Asynchronous online phases are guided self-learning phases with defined learning activities that replace the usual synchronous course units:

• Learning activities have a rather small scope, and the student workload for them is based on the substituted contact hours.

• Learning activities are for students independent of location and time (can be fulfilled within a certain time frame)

• Learning activities do not count towards the performance assessment and are not assessed themselves, but are necessary for the positive completion of the course, as part of fulfilling the attendance requirement.

• A "learning activity" should include:

  • guided student learning activity (e.g., assignment, work instruction, quiz based on video)

  • Consultation options for students

  • Teacher feedback on learning activities (possible forms of feedback are described in the FAQ).

The workload for students and teachers during the asynchronous phases is part of the usual overall workload for the course; the workload does not change as a result.

A guideline for learning activities instead of contact hours is that one asynchronous learning activity is offered for every approx. 10% of contact hours replaced. An example of the relationship of learning activities to the extent of self-study periods: A course has 2 credit hours, i.e., approximately 22.5 contact hours. If 8 contact hours are replaced by one or more asynchronous self-learning phases, this corresponds to approx. 36%. According to the guideline, 3 to 4 learning activities would be a good substitute to promote student learning even without course units. The substituted contact hours can also be used as a guideline for the workload for a learning activity. For the example described above, a student workload of approx. 2-3 hours could be planned for each learning activity.

When planning asynchronous self-study phases, care should be taken to ensure that students have sufficient time and flexibility for completion in order to counteract possible reasons for students not being able to complete the learning activities from the outset (e.g. due to illness). Students have to complete assignments according to the conditions for the respective course in the self-study phase, and they are responsible for completing them in the time frame provided. For example, if students have 4 weeks to complete assignments, plan to complete them just before the deadline, and then are ill, this is not considered an excuse for not completing them and can be counted accordingly as an "absence" for meeting attendance requirements. If students can prove they were unable to complete the learning activity(ies) during the entire specified period for reasons beyond their control (e.g. illness), this is considered like all excused absences according to the defined attendance requirements.

Exams can be held on-campus as well as online. Learning activities do not count towards student performance assessment, but the usual performance components can be carried out as before, and learning activities can of course be used to prepare for these assessments.

Asynchronous online phases cannot be presented in the course announcement process like course dates, but must be described in the syllabus, including the time periods specified for them. Since these periods have an impact on the semester planning of students, these periods should also be determined (at least roughly) before the beginning of the semester, in accordance with the legal requirements.

WU's central learning management systems, Canvas WU or MyLEARN, as well as the Planet eStream media platform can be used to prepare and implement digital learning materials/activities. Instructions for these systems are available in the respective online guides: Canvas WU Guide, MyLEARN Guide, Planet eStream Guide (currently only available in German). An overview of digital tools and didactic suggestions of digitally enriched teaching are provided or addressed in the qualification offers of the Digital Teaching Services.

No, this has no effect on the fulfillment of the teaching load. The reduction of synchronous contact hours is an essential part of this course delivery format. The reduced number of announced hours is therefore necessary and no dates should be announced that are not actually held.

No, it is always possible to plan approx. 30-50 % of the scheduled contact hours also as asynchronous online phase, the reference point are the planned contact hours. Also for the number of learning activities the extent of the attendance requirement does not play a role, but the replaced contact hours (e.g. 40% of the contact hours are held as asynchronous online phase, there should be approx. 4 learning activities).

The defined extent of attendance requirements only plays a role in the question of how many learning activities (in addition to attendance in synchronous course units) students must complete. If attendance requirements are reduced students must also complete fewer learning activities. However, as in the case of synchronous classes, it can be specified for individual learning activities that they must be completed in any case.

In a course without mandatory attendance (LVP), a small number of voluntary bonus points are possible. The conditions for the bonus points in LVP (esp. extent and storage period) are defined in the commentary of the Examination Regulations.

As usually the voluntary bonus points can be earned in the course units to incentivize attendance in the classroom, voluntary bonus points in a LVP with blended format can also be awarded for the learning activities in the asynchronous self-study phases.

For time-efficient handling of questions that arise it is recommended to use the forum in your course on MyLEARN (see MyLEARN Guide) or a discussion in Canvas WU (see Canvas WU Guide), as all students can read questions you have already answered there.