Date | December 4, 2020
Dear Department MSOs, Schedulers and Advisers,
Due to ongoing complications and challenges related to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are writing to share that UC Berkeley will continue remote delivery of instruction through Summer 2021. It is our hope that this decision will allow you sufficient time to update your summer schedule appropriately and prepare to offer high quality remote summer courses, as well as provide UC Berkeley students some certainty when planning their summer coursework.
Some items to consider:
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We recommend utilizing the Class Schedule features, as well as the Class Notes section, to provide important information about your course offerings to students as they make their summer plans. Features include modes of instruction, synchronous versus asynchronous requirements, online versus remote design, etc.
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As with last summer, this is a one-time exception to teach classes remotely for 2021 so there is no need to submit a course modification request through CMS for approval to teach online or remotely.
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We want to share again the Remote Instruction Training Guide developed by Digital Learning Services (DLS) specifically for instruction in these times. This guide addresses how to use a bCourses site as a virtual classroom, develop asynchronous instructional materials, foster student-to-student interaction, and reimagine assignments and exams for a remote format. Instructors are also encouraged to schedule consultations with DLS if needed and to review the Keep Teaching site for further information and support.
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The Summer 2021 schedule will go live on December 10th and students tend to begin planning for summer over the upcoming winter break.
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Summer 2021 registration will open on Monday, February 1st at 9am PST.
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We will be updating our Summer Remote Instruction pages and FAQs, but in the meantime much of the information from last summer is still applicable.
There may be an opportunity for a limited number of face-to-face courses and we will plan to use the same process established for Spring 2021 to review exception requests. The process for granting summer in-person exceptions is forthcoming.
We appreciate all of you and your continued collaboration during these challenging times. Our hope is this early decision to pivot to a remote summer will provide some measure of certainty for our campus community in a time of so much uncertainty. Please do not hesitate to reach out if you have any questions, concerns or would like to meet and talk through plans for Summer 2021.
Attached: Resources for Promoting Your Summer Offerings