CIRT, University of North Florida

It has become increasingly evident that the university must to be prepared to manage events that can cause disruption to normal instructional activities and schedules. This is certainly the case at the present time as we face the likely impact of the current outbreak of the H1N1 flu which might very well result in increased class absenteeism. Under circumstances such as these it will be our responsibility as faculty members to be prepared to provide students with alternative means of access to course content and to be flexible in enabling them to meet course requirements. CIRT has developed this website in order to inform you of the range of possible course delivery options available to you for responding to these challenges.

I want to emphasize and reiterate that I will be grateful to you for being as flexible as possible as we respond to an event whose impact cannot be accurately predicted.

Mark E. Workman, Provost and VPAA

Considerations for Faculty

1. Consider ways to help students continue work even if they cannot come to class by reviewing your course outcomes and assignments.

2. Consider adding plans to your syllabus for proceeding with teaching during a flu outbreak. Even if you don't specify plans, explain on the syllabus how you would inform students if you need to make unanticipated changes in the course.

3. Create your Blackboard course in advance of a flu outbreak:
http://www.unf.edu/dept/cirt/bb/faq/course_request.html

4. Be prepared to answer student inquiries about making up work. There may be many student requests for special accommodations, so have plans in place for alternative assignments that will treat all students equitably and be feasible in the face of large numbers of requests.

5. Encourage students to find a "class buddy" to assist with missed class notes or assignments. The buddy could also call an absent student during class, so that student could listen to the lecture via cell phone.

6. Visit the Planning page to review questions that will assist faculty in planning for academic continuity during an outbreak.

7. Visit the Tools page to learn about the technology available to you for alternative course delivery.

*The recommendations on this site were adapted from the materials provided by the University of Michigan’s Center for Research on Learning and Teaching "Recommendations for Teaching During a Flu Outbreak" site.