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The decision to teach laboratory courses in-person will require consideration of recommendations made by the College of Arts and Sciences and of the needs of students in your course. Individual departments and faculty will likely be responsible for making these decisions on a case-by-case basis. Those teaching performance-based lab courses that involve group singing, vocal projection, or breath work are encouraged to consider offering these classes remotely or outside, with students appropriately distanced and facing one direction.

Is the course required for students to complete their degree?

The College has recommended that courses that allow students to progress toward degree conferral should be prioritized. When considering lecture and lab-based courses, lab courses could be prioritized for in-person instruction over lecture courses, especially for lab courses that are difficult to teach remotely If the laboratory course is required for the degree, all efforts should be made to offer a version of the course that achieves the original learning goals.

Can co-requisite lectures be unlinked from laboratory courses?

Many laboratory courses throughout the Arts and Sciences are corequisites with lecture-based courses. Some departments are unlinking these courses so students have more flexibility in terms of when to register for the laboratory component. Individual departments should be consulted about this option.

Can any of the curriculum be moved remote or online (synchronous or asynchronous delivery)?

A significant factor in determining whether a laboratory course can be taught remotely is how adaptable the curriculum is while also maintaining the learning objectives of the course. Making some or all curriculum available online may be necessary to reduce the amount of time students spend in the lab, for students who test positive for COVID-19, or for those who choose a remote experience. Some content for your course may be amenable to remote teaching. Tutorials are an example of a content component that could be recorded and viewed by students before they attend lab. Advice on how to efficiently move lab curriculum online can be found in .

• Online resources
  • Many online and software-based resources are available for recording lectures and lab tutorials (links below). Short ten-minute tutorials may be an effective approach for teaching lab techniques that are specific to the lab course.
    • Zoom
  • A resource created for teachers of performance-based classes to optimize Zoom audio quality for remote instruction can be found here.
  • Virtual labs are another resource for moving portions of the laboratory curriculum online. Â鶹ÒùÔº can watch experimental techniques and some resources have embedded assessments.
  • Freely available or University of Colorado subscription-based online virtual lab resources:
    • Multiple Disciplines
    • Biology
    • Chemistry
    • Physics
    • Geosciences
• Creating a sense of community with remote teaching
  • A large factor in student dissatisfaction with online and remote courses is the loss of a sense of community. Teaching staff should seek resources for developing and maintaining the class community or social presence with both synchronous and asynchronous teaching. Resources for doing so .

When a student chooses to take the course remotely, what changes will be made to the curriculum so course goals can still be achieved?

Faculty should spend time outlining how the course can be delivered most effectively in online format when this occurs. This exercise will also help with the transition to completely online teaching in the event that the current public health situation worsens. This can help with modifying lab courses to incorporate remote teaching.

How will teaching assistants be affected by moving content online?

Graduate student stipends are often earned through teaching assistant positions in laboratory courses. Moving content online may require examination of how graduate student involvement can be maintained in these courses. Changes should not require an increase in workload for teaching assistants.

How will information be clearly conveyed to students about changes to the course and expectations?

Creating clear statements on the syllabus about the structure of the course, possible modifications to the course in the event that the public or personal health situation changes, and expectations for students will be critical to the success of laboratory courses during the COVID-19 pandemic.

• Attendance
  • Attendance policies should be explicitly stated and flexible in the event that a student feels that they may be ill. Â鶹ÒùÔº who test positive for COVID-19 will be asked to self-quarantine, and attendance policies should accommodate this. According to current State of Colorado requirements, no individual should enter a public space if they are exhibiting symptoms of illness. The faculty should convey clear expectations regarding student-faculty communication throughout the course, but under no circumstances should a student feel pressured to appear in class if said student exhibits signs of illness.
• Contingency plans
  • Given their experience in the spring, students may appreciate clear information about what will happen if the course needs to be suddenly taught remotely. Assurance that the course will not be cancelled and that learning goals will be achieved in the best possible or approximate manner should be included. At least one scenario for remote instruction can be provided to help ease the transition if this is required. Faculty should be prepared for remote teaching for single lab sections where a student has tested positive for COVID-19. In the event that a student tests positive, all students and teaching assistants in that section may be asked to quarantine and seek testing according to current guidelines.
• Acknowledgement of limitations of remote teaching in a lab setting
  • Faculty should consider emphasizing that remote learning may not be able to fully replicate the in-lab experience. For example, lab practicals may be not completed in a remote teaching situation. Â鶹ÒùÔº who are not comfortable with this flexibility should be encouraged to enroll in the course during a semester when remote teaching is not as large a component of the course.