This guide explains how to set up instructors, assign them to courses and sessions, monitor workloads, and ensure effective instructor management.
Understanding Instructors in the System
An instructor in Course Scheduling is a contact record that can be assigned to teach course offerings and sessions. They're created automatically when you assign the Instructor role to a team member.
Setting Up Instructors
Method 1: Through Team Management (Recommended)
When you add the Instructor role to a team member, the system automatically creates a corresponding instructor contact.
1. Go to Team Management (Settings menu)
2. Add new team member OR edit existing
3. Add the Instructor role
4. Save changes
5. Instructor contact automatically created
6. They now appear in instructor assignment lists
Benefits:
- User account for portal access
- Automatic instructor contact creation
- Can receive role-based notifications
- Appears in Team Management
Method 2: Manual Contact Creation
If you need instructor contacts without user accounts:
1. Go to Instructors in Course Scheduling menu
2. View existing instructors
3. Note: Manual creation may require contact creation first
Use cases:
- Guest lecturers without portal access
- External speakers
- Historical records
Viewing Your Instructor Roster
Navigate to Instructors in Course Scheduling:
List View
See all instructors with:
- Name
- Contact information (email, phone)
- Current assignments
- Quick actions
Individual Instructor View
Click on an instructor to see:
Overview
- Contact details
- Summary statistics
- Current workload
Course Offerings Tab
- All course offerings they're assigned to
- Past and current
- Cohort information
- Date ranges
Sessions Tab
- Individual sessions where they're assigned
- Specific dates and times
- Locations
- Direct links to session details
Assigning Instructors
To Course Offerings
When creating or editing a course offering:
1. Find the Instructors field
2. Click to open selection
3. Choose from available instructors
4. Select multiple for team-teaching
5. Save the offering
What Happens:
- Instructor assigned to entire course offering
- Sessions within the offering inherit this instructor
- Can be overridden at session level
- Instructor sees this in their dashboard
To Individual Sessions
For session-specific assignments:
1. Edit the session
2. Find the Instructors field
3. Modify the selection
4. This overrides offering-level assignment
5. Save the session
Use Cases:
- Guest lecturers
- Substitute instructors
- Lab assistants
- Specialized experts
Multiple Instructor Assignments
Team-teaching scenarios:
1. When assigning instructors, select multiple
2. All selected instructors appear for that offering/session
3. Useful for:
- Co-taught courses
- Lab sessions with multiple TAs
- Lecture + recitation sections
- Expert panel sessions
Instructor Dashboard Access
Instructors with the Instructor role can access the Instructor Dashboard where they see:
Their Schedule
- Assigned course offerings
- Upcoming sessions
- Session times and locations
- Student rosters (if permitted)
Session Details
- Course information
- Expected attendees
- Session materials (if uploaded)
- Location or meeting links
What Instructors CAN'T Do
- Modify schedules (unless given additional permissions)
- Enroll/drop students
- Access other instructors' information
- View financial data
Monitoring Instructor Workload
Workload Report
Access from Reporting in Course Scheduling:
Instructor Workload Table shows:
- Total sessions per instructor
- Hours assigned
- Number of different courses
- Distribution across cohorts
Key Metrics to Monitor
Teaching Hours
- Total hours per week/month
- Peak periods
- Balance across team
Course Load
- Number of different courses
- Preparation time requirements
- Subject matter variety
Student Contact
- Total students across assignments
- Student-to-instructor ratios
- Support staff needs
Identifying Issues
Overloaded Instructor:
- Too many hours assigned
- Back-to-back sessions without breaks
- Teaching too many different subjects
- Risk of burnout
Underutilized Instructor:
- Few or no assignments
- Consider for additional courses
- May indicate scheduling gap
Uneven Distribution:
- Some instructors heavily loaded
- Others with minimal assignments
- Balance across team for fairness
Best Practices
Instructor Assignment
Match Expertise
- Assign courses based on subject matter expertise
- Consider professional background
- Leverage industry experience
- Respect instructor preferences when possible
Balance Workloads
- Distribute hours fairly
- Avoid overloading individuals
- Plan for instructor absences
- Consider travel time for in-person sessions
Backup Planning
- Identify backup instructors for each course
- Cross-train where possible
- Have contingency plans
- Document course materials for continuity
Communication with Instructors
Before the Term
- Share complete schedule in advance
- Confirm availability for all sessions
- Discuss any conflicts
- Set expectations for deliverables
During the Term
- Regular check-ins
- Monitor for issues
- Gather feedback on schedule
- Address concerns promptly
After the Term
- Collect instructor feedback
- Review workload effectiveness
- Plan improvements for next term
- Acknowledge good work
Documentation
Course Materials
- Encourage instructors to document
- Standardize lesson plans
- Share resources centrally
- Enable continuity if instructor changes
Assignment Records
- Keep history of who taught what
- Useful for future planning
- Helps with evaluations
- Supports reporting needs
Common Scenarios
Scenario: Instructor Goes on Leave
1. Identify affected course offerings/sessions
2. Find qualified substitute
3. Update instructor assignments
4. Notify students of change
5. Brief substitute on curriculum
6. Ensure material handover
Scenario: Adding Guest Lecturer
1. Create contact record (or use existing)
2. Create or edit specific session
3. Assign guest as session instructor
4. Main instructor removed or kept as backup
5. Communicate to students
6. Provide guest with necessary access
Scenario: Team-Teaching Assignment
1. Select both instructors for course offering
2. Both appear in assignment lists
3. Sessions show both instructors
4. Define responsibilities between them
5. Students see both as contacts
Scenario: Instructor No Longer Available
1. Remove from future assignments
2. Keep historical records intact
3. Reassign their upcoming sessions
4. Consider removing Instructor role if no longer needed
5. Update any associated user account
Instructor Performance Tracking
While the system doesn't include built-in performance evaluation, you can track:
Quantitative Metrics
From system data:
- Number of sessions taught
- Courses completed
- Student enrollment in their courses
- Session attendance (if tracked externally)
Qualitative Feedback
External collection:
- Student evaluations
- Peer observations
- Self-assessments
- Program coordinator reviews
Using Data for Improvement
- Identify training needs
- Recognize strong performers
- Address scheduling issues
- Optimize future assignments
Troubleshooting
Instructor Not Appearing in Selection
Verify:
- They have the Instructor role assigned
- Contact record exists
- Try refreshing the page
- Check filter settings
Can't Assign Multiple Instructors
Check:
- System supports multiple selection
- Use Ctrl/Cmd + click to select multiple
- Or use checkboxes if available
- Some views may show differently
Instructor Dashboard Not Accessible
For the instructor:
- Verify Instructor role is assigned
- Check they have user account (not just contact)
- Ensure they're logging into correct panel
- Contact admin if access issues persist
Workload Calculation Seems Wrong
Verify:
- All sessions have correct times entered
- Session durations calculated properly
- No duplicate assignments
- Report filters are set correctly
Integrating with Team Management
Role Synchronization
When you:
- Add Instructor role → Contact created automatically
- Remove Instructor role → They no longer appear in instructor lists (contact preserved)
- Delete user → Consider impact on instructor assignments first
Notification Settings
Instructors can configure (in their Account Settings):
- Schedule notifications
- Session reminders
- Assignment updates
- System announcements
Access Levels
Instructor Role Only:
- View assigned courses
- View session details
- Limited dashboard access
Instructor + Other Roles:
- Combined access based on all roles
- Example: School Admin + Instructor = full admin access plus teaching view
Need Help?
If you encounter issues with Team Management or need to perform actions not covered in this guide, contact your account administrator or reach out to our support team.
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