Tuesday, November 29, 2022

It's Giving Tuesday - let the fun begin

A message from the Office of Advancement.

All the action takes place on Waterloo’s Giving Tuesday website, where you can make your gift, see who else made a gift, track the progress of each challenge, and see which challenges have received the most donations — and the most donors. Join the celebration!

Support co-op champions on Giving Tuesday

A message from Co-operative and Experiential Education (CEE).

Today is Giving Tuesday!  

Giving Tuesday is a global movement where people can support their communities. This year for Co-op and Experiential Education (CEE) team the focus is creating more donor funded co-op jobs in the non-profit sector. Co-op for Community is one of several funds at the University of Waterloo. 

The Co-op for Community program supports students directly and creates meaningful co-op jobs for Waterloo students from all disciplines at non-profits who can’t afford to hire talent otherwise. 

Meet our challenge champions:  

• Mary-Ellen Cullen and Steve Menich are matching donations up to $5,000 going towards the Co-op for Community fund.  
• Scott and Linda Davis have committed $5,000, which will be unlocked once 70 individuals donate to the fund.  

We invite all Waterloo faculty, alumni, staff, and retirees to support Giving Tuesday by donating to Co-op for Community today to make the most out of your contributions. 

Follow along with our challenge champions the Davises and the Menichs.

International Day of Persons with Disabilities 2022 is on December 3

Thirty years ago, the United Nations proclaimed December 3 as International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD) “to promote an understanding of disability issues and mobilize support for the dignity, rights and well-being of persons with disabilities.”

The theme of this year’s IDPD is Transformative solutions for inclusive development: the role of innovation in fuelling an accessible and equitable world. At the University of Waterloo, our commitment to advancing an accessible and equitable world is a core part of our vision that guides our Strategic Plan. The Waterloo community is demonstrating this commitment through a variety of initiatives. For example, to increase inclusivity of our professional communications, Waterloo Communications has developed an Inclusive Communications Guide. To improve the accessibility of our built environment, the University of Waterloo has participated Rick Hansen Foundation accessibility ratings of 9 buildings, 7 of which have received accessibility certification.  At the W Store, clear window masks are available for purchase to facilitate communication while masking.

This year, Waterloo Athletics and Recreation is honouring the International Day of Persons with Disability with a seated volleyball event where participants will have the opportunity to watch an exhibition game and try out the sport. Staff, students, and faculty are invited to watch a seated volleyball exhibition game and try out this sport alongside Jim Rush, vice-president academic and provost and other members of the University leadership team. To register for this event, visit Seated Volleyball Registration.

Several support units have developed accessibility resources for employees, including:

• Guidelines for Hosting Accessible Virtual Meetings (Centre for Extended Learning);
• Accessibility Tools (Web Resources);
• Universal Design for Learning online module (Library);
• Accessibility Checklist for MS Word  (Centre for Teaching Excellence);
• Accessibility Checklist for MS PowerPoint (Centre for Teaching Excellence); and
• Accessibility Checklist for Face-to-Face Presentations (Centre for Teaching Excellence).

Accessibility at Waterloo’s Guides and Resources lists additional accessibility resources.

These are few of the many ways in which the University of Waterloo seeks to improve accessibility and inclusivity for persons with disabilities. Waterloo commits to seeking feedback and consulting with persons with disabilities on campus-wide initiatives that impact the disability community. The Accessibility Advisory Panel is a resource to the University on issues related to accessibility. While invitations are open to all active Waterloo students, staff, and faculty, recruitment for panelists will focus on individuals with lived experience. 

Learn more about the International Day of Persons with Disabilities at Waterloo and about events taking place in our region and beyond.

If you have questions about accessibility, please contact aoda@uwaterloo.ca.

Associate Vice-President, Academic provides fall update

A message from the Office of the Associate Vice-President, Academic.

The following updates highlight initiatives currently underway that impact the work of Waterloo instructors, including opportunities to provide input and more. Read more about:

• the Teaching Innovation Incubator project;
• the Learning Management system Review;
• the Credentials Framework project team;
• Teaching Assessment Processes;
• Reconfiguration of projection screens in RO e-classrooms;
• the Educational Technologies hub; and
• the Digital Learning Strategy project.

Engagement opportunities

Teaching Innovation Incubator project

The Teaching Innovation Incubator (TII) project team will be wrapping up its consultations with faculty, staff, students, and campus leadership before the end of the year. Next steps include identifying recommendations informing the development of a teaching incubator at Waterloo.

Learning Management System (LMS) Review

Several opportunities to learn more about this project and provide feedback are scheduled to take place throughout the Fall 2022 term, including:

• Stakeholder consultations: Focus group sessions with faculty and students are being held this month. Following these consultations, the campus survey data and focus group data will be summarized to form a recommendation for our next steps for our central learning management system.. Please contact Nathan Lee, project manager, if you would like the opportunity to participate: n4lee@uwaterloo.ca.
• Project web page: The LMS Review project page is available for review. 

Credentials Framework project team

The Credentials Framework project team is tasked with considering whether Waterloo’s current offering of credentials, both credit and non-credit, are the right ones for the future of the University. Are there credentials that we should be offering to mid-career professionals who are not interested or able to register for full degree programs? Currently our efforts in this space are largely “non-credit.” Should there be a way to “stack” these non-credit accomplishments into progress towards a more traditional credential (such as a professional Master’s degree)? Are there things that we should recognize that students are or might do that we don’t currently recognize on transcripts? If the answers are “yes” to any of these questions, then how should these new credentials be approved in ways that are not too cumbersome but that still ensure that they are of sufficient quality to deserve the University of Waterloo name attached to them?

The project team will be reaching out for input beginning in December 2022. While the group will be open to receiving written feedback from anyone, sharing your ideas with your Chair or Associate Chair will help ensure that they your thinking is duly considered.

Updates

Teaching Assessment Processes (TAP)

Learning about changes to Waterloo’s teaching assessment processes for the first time? Read The path to here: 2014-2022 on the Teaching Assessment Processes website.

With the winter 2022 launch of the new Student Course Perception (SCP) survey, the TAP office has been tasked with regularly reviewing results to determine how well it performs, and in particular to consider whether there are important differences in results depending on instructor characteristics irrelevant to teaching performance. Analysis of data from winter 2022 SCP data looked at mean differences in ratings assigned by students to male and female instructors and found that differences in scores (with a very small number of exceptions) were not statistically significant (p>.05). Moreover, the difference was close to 0 in almost all cases explored. These results therefore find no evidence of gender bias endemic to the instrument itself. While this is good news, this of course does not mean that sexism does not exist, nor does it mean that it does not affect SCP scores—especially as this is just a one-term study. As noted, the TAP office will continue to examine SCP results in future terms. A research report presenting the winter 2022 results will be posted on the TAP office website soon. Note: gender-related data are gathered through Human Resources.

The TAP office remains committed to analyzing and monitoring SCP results with respect to race, but a low response rate for Waterloo’s Equity Survey (together with the already small number of faculty members in some racialized groups) means that we will need more than one term’s worth of data to gather meaningful results. This analysis will be repeated as needed, in addition to the ongoing collection of data that will eventually illustrate multi-year trends. Processes and survey items will be adjusted where necessary. 

Monitoring bias is only one part of the TAP office’s commitment to making teaching assessment a worthwhile, consistent, and fair exercise. View a summary of the TAP office’s current activities, including supporting the University’s work towards equity, supporting and consulting with Faculties, ongoing research and development, and occasionally supporting similar work at other U15 universities.  

As always, please contact Sonya Buffone, TAP Director (sonya.buffone@uwaterloo.ca) or Kathy Becker, Specialist, Teaching Assessment Processes (kathy.becker@uwaterloo.ca) if you have questions or concerns.

Reconfiguration of projection screens in Registar's Office e-classrooms

Early this term, ITMS received feedback that some instructors had were surprised that e-classrooms had not been reconfigured back to the way they were pre-pandemic, with multiple screens and projectors available in the larger classrooms. A decision was made during the first week of class to proceed with the reconfiguration. Following reading week, M3 1006 has two new projectors installed and all projectors reactivated. Premium plus features (audience mics and audience camera) still require additional time to complete. STC 1012 now has the rear projectors activated. The two side projectors have not been working since the return to class, so replacements have been ordered. Installations and reprogramming will be scheduled according to room availability once the projectors are received. ITMS appreciates your continued patience as we work around supply chain delays and room availability. Faculty and staff who may have concerns are invited to contact ITMS: Marcel David, mdavid@uwaterloo.ca or Pam Fluttert, fluttert@uwaterloo.ca.

Educational Technology (EdTech) Hub website now available

The Educational Technology (EdTech) Hub is now available. The Hub is a new website that pulls together information on Waterloo’s centrally supported EdTech tools – i.e., digital technology tools used to deliver and facilitate learning or learning activities, or to aid in the creation and dissemination of content. While the site is not an exhaustive list of EdTech tools, it is a repository of  centrally supported tools (i.e., tools for which there is an institutional agreement  and/or recognized institutional responsibility for aspects of its use), and it will continue to grow. Please visit this site for regular news updates regarding EdTech and classroom technology and projects.

Digital Learning Strategy (DLS) project team

Consultations informing the development of recommendations for a Digital Learning Strategy are nearly complete. Thank you to stakeholders – including faculty, staff, students, and campus leadership – for sharing your ideas with the DLS project team. The team is in the process of identifying final recommendations. A report will be shared with the campus community.

Would you like to do a non-academic survey? (Re)-Introducing Policy 55

A message from the Survey Advisory Committee.

If you are planning a survey for Waterloo students or employees that will be used to plan and evaluate initiatives, programs and services (i.e., a non-academic survey), contact  IAP for review to ensure compliance with Policy 55.

What is Policy 55?

Policy 55 governs all surveys of students and employees that will be used to plan and evaluate initiatives, programs and services (“Non-Academic Surveys with University Populations”) at the University of Waterloo. It is a “G” policy and can be found on the Secretariat’s website. 

The objective of the policy is to ensure effective coordination of surveys and maximize their benefits at Waterloo. The Survey Advisory Committee (SAC) is responsible for implementing the policy, ensuring survey quality and optimal use, timing and coordination as well as protection of privacy and confidentiality.

What does Policy 55 mean for me?

Policy 55 applies to all non-academic surveys that may be sent out to more than 500 potential participants. Some examples of non-academic surveys include:

• internal surveys administered to the University community;
• external surveys that involve University students, staff, alumni or faculty.

The Survey Advisory Committee also reviews the surveys that:

• Collect sensitive or personal information (e.g., demographic information such as gender or racial identity);
• Pose a substantial burden to complete (i.e., time or effort required to complete survey);
• Raise privacy concerns due to potentially identifiable data (e.g., name, email, or combinations of data which could point to an individual such as program and year of graduation in a small program).

See the survey checklist for more information.

What is the non-academic survey review process?

The SAC has delegated coordination of survey reviews to Institutional Analysis & Planning (IAP). You can submit your survey for review using the survey review form on IAP’s website.

Where can I find more help and resources?

You can find information about designing and administering a survey on IAP’s institutional surveys webpage. It includes:

• A summary of institutional surveys;
• A survey administration process flowchart;
• A survey toolkit;
• A survey calendar;
• A survey review form; and
• Links to additional resources.

Qualtrics is a survey administration platform for online surveys that is available to campus users through an enterprise license. 

Any questions about the policy, or non-academic surveys in general, can be directed to analysis@uwaterloo.ca.