Dear College of Marin Faculty:
I’m writing with two updates today—
First, I know everyone is curious about what summer session will look like, given the evolving news about the pandemic. We will make public our plan for summer session next week, after further developing it and vetting it with department chairs. But I want to assure you we will have a summer session and it will be published next week—followed shortly thereafter by the fall schedule. I appreciate your patience as we think critically about how best to balance numerous unknowns.
Next, I ask you read this important message from Testing/SAS staff:
We want to inform you that all in-person testing at the Testing Center and SAS has been suspended until further notice. We know this is a challenging time for many faculty members transitioning their courses to remote instruction. When it's time to give exams, you may want to consider the options. Here are some tips:
- You can create exams in Canvas (called “Quizzes”) with multiple choice, true/false, essay questions, etc. and set the parameters.
- With the exception of essay questions, exams in Canvas are graded automatically and students see their results immediately.
- In Canvas you can customize testing options for specific students in your class (e.g., students with testing accommodations such as extra time).
- Consider giving your students a practice test, so they can become familiar with how to take a test in Canvas
- Consider alternative ways to evaluate student progress in a remote context: graded discussions, assignments, projects, etc.
- You will want to clearly communicate your expectations to students (e.g., tests are open-book or closed-book, timed or untimed)
Here are some resources to assist you:
- Canvas Quizzes (shows you how to create tests and set parameters)
- How to Fix Accessibility Issues in Your Canvas Course
- Faculty Guide for Teaching Remotely
- SAS Support Services – for SAS Students and Faculty
Please contact us by email if you have questions or want to discuss alternate formats of testing. Testing Center and SAS staff are available to support you with testing-related questions.
Sally Wong and Patrick Garretson
Testing Center
assessment.testing@marin.edu
Xenia Zarrehparvar
SAS Testing
xzarrehparvar@marin.edu
Thank you. And I do hope you are able to attend tomorrow’s webinar on assisting students through these precarious times.
Jonathan
Jonathan Eldridge
Assistant Superintendent/Vice President of Student Learning and Success
College of Marin
Office: (415) 485-9618
jeldridge@marin.edu