Fall 2026 Beginning of Term Reminders

Friday, August 7, 2026

What's new?

  • NEW – Academic Integrity information session and office hours.
    • There will be an Academic Integrity workshop focused on Artificial Intelligence on Thursday, October 15 from 9:30am-11:00am in HH 373 and Teams. This session provides information about how to assess and report suspected misconduct, with particular emphasis on unauthorized use of generative artificial intelligence. We will review concrete examples, discuss tips, and answer instructor questions. The goal is to reduce barriers to reporting suspected misconduct. 
    • Richard and Emily will also be hosting weekly drop-in office hours for instructors and TAs who need support with Academic Integrity questions and processes. See the Academic Integrity webpage for more details.  
    • Wearable AI – e.g., smart glasses. We have seen some academic integrity cases involving smart glasses and other wearable AI devices. To help prevent unauthorized use during examinations, we recommend that instructors remind students before each exam that all electronic devices—including cell phones, smartwatches, smart glasses, and Bluetooth-enabled devices such as earbuds—must be turned off and stored away in accordance with UW examination regulations. For tips on how to spot smart glasses, see this guide. Under the examination regulations, instructors and exam proctors are authorized to ask to inspect a student’s eyeglasses. 
  • NEW – Supporting student participation in National Day of Truth and Reconciliation activities.
    • September 30 is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and Orange Shirt Day. This is an important day of remembrance, reflection, and learning.
    • The University encourages instructors to support student participation in the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation activities without academic consequences. Instructors are therefore asked, wherever possible, to avoid scheduling tests, examinations, presentations, assignment deadlines, or other mandatory academic activities on September 30. 
    • If a student expects to miss an assessment or other academic obligation in order to participate in National Day for Truth and Reconciliation activities, they should notify the instructor as early as possible, preferably at least two weeks in advance, and submit an extenuating circumstances declaration through the University's absence database. No supporting documentation is required. 
  • NEW – As stated in the Undergraduate Calendar, as of Fall 2026 Course Outlines must be available to all students in an undergraduate course by the first day of classes. 
  • NEW – Reminder: Review and update re-used course outline content.
    • Mandatory and boilerplate content in a copied course outline is transferred as plain text and is not automatically updated. Please ensure you are using the most current version of all mandatory and boilerplate content. 
    • Mandatory and boilerplate content includes information related to absences and associated processes. As some of these processes have changed, please review this content carefully and update it as needed. 
    • We make every effort to update mandatory and boilerplate content before distributing these term memos. If you published your course outline before receiving this memo, please log in and review the content. If an Update Policy button is displayed, updated content is available and should be applied to your outline. 
  • NEW – Policy 70 has been revised and in effect as of June 1, 2026. Please take a moment to review the changes which mostly affect Grievances and Reassessments. 
    • Our Grievances page has been updated and we’ve created a Reassessments page since all processes in Policy 70 now flow through the Associate Deans. 
  • NEW – Beginning September 1, 2026, all absence submissions will be made through the Absence Database. Our site about consideration for absences due to illness or other extenuating circumstances will be updated on September 1 to reflect the new process. Until September 1, 2026, students are to follow the instructions and procedures currently outlined on this page.
  • As of Spring 2026, Outline is now required in the Faculty of Arts. 
    • Shared in a faculty wide memo on January 23, 2026. 
    • Benefits of using Outline include easy access for our students and convenience for instructors (e.g., Required Statements are up-to-date; dates are automatically populated), and AODA compliance (e.g., accessibility through screen-reading technology).   
    • Ontario’s Bill 166 requires course outlines to list the cost of each learning material and indicate whether it's required or optional. This information needs to be reported termly to the government. Outline includes a dedicated field to capture this information for reporting. This information can be automatically extracted from Outline.    
    • Education technology – If your course requires students to use an educational technology tool, please check whether it is a centrally-supported tool. The tools on the centrally-supported list have been verified for compliance with the University’s privacy and security standards. If you are using a tool that is not on this list, please consider replacing it with one of the centrally-supported tools that has the functionality that you need.   
  • Removing students from a course before the add period ends.
    • As stated in the Undergraduate Calendar, students may be removed from a course for non-attendance. Before reaching out to the Registrar’s Office to remove a student, please contact the student to provide them with a chance to explain their absence. Students may have been absent for reasons that can or should be accommodated. 
  • Be mindful of drop deadlines when scheduling assessments in your course. 
    • We strongly recommend that you provide grades and feedback on one or more assessment(s) at least one week before the 50% tuition-refund deadline (Oct 23). This is especially important for courses with a large proportion of first-year students. At the very least grades and feedback on some key assessments should be provided well before the WD deadline (Nov 24). 
  • In-Person Final Exam Refresher from the Office of the Registrar (PDF). 

Reminders and Best Practices

  • Severe Weather: cancelled classes and campus closure – In the event of severe weather, classes may be cancelled. Campus may be open or closed during this time. See Weather Closing Guidelines for the full procedures. 
    • The announcement to close campus and/or to cancel classes will be made by 6:00 a.m. of the morning of the day of cancellation.  
    • Cancelled classes can be made up on “the next day on which classes are not scheduled (normally Saturday) at the same time as the missed class” (Weather Closing Guidelines).  
    • Instructors of in-person courses may not elect to replace the cancelled in-person class with a synchronous online delivery of the class during the period of closure. The instructor may replace the missed class with options including a recorded lecture made available to students for asynchronous review, or a relevant asynchronous learning activity.  
    • Any assessments that have a deadline within the period of closure should be extended at least to the same time on the next day the campus is open. This includes LEARN administered quizzes/tests/assignments. The instructor should reach out to students as soon as possible to notify them of the revised deadlines. 
  • We strongly encourage instructors to take into consideration student workload when designing their course assignments and activities. Please consult CEL’s website for tips on assignment design. We especially recommend using this tool to estimate and adjust student workload.

Additional Resources 

  • Generative AI Use resources 
  • Outline: Frequently Asked Questions 
  • Course materials should be available to your students online. Contact the library for help. 
  • W Store continues to provide course materials and services to the campus community. Instructors may place their course adoptions for the winter term online, using W Store’s online adoption system. 
  • Find info shared with students by the Registrar’s Office at the RO’s Mass Communications page. (Registrar’s Office, sign-in required) 
  • Student well-being: Our colleague Dr. Christine Logel (Social Development Studies) has developed a free, online course that provides evidence-based advice for designing course outlines that foster student belonging, equity, and growth. 
  • The WatSEE Instructor and Graduate Student Supervisor Toolbox is a great resource to apply a holistic, developmental lens to student experience in your courses. 

Schedule Highlights 

  • Classes: September 9 to December 8 
  • Reading Week: October 10-18
  • Thanksgiving Day: October 12
  • Pre-exam study day:  December 9 
  • Final exam period:  December 10-22
  • Final examination emergency days: December 20 and 23
  • Co-op work term: September 8 to December 23
  • Class enrolment – if students aren’t able to add your class on Quest, consult the Enrolment problems and course overrides page. 
  • New Religious Observance Self-Declaration Form in Quest 
  • Important Dates