Dissecting honeybees via Zoom, using a glass shower door as a whiteboard and creating a virtual art gallery are a few of the ways students and faculty have adapted to remote learning, which UCF transitioned to on March 18 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Monday marked the last day of classes for the spring semester, during which UCF adjusted 5,600 classes to online learning. This includes 4,900 that were being taught in a face-to-face format and another 700 that were a mix of in-person and online instruction.
To help faculty and students with the transition, UCF rolled out new websites with specialized resources, such as Keep Teaching for faculty and Keep Learning for students, and held a series of training workshops on effective online learning.
Before COVID-19 began impacting Central Florida, more than a half million credit hours were taught online and 86 percent of students were enrolled in a fully online class or one that contained an online component.
Even prior to the pandemic, the university has been considered a national leader in online learning. For the last three years, U.S. News & World Report has ranked UCF in the top 20 for online bachelor’s programs. In 2019, the National Center for Academic Transformation (NCAT) — a leader in course redesign and online learning for nearly 20 years — selected UCF to maintain its entire collection of resources because of its strong online learning program and commitment to affordable education
Online classes will continue at UCF through all Summer 2020 semesters.
UCF will hold a Spring 2020 virtual commencement ceremonies on May 2, with an in-person celebration to be scheduled at a later date. NFL stars and UCF alumni Shaquem and Shaquill Griffin will serve as the commencement speakers for the virtual event. No decisions have been made yet about summer commencement.
