Easing Back Onto Campus

Clearly, I've taken the summer "off" from campus (since the last post published here was in April...). I've spent the last ten weeks on my own projects, some of which prepared me for class, some of which were just plain fun. But now, looking at my calendar, I realize that I've got to get back on campus and do some work.

But it's hard, right? I think about my Outlook inbox and I want to shrivel into a raisin and drop under the couch.

Image Credit

So I've decided to ease back into some of the administrative tasks I've got to get done before I can get down to the fun stuff of teaching. We've got two weeks until classes begin (holy cow). Here's how to start:

Start checking the Employ-E-Newsletter
If you're like me, you might have been auto-deleting these daily e-newsletters through June and most of July. But  now is the time to give those a glance for the information you'll need before the new school year, information about MCC facilities, new procedures, and new opportunities.

Open Your Outlook Inbox
Notice that I haven't told you to "read" any of your email -- right now, I just want you to open it. Then walk away and get a cup of coffee.

Delete Your Unnecessary Emails
Okay, now, look over the emails you've gotten since June 1. ("look over" -- don't "read") Delete anything that you don't need: emails from textbook buyers, from textbook publishers, from that weird company you used to order custom pencils for the student group you advise. Good job! Now, get a donut to go with your coffee.

Prioritize Your Remaining Emails
Some of the emails left in your inbox are important, so put them in an order to read and respond. You might put them into folders, you might even decide to answer a few that look time-sensitive. But don't check them all. Julie Morgenstern, time management professional and author of Never Check Email in the Morning, likens an email-reading-and-responding streak, especially first thing in the day, to not only a time-waster, but to an addiction. Don't get addicted to answering email; get addicted to something good, like donuts. Now, go get a second donut and a refill on your coffee.
(hear from Morgenstern talking about work-life balance on WBEZ's Morning Shift program)

Start Folders for Your New Classes
I have a file folder for each class I teach each semester, and in each folder are three sub-folders marked Handouts, To-Read, and Hand-Back. I carry these folders to classes with me, and they help me feel organized, even though most of my assignments are given and submitted via Canvas. You might have something similar, or you might have something different -- an electronic system, a notebook, a series of color-coded kazoos. Whatever it is, start to get it together.

Photo Credit: Milestone Music Therapy

Finish Your Syllabus
You might have started updating your Fall 2015 syllabus in a fit of productivity on May 19. And then it sat there, open on your computer, for the next eight weeks. Hey, me too! Well, it's time to get it done, so open those documents and get to work. Don't forget that Labor Day is September 7, Professional Development Day is October 13, and Thanksgiving is November 26.

Get Excited for Fall Faculty Development Day
Our Fall 2015 FD Day is Thursday, August 13, and it's going to be terrific. So look for the invitation letter (please read it!) and program in your Outlook inbox this week.

Okay, now get started! Don't do it all at once: give yourself a bit of time each day for the rest of this week, and you'll start to feel ready. And don't forget the donuts!

It's On The Syllabus

As you're on Spring Break, you might use some of your time off (not much--it's your break, after all) to think about your Intersession, Summer, or Fall semester syllabus. To help out, we've come up with some ideas for that very reason.

Keep it Green
If you're trying to cut down on paper waste, don't ask the Duplication Center to print out copies of your syllabus for each student. Instead, create a separate one page document for only the course schedule and due dates. Post both documents--your full syllabus and your schedule only--on the LMS. That way, students can print out only the shorter document if they feel they really need a hard copy of the schedule for the semester. (Idea donated by Paul Stahmann--thanks, Paul!)

And yours might be even shorter than mine!

Keep it Consistent
Does your syllabus have any policies that your rarely (or never) enforce because they're hassles? (e.g. withdrawing students for lack of attendance; writing Student Conduct Reports for cell phone use; accepting late work but then getting thirty late student papers on the last day of class that you have to grade in one afternoon?) Well, consider making it easier on yourself and re-examine those policies.

If you're never really going to withdraw a student who misses four classes, then don't include it in your syllabus; if you're not really going to fill out extra paperwork for that student who occasionally texts in class, then take out that language; and if you really, really don't want to be stuck grading thirty late papers the day before grades are due, then have a deadline for late work or a zero tolerance policy for late work (I'm doing this in my creative writing course this semester--it's a cinch to enforce and amazingly effective in getting students to turn in work).

But as Ellen Zimmerman, Counselor and Coordinator of First Year Experience, says each time she teaches our "Boundaries with Students" workshop for new faculty members, be consistent with whatever your policy is, and make sure you're comfortable enforcing it.

Keep it Clear
Of course everything in your syllabus is clear--all of our syllabus are clear! But sometimes you do something in a classroom that you feel is unnecessary to explain or include in the syllabus, like using technology (specifically, our LMS to enhance your class, or a class blog or wiki).

Students registering for face-to-face courses might be caught off guard with that, as new faculty member Timothy Linnehan (Instructor of Philosophy) found out. One of his returning adult students was thrown off by the technology he used, both in class and as supplements outside of class. Although technology is a necessity and an excellent pedagogical tool, if you have specific technological expectations for your students--or other expectations--it's good to communicate those as soon as possible, and the syllabus is the perfect vehicle!

Keep Them Accountable
Are you sick of students asking questions this late in the semester that they should already know the answers to? (because those answers are on the syllabus?!)

It's that time of year when you wish you owned this t-shirt

Well there are a few methods used by MCC faculty that could at least save you peace of mind, if nothing else. You could pull up the syllabus at the start and end of each class so students get used to using it as a guide to the course.

Or you could give your students a syllabus quiz, either in class the first week or through the LMS as homework. But if you're not crazy about a quiz, you could give your students an interactive Poll Everywhere survey--it's a fun way to check their knowledge (and a way to get them to use their cell phones for good rather than for evil).

Some faculty members also include a "sign here" page of the syllabus that students must sign to confirm that they've read and understood the syllabus. And some faculty members (me) just get used to repeating the phrase "It's on the syllabus." (so that they're even saying it in response to "How are you today, Mrs. Power?")

For more ideas about using the new MCC syllabus template, sign up for one of our "The New MCC Syllabus" workshops in April--log into the Professional Development auto-registration for information.

What part of crafting a syllabus have you honed over the years?

Add your ideas in the "Comments" section below!