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The sections below contain valuable resources, links, and information pertaining to course instruction and other academic needs for all faculty members and instructors of the Department of Political Science.
Academic Integrity Office: https://academicintegrity.ucsd.edu/
If you’re aware of cheating (academic misconduct or integrity violations) at UCSD, it is your ethical obligation to speak out against academic dishonesty.
If you suspect cheating in one of your classes, Senate policy requires that you report the suspicion to the AI Office:
Additional Resources:
Many classrooms are equipped with self-serve units containing computer projector, DVD/CD/VCR, and MP3 player/iPod. Instructors can confirm the features available in their classroom using the Classroom Attributes database. Media Services also provides a wide array of audio/visual services and equipment for use in the classroom. The Media Teaching Lab helps with integrating video into course assignments. The department is also able to lend a projector, laptop, or conference phone to departmental faculty and graduate students. Reservations for such media equipment is required and must be made with as much advance notice as possible.
Please contact TBD for details regarding the use of the department's A/V equipment.
UC San Diego has an abundance of resources for students (undergraduate and graduate), staff, and faculty.
The Office for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion has an entire page, and related banners, that link directly to vital resources and campus communities.
Please take time to review and share out relevant resources.
Ed Tech - https://edtech.ucsd.edu/ - is hosting regular drop-in workshops about Canvas and feeling supported in the transition process. They are also open to any invites to be at any relevant meetings or TA/IA training sessions.
Faculty, lecturers, and instructors can also explore their practice course in Canvas, and email canvas@ucsd.edu with any questions or concerns.
Instructor Resources - The Digital Learning staff provides support and resources for online teaching and learning through evidence-based practices and iterative design processes. The resources, templates, and articles that are linked provide strategies and guidelines for online and hybrid courses and programs at UC San Diego.
Education Continuity Tools and Resources - In the event that on-campus instruction is partially or fully disrupted, your ability to continue your class in the manner that you've planned may be impacted. The linked guide helps you prepare alternatives for these situations in order to minimize loss of learning time and lessen the impact of a disruption.
TritonEd to Canvas Migration Comparison - Visual aid showing the feature comparison between TritonEd and Canvas
Start-of-Term/Course Launch Checklist - In preparation for the start of the term, make use of the Canvas start-of-term checklist to get your course up and running. This checklist will guide you through what is required to ensure student access, content and grade visibility, and an eGrades-ready gradebook. For your reference, all checklist items have an accompanying visual aid.
End-of-Term Checklist - As you head into finals, make use of the Canvas end-of-term checklist to close out your course. This checklist will guide you through what is required to ensure accurate grades within Canvas, while also preparing your gradebook for export to eGrades. For your reference, each checklist item has an accompanying visual aid.
Instructional Tools on Canvas - Most of the third party apps available in TritonEd (Blackboard) are now available in the Canvas environment. These tools include apps such as Turnitin, Gradescope, and iClicker.
Grades in Canvas - The following guides will show you how to complete common grading and gradebook-related tasks in Canvas. If you need to complete a task that is not covered there, please email canvas@ucsd.edu for support.
CAPE (Course & Professor Evaluation) is a campus service that surveys undergraduate students at the end of every quarter and publishes its findings. Students are sent an e-mail with a link to the evaluation for each class in which they are enrolled. The evaluations are available for students to complete starting at the beginning of Week 9 until the start of the first final.
The evaluation summaries are available on the CAPE website: http://www.cape.ucsd.edu/
Professors and Course Instructors:
To access your CAPE evaluation through the link above, you would fill out the section asking for your name (Last, First) and course number (POLI XXX).
Please note the following:
Have questions or comments? Email CAPE at cape@ucsd.edu.
Have trouble with evaluations and comments? Email tech support at cape-techsupport@ucsd.edu.
Class rosters can be viewed and downloaded directly from Blink.
A Single Sign-On (SSO) user ID and password are required. Those using an SSO resource for the first time will need to first self-register using their UCSD email address. Those requiring a UCSD email address or with access problems should contact Jeff Fritsch.
Be sure to save downloaded rosters as .xls files to view in Excel.
Instructors who are unable to sign on to Blink should contact Joanna Peralta for a roster until their problem is resolved. Requests will only be honored if they are sent from your UCSD email address and include the 6 digit course ID (available from the Schedule of Classes).
Information For Faculty:
Contact Course Reserves: reserves@ucsd.edu, (858) 534-1212
How do I put an item on reserve for my class?
Log into Course Reserves with your Active Directory (AD) login. Select the course you want to work on, and then click on Add Reserves Items from the side menu. You will then be able to add items in any format (books, articles, video, etc.).
View the Faculty User Guide for Course Reserves
Quick videos tutorials of the basics can be found here.
The Department of Political Science continues to add courses to our curriculum on an annual basis to support faculty research and expertise, educational advancement of the profession, and to prepare our undergraduate and graduate students in the field of political science post-graduation.
Faculty must contact Student Affairs Manager, Ariane Parkes, and fill out the form (linked below) AT LEAST two quarters before they want to teach the course. Otherwise there is no guarantee that the course will be approved and on the schedule in time.
If you wish to create a new undergraduate or a graduate course, please complete a brief survey at the following link: https://ucsdsocialsciences.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_eMbpejExwd5eEOF
You will need to provide the following:
Ariane Parkes oversees the preparation and submission of the course approval form. The form must be approved by the chair of our department and submitted to the Registrar, for final review by the Academic Senate.
Faculty will be asked to submit their scheduling preferences for teaching times to the Department’s Student Affairs Manager, Ariane Parkes, for all classes.
Instructor preference, room availability, predicted enrollments, and conflicts in curriculum all factor into the final schedule. Instructors will be notified of class time and room well in advance of the beginning of the quarter and can confirm this information themselves online.
Ariane can also assist you with reservations for additional classrooms for review sessions, presentations, or other special needs.
One-time or non-course room reservations should be submitted to Joanna Peralta, Student Services Coordinator, at joperalt@ucsd.edu
The department does not provide copy services. You may create copies of midterms, finals, etc. in one of the following ways:
Students with course registration, enrollment, and waitlist questions should be referred to the academic advising team in the Department, or the Virtual Advising Center as soon as possible.
Faculty cannot provide academic advising information to students.
Example of a signed Buckley Waiver for exams. Students are not required to sign the waiver.
Blue Books / Scantron Forms are not provided by the Department.
Finals:
Midterms:
Retention of Final Exams:
Alternative Final Examinations
Instructors who agree to allow a student to sit for an alternative examination need to proctor. An example of a situation for alternative examination would include a student needing to sit for a final examination to replace an existing Incomplete with a final course grade. Staff will not - and cannot - serve as proctors.
Staff will assist with reserving a room; the instructor (not the student) should contact Joanna Peralta to check on the availability of Political Science conference rooms for the time/date needed for the student(s). Students who arrive to the department and indicate they are there for an exam will be re-directed to their instructor with whom the arrangements were made for the alternative exam.
For more information, please review the UCSD Academic Senate EPC Policy on Examinations.
Grading and assessing students' work is an integral part of educational feedback and learning. Faculty are required to post their grading system and policies on their course syllabi in order to provide clarity to students and to reduce any issues in the future.
Below is information about the most common questions received from faculty, graduate students, and instructors grading grades and the grading process.
Grade Changes
Electronic Grades (eGrades)
Incomplete Grade
eGrades Access
All instructors and their authorized graders must have Single Sign-On Access in order to use eGrades. Self-Registration for Single Sign-On is available here.
eGrades Tutorial
A full eGrades tutorial is available on Blink here in PDF.
Instructor of Record (IR) is:
Authorized Graders (AG) are:
Grades are due by 11:59pm via eGrades, on the Tuesday following final exam week.
For all information on eGrades, please visit the site here or contact them via email.
Resources: Academic Senate Grading Policy, UCSD Grading System, AIC Suggested Regrading Policy.
The Latinx/Chicanx Academic Excellence Initiative at UC San Diego is designed to ensure that California’s fastest growing student population feels welcome, supported, and able to thrive at UC San Diego.
The initiative's mission: "We are committed to actively transforming UC San Diego into a student-centered university for the success of current and future Latinx/Chicanx students, families and communities. We will do this through six core values that advance equity, build community, and ensure student success."
Faculty can learn more about the goals and core values of Latinx/Chicanx Academic Excellence Initiative.
The PDF link below includes recommednations on how fauclty can help support students who identify as Latinx/Chicanx and advance the Latinx/Chicanx Academic Excellence Initiative
Latinx/Chicanx Academic Excellence Initiative Faculty Resource
Letters of recommendation contain detailed information about the student who is the subject of the letter. This may include such information as grades on exams and other class assignments, grades earned from other faculty in the Department, GPA in the major, grades in related departments, standardized test scores, among other information.
UCSD's Career Services Center has a document that can help you write letters of recommendation.
To stay within FERPA guidelines, if a student asks a professor or instructor in the Department to write a letter of recommendation for them, they must agree to the following statement within an email:
“I consent to the release of personal and educational information about me in the letter of recommendation that I have requested from you. This authorization allows you to release all information about me, within the University’s possession, to [fill in details (e.g., any other educational institution, any centralized application processing services (list by name if possible), both, etc.]. This authorization shall remain valid unless and until it is rescinded in writing.”
Faculty and section teaching assistants are required to hold a minimum of two office hours per week during teaching quarters and should include this information on their syllabus and/or course websites.
Office hours and locations should be emailed to Joanna Peralta no later than the first week of classes for posting on the department website and in the main office.
In order for our department to remain in compliance with the regulations governing the accommodations for students with disabilities, please ask any student who indicates they are eligible for accommodations for their disability to present their certification to you. In addition, please ask them to bring that to the department in order that staff is made aware of exactly what accommodations we are required to provide.
The Department OSD liaison is Joanna Peralta. The Undergraduate Advisor, Natalie Ikker, serves as back up.
Due to the number of factors involved in securing these accommodations, it is helpful for students to visit the department early in the quarter. Please ask students to see us as soon as possible, and, let us know of any communication you have with a student with OSD needs.
A sample statement regarding OSD accommodations to include on course syllabi can be found here.
Please check this link for all of the policies and procedures governing faculty compliance.
Maureen Feeley has created a Remote Teaching Guide via Google Docs for all faculty, instructors, and TAs in the Department of Political Science.
This is a "living document" in that it is updated as needed by contributors.
You will be able to request access if needed.
To send an e-mail message to a class, please use the Official Student Messaging System.
The following PDF link includes the names, contact information, and a brief description of campus resources at UCSD that faculty can utilize and refer student to when they are in distress or displaying disruptive (to you, themselves, or their peers) behavior.
All faculty are expected to provide a syllabus for each of their courses.
1) Inclusive Classroom Statement:
The TAs and I are fully committed to creating a learning environment that supports diversity of thought, perspectives, experiences, and identities. We urge each of you to contribute your unique perspectives to discussions of course questions, themes, and materials so that we can learn from them, and from each other. If you should ever feel excluded, or unable to fully participate in class for any reason, please let me know, or you may also submit anonymous written feedback to our Undergraduate Advisor, Natalie Ikker (nbikker@ucsd.edu). Please simply place your written feedback in an envelope with the course name and number, and bring to the front desk of the Political Science Department, addressed to Natalie. Natalie will bring these comments to my attention. Additional resources to support equity, diversity, and inclusion in our classroom, and beyond, may be found here: Office of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion:
858.822.3542 | diversity@ucsd.edu | https://diversity.ucsd.edu/
https://students.ucsd.edu/student-life/diversity/index.html
https://regents.universityofcalifornia.edu/governance/policies/4400.html
2) Resources to Support Student Learning
3) Academic Accommodations and the Office for Students with Disabilities
Students requesting accommodations for this course due to a disability must provide a current Authorization for Accommodation (AFA) letter issued by the Office for Students with Disabilities (https://osd.ucsd.edu/). Students are required to discuss accommodation arrangements with instructors and OSD liaisons in the department well in advance of any exams or assignments. The OSD Liaison for the Department of Political Science is Joanna Peralta; please connect with her via the Virtual Advising Center as soon as possible.
4) Academic Advising
Students who have academic advising questions related to the Political Science major, should contact the department's Undergraduate Advisor, Natalie Ikker, via the Virtual Advising Center. Academic advising questions often include (but are not limited to): add/drop deadlines, course enrollment policies, planning major and minor requirements, quarter-by-quarter plans, department petitions and paperwork, and referrals to campus and student support services.
5) Additional resources to support equity, diversity, and inclusion in our classroom, and beyond:
Office of Equity, Diversity, and InclusionOffice for the Prevention of Harassment and Discrimination
UCSD Office of the Ombuds
https://ombuds.ucsd.edu/
To reach a Confidential Ombudsperson, please call 858-534-0777.
6) UCSD Academic Regulations and Policies
Academic Integrity: Each student is expected to abide by UCSD’s policy on Integrity of Scholarship (https://senate.ucsd.edu/Operating-Procedures/Senate-Manual/Appendices/2) and to excel with integrity in our course (https://academicintegrity.ucsd.edu/excel-integrity/index.html).
7) UCSD’s Principles of Community: To foster the best possible working and learning environment, UC San Diego strives to maintain a climate of fairness, cooperation, and professionalism. These principles of community are vital to the success of the University and the well being of its constituents. UC San Diego faculty, staff, and students are expected to practice these basic principles as individuals and in groups. The Principles of Community (https://ucsd.edu/about/principles.html) and the Student Code of Conduct(https://students.ucsd.edu/_files/student-conduct/ucsandiego-student-conduct-code_interim-revisions1-16-18.pdf) support equity, diversity, and inclusion in our classroom.
The department also encourages that instructors utilize the university's turnitin.com. To conserve resources, faculty are encouraged to post syllabi online and distribute the web address to students by email (using the Class List on Blink) or on the first day of class. If hard copies are required, faculty can use department copy machines or submit their copy order online to Imprints: PrintConnection. All faculty should also email a copy of their syllabus to Joanna Peralta to be posted at: http://courses.ucsd.edu/
In 2015, UC San Diego established the Teaching + Learning Commons to advance and improve how we teach and learn. Today, a suite of services and programs are in place to develop better instructors and more engaged learners. Our campus is committed to delivering an educational experience that prepares students who are capable of solving problems, leading, and innovating in a diverse and interconnected world.
The Teaching + Learning Commons is located on the first level of Geisel Library.
The Teaching + Learning Commons offers programs specifically for current faculty, future faculty (Teaching Assistants, Instructional Assistants, Graduate Students, Postdocs), and international instructors (Graduate Students Whose Native Language is Not English).
A faculty brochure and additional teaching resources and are also available.
Resources for Remote Teaching:
Faculty will be asked for textbook preferences prior to the start of the quarter via VERBALINK.
For faculty who do not submit their information by appropriate deadlines, the Bookstore cannot guarantee that books will be on the shelves by the start of classes. If your desk copies have not been received by beginning of class, a textbook voucher may be obtained in order that you may obtain a book from the bookstore sending the reception desk an email. Undergraduate Advisor, Natalie Ikker, and the Student Services Coordinator, Joanna Peralta, manage the textbook process in the Department.
Teaching Assistants
Departmental graduate students serve as instructional assistants to faculty who are teaching courses. The TA primarily assists the faculty member in charge of the course by conducting discussion or laboratory sections that supplement faculty lectures and by grading assignments and examinations.
TAs are typically required to:
You will be informed of your Teaching Assistants prior to the start of the quarter. After the initial meeting, regular weekly meetings with the TA are highly recommended. Please be aware that TAs must be evaluated by the professors at the end of each quarter as a stipulation of the recent TA contract.
Supervision and Training of Teaching Assistants:
Readers
Readers are typically required to:
Ultimately, TA/reader responsibilities are up to the faculty’s discretion. Faculty expectation must be under the ‘description of duties’ when submitting TA/reader preferences in the ASES system (sent by the Graduate Coordinator each term).
A 25% TA/reader may not work more than 10 hours per week
A 33% TA/reader may not work more than 13.2 hours per week
A 50% TA/reader may not work more than 20 hours per week
*hours per week also includes hours attending class lecture (if applicable).
Instructional Quick Links
Student and Class Information ToolboxUCSD Schedule of Classes
Student Affairs Manager
Ariane Parkes (858) 534-8198
Undergraduate Student Affairs Advisor
Natalie Ikker (858) 534-7381
Graduate Coordinator
Julie Choi (858) 534-2705
To support the transition toward online instruction and increased telecommuting in response to Covid-19 (coronavirus) planning, UCSD has provisioned all campus faculty, staff, teaching assistants and enrolled students with Zoom Pro Meeting accounts.
Zoom allows for video, audio, and screen sharing between participants. It can be used from any computer, laptop, tablet, or phone, and it works on PC, Mac, Android and iOS devices.
1. Download Zoom for your computer or mobile device.
2. Click Sign In to claim your UC San Diego Zoom Pro account using Single Sign-On (SSO)
3. If you need to host webinars of any size, or to hold large meetings with more than 300 attendees, please submit a request for Zoom Large Meeting or Zoom Webinar ADD-ON License. These licenses should be configured well in advance to avoid issues.
4. Use the app or webpage to start, join, or schedule meetings.