This section of the handbook outlines various policies and procedures related to teaching and learning required by NIC. Please also refer to the New Faculty Orientation Manual provided by Human Resources for additional information.

MyNIC

A great place to start as new faculty is by logging into MyNIC (navigate to nic.bc.ca and click “log in to MyNIC” using your NIC credentials provided by human resources.

Once logged in you’ll find access to the most frequently used sites and resources that you’ll need at NIC, these include:

• Access to Brightspace
• NIC Employee resources
• NIC Email
• Access to SharePoint
• Many useful links to resources available at NIC

Keys/Nametags/Parking Passes

At NIC, each department has administrative supports who can help you with logistics such as obtaining keys and name tags. Please seek this person out in your area as soon as possible. If you are having issues with accessing courses or gaining access to SharePoint where department information is housed, they can support you here as well.

Who, What, Where

Starting out in a new facility like NIC is exciting but can also be overwhelming, especially when you are unfamiliar with who does what. This list may point you in the right direction for help with all logistical things related to NIC.

NIC Calendar and Important Dates

The NIC calendar is available online and forms the contract we have with students. The important date’s section defines deadlines that both instructors and student need to pay attention to regarding course management, class start and end dates, withdrawals, etc.

Find it here.

Communication and Availability

As an instructor at NIC and committed to student success, it is important that you inform students about how they can contact you for help, and what they can expect from you for email and phone response times. We suggest that you use NIC’s email for all communication and assignment submission responses with students. Whichever you choose, be sure to maintain consistency throughout the semester and aim for timely communication, which students value. Aim to check the course site regularly and ensure responses are timely. For example, you may set a specific day that you will check so students know to email before that day, or you could guarantee a 48 hour or 72 hours response time. Communicate to students what they can expect on your course outline.

Course Outlines and Office Hours

At NIC, policy 3-35 (course outline) states that a course outline (syllabus) must be provided to students for all courses that have an authorized course description (ACD). The course outline provides information about course content, evaluation, and course delivery. Office hours and ways to contact the instructor are also required on this document. Per Collective Agreement 9.6 – “faculty timetables will be posted with office hours indicated. In programs where students have constant access to faculty, the office hours will be by appointment only.” Prompt return of email messages from students is encouraged (48 hours is a good guideline). The course outline is posted on the course main page for student access. Course outline templates can be accessed through department administration or will be available for updating for any course that you acquire.

On the first day of class, this information can also be shared with students.

Class Lists

You can view your class list and waitlist online. Go to MY NIC front page and look for the faculty resources tab. There you will find a link to “enter grades” and once you click on this, search for your course and the class list will be available.

Cancelling Classes

There are a few conditions that may impact changes in classes from proceeding as usual.

These may include:

Instructor Unable to Teach (due to illness, emergency, etc.) 

In the event you are unable to teach one of your classes, please inform the Department Chair. Policy 3-03 indicates that students should be notified as soon as possible.

Severe Weather Conditions 

There are times when classes on campus will be closed due to severe weather conditions. In general, NIC’s policy is:

• Before a decision is made to cancel classes and/or activities due to snow or severe weather conditions, the Director of Facilities, or designate, will contact the local weather station, the RCMP, BC Transit and other weather and road information sources for reports.
• The decision to close the college, or a specific campus, is that of the VP Finance & College Services, VP Academic and VP Students & Community Engagement, in consultation with NIC facilities department and regional campus administrators, and will be communicated to the Director of Public Affairs and Communications.
• The Director of Public Affairs and Communications, or designate, will then implement NIC’s communication protocols to the broader internal and external communities.

Once a decision has been made to close a campus or the College, the Director of Public Affairs and Communications, or designate, posts a specific closure message on the College’s website, student and staff portal and places a closure message on all applicable college phone systems, and contacts all applicable primary media outlets in the region. Media outlets may include:

• Radio EAGLE 97.3 FM – Comox Valley, Campbell River, Port Alberni
• Radio THE PEAK 93.3 FM- Port Alberni
• Radio 98.9 JET FM – Comox Valley
• Radio 2DAY 99.7 – Campbell River
• Radio Coast 1240 AM – Port Hardy

If the weather event occurs overnight, decisions regarding campus or college-wide closures are made by 6:30 am and will be posted to the NIC homepage shortly after.

In the event of deteriorating weather conditions during the workday, the same decision-making and notification processes are followed. In addition, an email will be sent from the Director of Public Affairs and Communications, or designate, to all members of the college community impacted by a closure decision. Decisions regarding evening classes and activities will be made prior to 2 pm.

Information about college procedures in the event of adverse weather will be posted on the college website in order that students and members of the public are also made aware.

Weather varies significantly within the college region. While a campus or the college may be open, employees and students are expected to make their own decisions with respect to commuting given the weather and travel conditions in the areas in which they reside.

Should employees decide not to come to work, they are requested to contact their supervisor, Dean or Director to make alternate arrangements. Students who choose not to attend their classes should contact their instructors.

Procedures When Teaching Online

If you are new to teaching online or just require added support, then NIC has many resources available to help.

Review information about setting up your course through Brightspace on the Teach Anywhere website or put in a helpdesk ticket (see helpdesk) for Brightspace support and this will connect you with a CTLI member. Consider that it is helpful for students when a department follows the same course online setup. This provides familiarity when navigating the course and helps students become more efficient with study time. Check in with your department chair to determine if the program has a set way of setting up Brightspace with this in mind.

Assigning Grades

North Island College recognizes the need for students to receive transparent, timely and, where applicable, transferable grades for their course work. Policy 4-14 (Grade system), outlines the grade system used at NIC.

It is important to understand which letter grade scale is being used in your area. A grade is the measure of a student’s achievement in a course and is indicated on the transcript upon course completion.

Final grades are assigned based on one of three grade scales:

• Letter Grade Scale 1: grades are assigned from A+ to D and F. Each letter grade has a corresponding percentage range that is reported on the back of student transcripts and on the NIC website. A student who does not complete the required course work and has not formally withdrawn from the course by the official withdrawal date will be assigned Did Not Complete (DNC) grade. DNC constitutes a failing grade.
• Letter Grade Scale 2: grades are assigned from A+ to C and F. Each letter grade has a corresponding percentage range that is reported on the back of student transcripts and on the NIC website. A student who does not complete the required course work and has not formally withdrawn from the course by the official withdrawal date will be assigned a DNC grade. DNC constitutes a failing grade.
• Pass/Fail Grade Scale: grades are assigned as either P (pass) or F (fail) based on learning outcomes established before the start of a course and communicated to students at the start of each course.

Incomplete Grades (INC)

• INC: The student is unable to complete a course in the scheduled time due to exceptional circumstances. INC is a temporary standing applied to a course for a specified period reflected by a specified extended end date. Dean/director approval is required for this status. INC is a temporary standing applied for a specified period with a specified extended end date. The extended end date will normally be no more than three (3) months past the regularly scheduled course end date. Instructors will submit a Grade Change Form with the final grade to the Student Records Office by the extended end date. If the Grade Change Form is not received by the extended end date, a grade of DNC is entered on the transcript.
• W: The student formally withdraws from the course by the designated withdrawal date. The information regarding withdrawal dates can be found in Key Dates on the NIC website.

Grade Reporting

Semester grades or other standings, e.g., INC or W, will be entered into the student record system within 7 calendar days after the students has written the final exam or if there is no exam, within 7 calendar days of the last classes of the course.

Student Appeals

Students may appeal “academic and non – academic decisions that do not involve suspension” (see – policy 3-30).

Student Attendance

At Nic, value is placed on the fact that students are adult learners and want to learn. That said, there is no formal attendance policy in place regarding this topic. However, procedures regarding poor attendance are in place across the college. Try to engage with your department chair and faculty peers about strategies adopted in your program/area. Here are some examples of how poor attendance is managed in some areas at NIC:

Math/Science – Lab component course outline states “A student who does not complete the activities or assignments for three or more labs will not be permitted to pass the course; if this occurs due to illness, the student may be required to take a medical withdrawal.”

Nursing – Attendance is required in all practice courses. Students that miss more than 10% of a practice course may be at risk of not successfully completing the course.

Trades – Adhere to ITA credits and the requirements of completion of hours. If a student misses too many hours, ITA Accreditation is at risk.

Academic Integrity/Personal and Professional Conuct

“North Island College (NIC) is a vibrant community involved in teaching, learning, applied research, and other educational activities. The college is committed to fostering a culture of integrity, mutual respect, and responsible behaviors to provide a welcoming, safe, and inclusive environment for all” (policy 3-06).

“Responsible behaviors” extend outside of the classroom and may include field trips, practicums, study abroad, as examples.

There are many helpful ways that faculty can support students to avoid academic misconduct concerns. If you are working with international students for example, there may be misunderstandings regarding cultural differences in these matters. Find some useful tips here.

Provide Examples of Proper Citation 

Give students examples of how and when they should credit the work of others in their writing. This way, they will have concrete cases to which they can refer when questions arise.

Create Original Assignments 

The more unusual an assignment is (e.g., taking a different perspective on a problem, question, or reading), the less likely students will be able to find something (from the Internet or their peers) to submit as their own work. In addition, an assignment that has multiple parts may reduce the likelihood of plagiarism.

Require Rough Drafts 

Adding milestones to a written assignment where students must submit preliminary drafts of their work discourages them from the prospects of plagiarizing. It also helps them spread a larger writing task over a longer period, so students are not as likely to be in the situation where they are sorely tempted to take the easy way out of the assignment.

Inform Students about Support Services (Library and Learning Commons)  

NIC’s library houses a wealth of if information to support students, whether it be with math, writing skills, supporting students to fid peer tutors and more. This link takes you directly to the library front page: https://library.nic.bc.ca/home

Learn Anywhere –  https://learnanywhere.opened.ca/ is a resource for college students that houses information relating to all matters of teaching and learning. Students may be directed here to review core values which may be helpful to guide their actions regarding academic honesty.

To encourage students to expand their understanding of academic integrity and honesty, NIC offers a Student Academic Integrity Matters tutorial course, available for students to enroll in in the Discover section of Brightspace, that instructors can encourage students to take.

Faculty are also encouraged to complete the Faculty Academic Integrity tutorial to ensure consistency across NIC. The module can be found in the Discover section of Brightspace.

Professional Development

Professional development activities can support faculty to develop and maintain quality student learning at North Island College. Professional development funding is available to support activities that can be reasonably expected to increase the effectiveness, efficiency, or career goals of an employee in the short or long term. It is recognized that professional development is both an individual and shared responsibility. The professional development request must refer specifically to the applicant’s current responsibilities and future expectations within the College, as well as fitting within departmental and College goals. For more information on Professional Development please review the Nic/Nicfa Professional Development Handbook as well as the Human Resources Professional Development for Faculty page.

Campus and Community Supports for Students

Many students arrive at NIC unfamiliar with the post-secondary environment and unprepared for the demands of university level courses. These students can quickly become overwhelmed and fall behind, struggling to understand expectations and manage their own learning. At NIC, there are many supports available to guide instructors on how best to navigate situations and who to turn to for additional support should they be required.

When logged into MyNIC, you’ll find Resources for supporting students (in need).

Inside this card is a link to NIC campus resources.

At NIC, a process called Early Assist exists. This is an online referral for NIC faculty and staff to identify students who may be facing personal/academic challenges. Faculty can fast track students using this process to support student to receive the help and support needed in a quick and easy way.  Students can also self-refer to early assist if they prefer.