Recommendations for Teaching in the

Event of a Flu Outbreak

Along with most other colleges and universitities in the United States, Muhlenberg has prepared guidelines for faculty, students, and staff instructing them what to do in the case of an outbreak of H1N1.  These guidelines include staying home rather than attending class.  It is therefore important for us as faculty members to have considered how we can continue to teach our courses in such an event.  While the actual number of cases that occur on our campus might turn out to be small, it is almost certain that some members of our community will contract the virus and have to miss class: taking a few steps to plan ahead will ensure that all of your students know what to do should the need arise.  The following recommendations are aimed at providing some general considerations for ways to continue teaching our courses in the event that we or our our students miss class.  On a linked page, we include more specific information on tools that can assist us as well as other faculty and staff resources on campus.  

1. Decide how you and students will communicate with each other in the event that you must cancel class or students must miss class.  If you plan to use Email as your first line of communication, select a subject phrase and tell your students to look for this phrase in their inbox (and to use it when they email you), such as "HST 122 – CLASS UPDATES."  If you plan to use one of Blackboard's features for this type of notification, use a similar phrase to name the document or folder, so students will know exactly where to go to see the latest information.
   
   
2. Consider ways to help students continue work when they cannot attend class. If a serious flu outbreak occurs, you might need to adjust assignments or due dates as well as your policy on attendance.  Use your course learning goals as a guide for maintaining your expectations for the quality of student work.  Make sure that students know how to turn work in to you even if you cannot meet face-to-face. If students have been assigned group or experiential work, be sure to explain to them how they might continue or complete this (or how you will modify the assignment) even when they cannot meet face-to-face. Be specific about how the Academic Behavior Code applies to all assignments.

   If you have questions about how to accommodate students with disabilities, contact Disabilities Services (x3825)

3. Consider teaching online for some part of your course.  If you need to be absent, record a lecture at home and have students access it on Blackboard or elsewhere.  If students can’t make class, have them submit work electronically.  Allow for discussions outside of class by using the discussion board feature of Blackboard, blogs, or other tools.  Students can collaborate with each other using wikis.  If you haven’t already learned how to use Blackboard, there are quick tutorials you can take on the Blackboard site.  To get started with Blackboard, or for specific questions on Blackboard features, contact Terry Collings at x3460. 

For specific tools you can consider based on your teaching methods and course goals, see our Electronic Resources for Teaching