Supporting Students with an Approved Exception

A limited number of students were approved to remotely attend in-person courses during Fall 2021 as a result of COVID-19 related hardships and medical conditions. Going forward, students that have a medical condition or disability that prevents them from participating in person may continue to contact the Disability Services Center (DSC) to discuss accommodation. For any other situations, accommodations are limited to those offered within the course policies. Please visit the 2021/22 COVID-19 Resources page for the most current guidance on this topic, including suggestions for course policies and structures that can help support all students.

This page provides a preliminary overview tools, resources, and strategies for providing remote instruction to qualifying students. Decisions should be made in consultation with DSC staff, where applicable, to ensure the accommodation meets the student needs. If there are other aspects of the course that require central support, please reach out to dtei@uci.edu for assistance with identifying resources.

Planning for Remote Students

Faculty and TAs teaching in-person courses have multiple options for providing approved remote students with access to the in-person components of the course. Depending on the specific accommodation and the extent to which in-class participation is required to meet course outcomes, these options may include: 

  • Recording and/or streaming lectures from the classroom
  • Using existing course videos
  • Providing modified versions of in-class activities for remote students to complete independently

A few initial steps instructors may want to consider include:

  • Notify and consult with your TAs or any other course instructors who will also be impacted. 
  • Consult with DSC staff on any specific instructional needs related to the accommodation.
  • Discuss expectations with the remote student(s), including attendance, engagement in class, availability of remote office hours, and how to communicate if there are issues.
  • Determine which instructional approach and technologies you want to start with. This may change as you identify what works best for you and your students.
  • Contact DTEI (dtei@uci.edu) to request support from an Academic Technology Assistant, as further detailed below.
  • Schedule a practice session in the classroom by contacting your Schedule of Classes Coordinator.

If teaching in a department-managed classroom, contact your School/Department IT group to confirm which classroom technologies are available.

    Essential Tools for Lecture Streaming and Recording

    Classroom Equipment

    The Office of Information Technology (OIT) has equipped all General Assignment Classrooms with a webcam and document camera to support lecture capture and streaming from the classroom computer. An expanded inventory of loanable equipment will also be made available. As a starting point, we suggest reviewing the Quickstart Guide for Lecture Capture. For more information on the specific technologies and the list of classrooms, please visit the Classroom Technology website.

    Zoom (recommended for live-streaming)

    Most faculty and students are familiar with using Zoom for online courses and meetings. It can also be used in combination with the classroom equipment to live-stream and record in-person courses. For most scenarios, it will work best to start and run the Zoom session from the classroom computer. If additional devices are needed, such as a tablet or laptop, instructors can join the Zoom meeting from those devices as a co-host. For more information, visit the UCI Zoom website.

    YuJa

    Compared with Zoom, YuJa provides additional functionality for recording courses, such as simultaneously capturing multiple video sources. However, YuJa’s live-streaming features are not as robust as those found in Zoom. We recommend using whichever tool you are most familiar with, but if real-time interaction with remote students is a priority, you may find that Zoom works better. For more information, visit the UCI YuJa website.

    Poll Everywhere

    Poll Everywhere is a web-based polling tool licensed by UCI that enables instructors to pose a variety of questions to students and gather their responses in real-time. Students, whether in the classroom or participating through a livestream, can respond using a smartphone, tablet, or computer. They do not need to purchase a separate physical response device. For more information, visit the UCI Polling Tools website.

    Academic Technology Assistants

    DTEI established a temporary program in Fall 2021 to provide additional in-class support for courses with one or more students approved to attend remotely. Student employees hired for this program, Academic Technology Assistants, are paired with a course for the quarter and attend each class session to help manage the remote experience. Depending on the course and instructor preferences, this may include:

    • Assisting instructors with setting up and using a variety of classroom technologies
    • Monitoring the lecture streaming/recording sessions to ensure that audio and video are being properly captured
    • Managing Zoom sessions from the classroom, including muting/unmuting participants, switching/moving cameras, and notifying instructors of questions from remote students
    • Facilitating remote student participation in classroom activities and assignments (e.g. Poll Everywhere, think-pair-share, and group projects)

    Availability of Academic Technology Assistants is limited and priority will be given to courses with students approved for remote instruction accommodations through DSC. As capacity permits, the program may also be available to support courses without formally approved remote students.