PRESCOTT COLLEGE
While Prescott College offers online courses, there were approximately 58 courses that were migrated after spring break to fully online including online sessions where students and teachers met synchronously as well as independent student learning. By introducing the “meet up” sessions online, teachers were able to stay connected to the students to measure their ability to meet the goals of the course and to continue with much of the interactive learning. Faculty also worked with students in Zoom breakout rooms and community-based projects in place of “lecture” learning formats.
In addition, periodic faculty and student surveys asked questions designed to gauge how successful students had been with connecting virtually, what communication sources they were relying on, and what supports they needed to be successful in their classes. Then appropriate staff members reached out and assisted with student advising, learning center functions, and technical response. Teachers were also notified of the survey results so they could help where needed as well.
Prescott College is in the process of rolling out shortened courses for Fall 2020 that highlight the immersive experiential learning that Prescott College is known for. The college staff is looking forward to returning to field settings and high impact experiences as soon as possible with the message “Ready to Experience?” being their motto.
Prescott College is so dedicated to high impact experiential education that it is adding immersive classes to its roster and is excited to share these with students!
Not only has the school made tremendous steps to keep students learning and connected, some of the graduate programs sponsored webinars are designed to make virtual connections and help communities through the COVID-19 crisis.
Programs included “Food Systems Friday” from the Master of Sustainable Food Systems program, “Community Resilience Conversation” from the Master in Resilient and Sustainable Communities program, and “Emergency Rescue Webinar Series for Parent” provided by the Education Department among other helpful webinars all designed to teach and help the community connect.
Prescott College is in the process of rolling out shortened courses for Fall 2020 that highlight the immersive experiential learning that Prescott College is known for.
NORTHERN ARIZONA UNIVERSITY
NAU transitioned more than 8,000 traditional courses, to online learning on March 23 for the remainder of the Spring 2020 semester and extended that to all classes through June 30. This incredible effort was the result of strong collaboration throughout the entire university, including experts in instructional design and information technology services.
NAU’s 31,000 students successfully completed the 2020 Spring semester. To support faculty and students, the school assembled and developed hundreds of free educational resources related to taking labs online, including simulations, demonstrations, remote labs, and do-it-yourself labs that could be done safely at home.
NAU is a pioneer in online and distance education across the State of Arizona. The school built upon its foundation of online expertise to ensure students were able to continue with their academic plans.
For faculty, they have developed live online, self-paced guides, and recorded sessions for faculty in support of the online transition of all NAU courses. The school continues to offer daily in-depth technology and pedagogy workshops to support faculty with transitioning courses.
For students, NAU moved Student Services online including Tutoring, Supplemental Instruction, and Academic Peer Mentoring. Faculty was also encouraged to use their regularly scheduled class time to host virtual classes or use as their office hours to check-in with their students. By taking these measures, NAU was able to ensure students maintained connection with faculty and continued to receive assistance to successfully complete the Spring semester. NAU is a pioneer in online and distance education across the State of Arizona. The school built upon its foundation of online expertise to ensure students were able to continue with their academic plans.