CEM Teaching Council

• Have enthusiasm and interest in the students and the course content.
• Program Structure and Characteristics
  • CEM’s programs are designed to provide students with flexibility in completing their degree requirements. This includes the following delivery modes:
    • On-campus, either part-time, full-time or non-degree students (available for all programs).
    • Completely online, with no on-campus requirement (available for some programs).
    • Mostly online, with some on-campus lab requirements (available for most programs).
    • Hybrid, in which students take a mix of online courses and on-campus courses.
  • CEM does not distinguish between online and on-campus programs. Our goal is to make programs as accessible as possible to all students, regardless of location.
    • Some programs require minimal on-campus labs to meet essential learning objectives.
  • Online students should have access to the same course resources and educational opportunities as on-campus students.
• Courses and Instruction
  • Courses in CEM may be offered in one of four general formats. The format of a particular course is selected by the faculty member, in consultation with their department chair, based on the needs of the program, the content of the course and faculty workload.
    • Blended courses, in which all students use the same resources for learning course content.
      • The predominant course design paradigm for CEM programs.
    • On-campus only course sections.
      • Used in select cases where it is impractical for students to complete the course online due to equipment or access requirements. 
  • Online-only course sections.
    • Used in high-enrollment courses where separate sections catering to online students are beneficial.
  • Self-Paced Enroll Anytime (SPEA).
    • Non-semester-based courses that students complete at their own pace.
    • Used for a limited number of courses where student learning does not benefit from interactions with other students.
  • All courses must promote faculty-student engagement. Except for rare cases, this requires at least one hour of weekly content or interaction per credit—such as recitation sessions, problem solving sessions, group discussions, presentations, feedback on student work or other appropriate interactions.
  • CEM strives to provide an equivalent learning experience to all students with equivalent rigor, content, assignments and exams.
  • To maximize flexibility, online and blended courses are designed asynchronously, meaning live lecture attendance is not required for success. However, some courses may offer live participation as an option.
  • Due dates for homework submission, reports, and exams are generally consistent for online and on-campus students in the same course, though online students may be given more flexibility for exam dates or granted additional time to complete their work in some cases.

• Instructional faculty are responsible for and control the academic content of the courses they teach, provided that the course meets the core course objectives specified for that course by the faculty responsible for the program(s) it serves.
• Faculty members teaching or developing courses must be knowledgeable on the course content and consider the use of best practices in terms of structure, activities, learning objectives and corresponding assessments. Faculty are encouraged to use the expertise of an instructional designer to leverage digital technologies and to organize and display the course content most effectively. 
• For online or blended courses, faculty should adhere to the Online/Blended Course Design checklist.
• Additionally, faculty should use these course design guidelines:
  
  • Use Blackboard for all courses, including keeping the gradebook current with all grades.
  • Ensure all course information is up-to-date for the current semester and reflects any changes made to due dates and assignments.
  • Ensure that the course is consistent with and contributes to the mission and learning objectives of the program(s) in which it is embedded.
  • Incorporate, when appropriate, activities that involve recognized high impact practices that substantially improve students’ learning experiences.
  • Include a variety of student engagement practices in the course including student-to-faculty interactions, student-to-student interactions, interactive multimedia material and active student learning strategies.
  • Incorporate diverse assessment methods, ensure they are aligned with course learning objectives and incorporate faculty-to-student feedback and develop grading rubrics for assignments as appropriate.
  • Ensure that all content is available to all students, on-campus and online.
• Video content in courses
  • CEM video content generally falls into two types:
    
    • Discrete topic videos designed specifically to be viewed online.
    • Recordings of classroom lectures or meetings of on-campus sections that are made available to online students.
  • Guidelines for discrete topic videos generated by the instructor:
    • Videos should be given a descriptive title so that students can easily identify them.
    • Videos should have a maximum length of 15-20 minutes where possible.
    • Instructor generated videos should be refreshed, supplemented and updated at regular intervals to demonstrate instructor engagement and commitment
    • Instructor generated videos should be up-to-date with the course content and not refer to current events and dates, if they are planned to be reused.
    • If content or solution errors are identified in instructor generated videos, instructors shall communicate that error to students and correct the video before using the video again.
    • Videos based on PowerPoint slides should have the slides posted for external review.
  • Guidelines for classroom recordings:
    • Instructors must ensure that their microphone is on at all times.
    • Instructors must repeat on-campus student questions so online viewers can hear them.
    • PowerPoint slides or handouts used in class should be made available to students.
    • Recordings should not be re-used outside the semester in which they are recorded.

• It is the responsibility of all course instructors to verify that their online course is functioning as intended in Blackboard (e.g., links are active, videos play appropriately, and quizzes are operational).
• Course instructors will ensure that their courses are available to students at least three days prior to the beginning of the session. At a minimum, the following information must be available at that time:
  • Contact information for faculty and where appropriate for teaching assistants
  • A syllabus which contains all information required by the Syllabus Policy in the Faculty Handbook (e.g. exam dates, required materials, grading breakdown, course objectives, etc.) https://und.policystat.com/policy/10193436/latest/
• Course instructors will respond to students in a timely manner.
  • Emails and voice mails should be responded to within one business day, not including weekends and holidays.
  • When travel or other obligations will prevent timely response, prior notification must be provided whenever possible.
  • Asynchronous feedback should be provided via Blackboard for assignments and exams within 1 week. Interactive feedback sessions should be scheduled as soon as practical.
• Instructors must make themselves available to students during office hours.
  • At a minimum, two office hours for the first class taught and one additional office hour for each additional class taught will be scheduled. During the scheduled time, the instructor will be available for walk-in meetings, email, video chat via Zoom or Teams, or phone calls. For faculty with open office hours, a comparable level of available time should be achieved.
  • Where appropriate, office hours for teaching assistants should be scheduled at different times from those of the primary instructor, with the same level of availability.
  • Faculty are encouraged to schedule sessions, including problem solving sessions, outside of normal business hours to be available for online students, many of whom work full time.
• Exam and Proctoring guidelines
  • Exam dates and times should be posted at the beginning of the semester so that students can make plans well in advance of the exam date. Exam dates should only be adjusted at least two weeks prior the exam unless there are extenuating circumstances. When originally published dates are changed, accommodations for students should be expected.
  • On-campus students are required to take exams in-person during the regularly scheduled class time or examination period. Exceptions can be made at the discretion of the instructor.
  • Online students are expected to take exams on the same day they are administered to on-campus students, unless prior approval is granted by the course instructor.
  • Instructors should specify proctoring options for online students and include the following statement in the course syllabus: “Online students are required to use <choose one: ProctorU Live or Honorlock>. In-person proctoring is only allowed at a pre-approved testing center for PDF-style exams only.  Additional information is available at https://engineering.und.edu/current-students/exam-proctoring-tech.html”
  • Final exam times and dates shall follow the published final exam week schedule, as well as the guidelines in the Final Exam Policy in the faculty handbook.  Online students should have a wider window of time to access the final exam to accommodate different schedules. Courses without a published exam time should have the date and time set by the instructor to occur during the final exam week. https://und.policystat.com/policy/10193436/latest/

• Academic Integrity is essential to maintain the value and reputation of a UND CEM degree and any violations will not be tolerated.
• Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to, cheating, plagiarism, and collusion.
• Students are expected to follow all directions provided by the instructor as it relates to academic work.
• CEM follows a zero-tolerance policy regarding academic integrity and serious ramifications result from violations, depending on the severity of the occurrence the outcomes include:
  • Receiving a zero on the assignment or exam (commonly used for first time offenders)
  • Receiving an “F” for the course (commonly used for repeat offenders and extreme cases)
  • Dismissal from the University (last resort)
• UND Code of Student Life provides additional details and links
• Please report all incidents of Academic Dishonesty so that the incident is recorded to track potential repeat offenders, this should include cases were there is a suspicious activity as well as explicit acts of dishonesty.  The Dean of Students can assist with
• The incident should be reported to:
  • UND Dean of Students
  • CEM Associate Dean for Academic Affairs
  • CEM Assistant Dean for Student Success
  • CEM Dept Chair of the course
    • Information to include:
      • Name of student
      • Course name and section
      • Brief description of the incident
      • Action taken in response to the incident

• The University of North Dakota is committed to creating an inclusive and accessible learning environment for all students to align with the April 2027 deadline in the ADA Title IX regulations.
• “UND: Strive for 85” aims to significantly improve course content accessibility, measuring this improvement using Blackboard Ally and other tools. Faculty are asked to use accessibility best practices in creating and selecting course content, striving for an 85% or greater average overall Blackboard Ally course accessibility score for all Blackboard Ultra courses, and an 85% or greater average Ally score for documents within each course.
• TTaDA has comprehensive resources, training, and support available through its Creating Accessible Content page as well as the TTaDA CEM representative.

• Faculty may occasionally need to miss class for conferences, illness, family matters, or other short-term reasons. When this occurs, instructors are expected to maintain instructional continuity and clear communication with students. Instructors are strongly discouraged from canceling scheduled classes.
• Instructors are responsible for communicating any changes promptly with an announcement in Blackboard and should include instructions on the alternative instruction and clear expectations for student engagement.
• In all cases, the instructor must notify the Department Head in advance (or as soon as possible in emergencies) about any class session being delivered in an alternative format.
• Alternative instruction options
  • Hold the class session online using an approved platform (e.g., Zoom, Teams, or Blackboard Collaborate).
  • Provide a pre-recorded lecture, narrated slides, or other equivalent instructional material covering the scheduled class content.
  • Arrange for another faculty member or GTA to cover the class, as appropriate
  • In cases where recording or live sessions are not practical, instructors may provide structured alternative learning activities (e.g., readings, problem sets, case studies, or online discussions) that align with the learning objectives of the missed class session.

Announcements

• Welcome video or statement (video preferred)

Syllabus & Textbooks

• Course name, number and description
• Faculty contact info and office location
• Office hours
• Learning goals and objectives; grading policy and grade weighting or breakdown
• Specific course-related policies as well as a link to the Provost’s syllabus statements on nondiscrimination, disability access, reporting sexual violence and accessibility
• Textbook/resource information (ISBN, textbook photo, links)
• How to access textbooks and/or Open Educational Resources (OER)
• How to access software or other required class materials

Schedule

• Course schedule
• Due dates for exams or other significant assessments

Lessons Structure

• Weekly/regular/lesson/chapter content folders with learning materials
  • Readings, videos, lectures slides, other learning content.
  • Assignments, quizzes, collaboration tools (e.g., wikis, blogs) etc.
  • Follow accessibility guidelines (e.g., captioned videos, screen-reader friendly documents), as required by state law

Exams

• Exams posted with clear instructions and due dates
• Proctoring information is provided (if applicable)
• Exam availability timeline setup to follow department and college rules

Resources

• Supplemental materials, if applicable (e.g., extra articles, links, videos, guides, etc.)
• Include information about UND resources (Smarthinking, Writing Center, etc.), as well as any course or department specific tutoring

My Grades

• Grades are entered where students can view grades and grading feedback or comments