New Faculty Teaching Newsletter # 1 (August 10, 2009)
In order to use the first two sites, you will need to obtain a Calnet ID. If you have not already received one through your department, you can find more information at the Calnet website.
1. bSpace
bSpace, the Berkeley campus's Learning Management System, will be one of the most important tools available to you, You can post syllabi and course materials, manage class discussions, communicate with your students, and track their grades in bSpace. In addition, you can view the photos of those of your students who have agreed to have them posted.
2. Bear Facts
Through Bear Facts, you can check enrollment and enter your grades. (Faculty User's Manual for E-Grades.)
3. The Faculty Guide to Campus Life
We strongly encourage you to look at the Faculty Guide for answers to questions on all aspects of life at Berkeley, from teaching and research to recreation and family life. The search function works quite well.
4. The Office of Educational Development
On our webpage you will find lots of helpful material on many aspects of teaching. This should be your home away from home, your Oxford Unabridged Dictionary of Teaching, your One Phone Call from Jail, your Paternoster of Pedagogy. Add it to your "faves" list.
5. The Letters and Science Faculty Help Desk
While geared, of course, to faculty in L & S, this online helpdesk nonetheless has lots of information applicable to all faculty, and like the Faculty Guide, has a good search function.
6. The GSI Teaching and Resource Center
A great resource for GSIs, but also for faculty who want to know how to best work with GSIs.
7. Library Information for Faculty and Instructors
The Library offers a great deal of help for both your research and teaching, including various kinds of support for research assignments you give. These are wonderful, helpful services.
Important Berkeley Trivia: Classes actually start 10 minutes after the listed time: e.g., a 10 am class begins at 10:10 am, and a 2:30 pm class begins at 2:40 pm. This is called "Berkeley time." It means that a one-hour class is in fact 50 minutes long.
We're here to help in any way we can. Email Steve Tollefson if you're stumped, curious, confused, befuddled, bewildered. If you're merely bemused, you're on your own.