First-time Instructors

All UWaterloo employees are required to complete certain mandatory training courses:

• SO1001 Employee safety orientation
• SO1081 Workplace violence awareness
• SO2017 WHMIS 2015
• AODA accessible customer service training

Supervisors at UWaterloo are also required to complete SO1100 Supervisor Safety Awareness.

Research ethics training is required for UWaterloo researchers. Please see the Research website for information on research ethics.

Workshops, professional development, and other training courses are available to UWaterloo staff and faculty:

• Events, programs, and workshops offered through the Centre for Teaching Excellence (CTE)
• Learning and development programs offered through Organizational Human Development (OHD)
• Web based training on LinkedIn Learning
• On-campus professional development opportunities

Information about planning courses and assignments can be found on the CTE website.

Information about assessing students and developing learning activities can be found on the CTE website.

See the current Undergraduate Studies Academic Calendar for academic regulations related to assignments, tests, and final exams.

Students registered with AccessAbility Services may receive accommodations throughout the term for assignments, tests, and final examinations.

The use of OUTLINE is a convenient tool to create and archive course syllabi, ensuring that instructors have all the updated Senate endorsed requirements. OUTLINE is placed behind a WatIAM login, and instructors can also provide a link in LEARN to syllabus, so students have access to the latest version in case of updates.

Textbook orders may be submitted on the Bookstore website. Courseware (course notes, lab manuals, etc.) is a course notes package that can be prepared as an alternative to a textbook.

It is advisable to place copies of course materials on reserve at the Library. Information about course reserves can be found on the Library website. Course reserves are accessible to students at no charge.

Waterloo LEARN is the University's web-based learning management system, where instructors and teaching assistants can manage course content, post assignments, create virtual dropboxes, manage grades and create discussion forums for students.

The Waterloo LEARN Help webpage is an excellent resource for anyone who is new to using the LEARN system. Tips for improving your LEARN site can be found on the CTE website. The CTE offers workshops on how to use LEARN. The CTE Liaison can provide individualized instruction upon request.

Online service interruptions

In the case that there is a service outage to the online content of four hours or more, instructors may follow the University’s protocol for service disruption in the online learning environment. 

A teaching assistant (TA) contract should be developed to ensure that TAs understand their hours (typically 160 hours per term), start/end dates, responsibilities and expectations. Questions that a TA should ask are outlined on the CTE website. 

If you are interested in doing a TA performance evaluation, please contact the respective Teaching Fellow in your department/school for forms and instructions.

From time to time, you may require use of a room outside of the assigned time for your course. 

Bookings can be made by emailing the point of contact on the Bookable Spaces for the Faculty of Science page. Please be sure to include the date, time and room requested in the email along with any relevant information.  All room bookings are subject to approval by the point of contact. Please note some bookings, including classrooms, may have restrictions on usage.

To book Registrar controlled rooms not listed below, such as basement classrooms in STC, contact Scheduling for all course related events and cstrbook@uwaterloo.ca for all other event inquiries.