Distance Education Faculty FAQs

Start with the GCC DE Faculty Resources Campus Guide for help with Canvas, instructional technology and course design. For current information about DE certification, annual recertification, policies, procedures, resources, and the Committee on Distance Education, check out the DE Faculty Support Page.

GCC recognizes several distance education modalities, including asynchronous online, synchronous online, hybrid, hyflex, and proctored online courses.

Course information should be clear to students before enrollment, including any required meeting times, technology requirements, in-person activities, or proctoring requirements.

Faculty must meet GCC’s DE certification requirements before teaching in Distance Education modalities. 

Faculty are also responsible for completing annual DE recertification training. Current recertification information is available through the [insert certification page information here]. For the 2026-2027 year, this includes 3 hours of full-time and 2 hours of approved DE workshops,

Regular and Substantive Interaction, or RSI, means that instructors interact with students on a predictable and scheduled basis and engage students in teaching, learning, and assessment. This is a federal requirement.

RSI may include direct instruction, feedback on coursework, answering content questions, facilitating discussions, or other approved instructional activities.

For online and hybrid courses, office hours must provide students with a synchronous way to communicate with the instructor.

Faculty should clearly explain office hour days, times, and access information in the syllabus and/or welcome materials.

Yes. In addition to being certified to teach online, all faculty must make certain that their course has an official DE addendum. This means that if any portion of a course is offered through DE, the course must have gone through a separate approval process throug the Committee on Distance Education (CoDE) as well as the Curriculum & Instruction Committee (C&I).

The addendum addresses how course outcomes will be achieved, how regular and substantive interaction will occur, and how the course will meet accessibility requirements.

If you have questions about filing a DE addendum, please reach out to either your division C&I representative or the DE Coordinator for assistance.

Attendance in DE courses should be based on student academic engagement, not simply logging into Canvas. Students must actively participate in activities.

GCC requires a course Welcome Letter and Check-In Assignment, along with ongoing required assessments and assignments, to help document participation and last day of attendance.

Distance Education courses must be accessible to students with disabilities.

Course design, instructional materials, videos, documents, Canvas pages, and third-party tools should provide students with equal access to information, interaction, services, and learning activities.