft materials via e-mail or share your screen via Zoom. Can you use Zoom for final presentations of student work for partners? Are partners able to continue working via videoconference?
• What if my class is direct service? Identify how much service will be lost and consider how you can meet your learning priorities. What individual and group activities can you use to reveal individual and shared class knowledge from previous service reflection assignments to guide discussion and assignments for the rest of the semester? Retrieval Practice activities may be helpful in finding and reinforcing that knowledge. How can you pivot your class away from service?
• How do I grade students? First, recognize that students should not be punished academically for not completing service. Don’t have students make up lost hours when they get back to classes. Determine your most critical teaching priorities and adjust final expectations accordingly.
• What if students are behind on service? Students who have not started or may not complete their service will have a hard time gaining course content without service. Refer to your syllabus about service expectations for grading. Can a student learn what they need in other ways? Can they take an incomplete?

Let us know if you want to talk through options for adjusting your community engaged learning class.