Class Formats and Technology

Class Formats

In the College of Business, spring classes will be offered in three formats.

Face to face

An in-person classroom experience with social distancing in place.

Face-to-face instruction will be offered for smaller classes where the classroom capacity accommodates social distancing for the number of students enrolled in class.
Students in a face-to-face course who have health-related concerns (eg, tested positive for COVID-19, have mild COVID-19 symptoms, have a suppressed immune system) and are still able to effectively participate in the course will be able to learn remotely.
Students whose courses are offered in person but who are unable to come to campus (e.g., international students who are unable to travel) will be able to participate and learn remotely.
To support the health and wellness of all students and CSU community members, students attending in-person classes will be expected to follow social distancing and public health protocols.

To ensure that students, faculty and staff are practicing proper social distancing, the College of Business will use seating charts in each classroom. These classroom diagrams outline where students, faculty and staff are to sit during socially distant face-to-face classes.

Hybrid

A combination of face-to-face and online instruction.

This format will be used primarily for courses where classroom capacity constraints don’t allow all students to attend every class session in person.
Students will attend some classes in person with social distancing in place and will participate in some classes using technology. Faculty will determine when students attend class sessions in person vs. online.
When attending online, students will join the class via an integrated video platform (such as Microsoft Teams) that will allow them to view the live lecture and participate in class activities. Evening MBA and Online MBA - Mosaic students will join the class via Mosaic.

Online

View and participate in classes remotely.

There are two types of online classes: livestreamed (synchronous) and on demand (asynchronous). Class types are distinguished in RAMweb by whether or not a meeting time is shown. Classes that have a meeting time are livestreamed; classes that do not have a meeting time listed are on demand.
Livestreamed classes involve students participating 50 to 70 percent of the time in lectures, group meetings, discussions or other faculty-directed experiences at the time indicated. The remaining time may be livestream or on-demand content.
On-demand classes involve students viewing recorded lectures at their own pace, in step with class assignments. The Online MBA and Online MCIS are offered exclusively in this format.

Instructional Technology

Technology is a critical component of the College’s public health and social distancing plans, and we have made considerable investments in our infrastructure to support a learning experience in Spring 2021.

All Rockwell building classrooms are equipped with cameras and microphones to allow online students a similar experience to the classroom, and instructional designers have worked with faculty to maximize the online learning experience. While faculty may implement platforms that best suit their courses’ needs, the College of Business relies heavily on three platforms.

Need technical support? Visit canvas.colostate.edu/student-support/ for guidance or to submit a help ticket.

Canvas

The University’s learning platform for all online coursework.

Used across CSU, Canvas is the University’s primary learning management system. It serves as a centralized hub for each of your courses and provides additional details about technology chosen to support the course.

To standardize the Canvas experience, the College of Business worked with instructional designers to develop a standardized structure for our courses in Canvas. By providing a similar experience in every class, students can focus on coursework and learning, minimizing barriers for online learning, including:

On your device: Connect to coursework on a desktop or a through Canvas Mobile
Assessments: Complete tests and quizzes online.
Coursework: Submit papers, projects and other assignments securely.
Additional course materials: Download and view lecture notes, presentations and more.

Your Canvas login is your CSU ename.

Teams

Microsoft Teams

All CSU students receive free access to Office 365, which includes Microsoft Teams, a versatile communications and collaboration platform.

Virtual classrooms: Attend lectures and participate in real time, chat with faculty during office hours, or watch recorded lectures on demand.
File storage: Easily share files with your classmates and collaborate on them in Office 365 ProPlus.
Calendar: Keep all your schedules and deadlines in one spot in a calendar that integrates with Outlook.
Chat: Talk about coursework with classmates or instructors in a text chat – or convert it to an audio or video call when you need to talk in person.

Your Microsoft Teams login is ename@colostate.edu. This login is not the same as your CSU email address.

Mosaic

The College's interactive learning platform.

Mosaic is a video collaboration technology designed for interactive learning. Mosaic lets online students view live classes and interact with instructors and on-campus peers in real time. Strategically placed cameras show online students every angle of the classroom, so you'll feel like you’re part of the on-campus experience.

When participating in classes on Mosaic, you can:

Raise your hand: Ask questions of faculty in real time.
Chat: Connect with with your peers in chat rooms.
Give feedback: Participate in live classroom polls and discussions.
Do group work: Break into virtual discussion rooms for group work and more.

Depending upon a course’s needs, faculty may also incorporate other platforms into the online learning experience, including Zoom, Google apps and others. Faculty select additional and alternative learning platforms to best enhance course content and class structures.