Microsoft Teams Instructor Guide

Microsoft Teams logo
Microsoft Teams is an all-in-one collaboration tool. In Microsoft Teams, you can meet and collaborate with UBC faculty, staff, and students through web-conferencing and group chat. The platform also enables file-sharing and real-time document collaboration using Microsoft Office applications like Word, PowerPoint, and Excel.
Access Immediate You can access Microsoft Teams from your computer as soon as you install the Microsoft Teams application.
Cost Yes Free.
Bandwidth Partial High demand on internet connections.
Canvas Integration No None.
Privacy Yes Verified by UBC’s Privacy Impact Assessment process.
Similar UBC-Supported Tools Y Mattermost is also centrally supported for team chat and collaboration, and Zoom is centrally supported for video/audio web-conferencing.

What can I use it for?

You can use Microsoft Teams for a variety of collaborative course activities:

  • Chatting with other faculty, staff, and students
  • Collaborating synchronously on documents
  • Sharing information and files
  • Holding office hours, meetings, and phone calls
  • Running lectures and presentations

This tool guide was last reviewed in March 2023.

What do I need to use Microsoft Teams?

The Microsoft Teams application

Although Microsoft Teams has a web interface for some features, you may find it more convenient to install the Microsoft Teams application on your computer or mobile device.


A Microsoft Teams team

If you plan on using Microsoft Teams for a course, you will need a dedicated course space called a team. A team in Microsoft Teams must be requested and created through the LT Hub, as outlined below.


Audio/visual equipment

If you plan on using web-conferencing features in Microsoft Teams, you will need a webcam and microphone. We recommend using either an external microphone or headphones with a microphone attached, to ensure good audio quality.

Tips

  • Active UBC employees should automatically be able to log in to Microsoft OneDrive using their Firstname.Lastname@ubc.ca email and UBC CWL (Campus-Wide Login) password. If you have trouble logging in or if your UBC email account does not end with “@ubc.ca”, contact the UBC IT Service Centre Help Desk.
  • If you are on a mobile device, please use the latest version of iOS and Android. These versions will ensure the best experience with Microsoft Teams.
  • Avoid using Safari, if you use a web browser to access Microsoft Teams. Microsoft Teams does not support using Safari, but it supports using most other browsers such as Chrome, Firefox, and Microsoft Edge.

How do I use Microsoft Teams?

There are many ways to interact with Microsoft Teams, but it’s easiest to install the application to give yourself one central place to access and use all the Microsoft Teams features.

Click any bar below for instructions and tips for using Microsoft Teams.

Expand All

Install the Microsoft Teams application

  1. To download the desktop application, go to the Microsoft Teams download page and click Download for desktop, then click Download Teams.
    • The website will automatically detect your operating system and download the right installation file.
  2. Open the Microsoft Teams installer that downloads, and follow the steps to install the application.

Tips

Log in to Microsoft Teams

No matter how you access Microsoft Teams, you will log in with the same UBC credentials.

  1. You can access Microsoft Teams from the web portal or the Microsoft Teams application. We recommend the latter.
  2. Enter your Firstname.Lastname@ubc.ca email when prompted for your work, school, or Microsoft account.
  3. Enter your UBC CWL password.
  4. This action should log you in to Microsoft Teams. You may need to read and accept the terms of use first.

Tips

  • You can choose to stay signed in to reduce how often you need to log in. If you are on a personal computer this option can be good, but please opt out if you are on a public computer.

Request a team in Microsoft Teams (aka set up a course)

A team refers to a specific group of people in Microsoft Teams who want to collaborate together exclusively. Each team gets access to a private space where members can share communications and content using Microsoft Teams. To request a team at UBC (e.g., for a course), you will need to submit a form.

  1. Open the Microsoft Teams application and sign in, if you haven't already.
  2. Click Get Started in the navigation.
  3. Under "Quick Links" on the right-hand side, click Request a Team.
  4. Select Course Team Request Form for Instructors.
  5. Complete the form with the correct information (for courses this includes the course code, number, section, term, and name), and click Save.
  6. We will check your request in the LT Hub. You will receive an email confirmation once it's approved.

Manage your team in Microsoft Teams (aka manage your course)

If you are the owner of a UBC team (typically a course) in Microsoft Teams, you'll have the ability to invite people to the team and create channels for the team. Channels are places where team members can communicate with each other and share files.

  1. Open the Microsoft Teams application and sign in, if you haven't already.
  2. Click Teams in the navigation.
  3. Select more options (the 3 horizontal dots) at the top right corner of your team name, and choose Manage team.
  4. Click the Settings tab, click Team code, and generate one for your team (if one has not been generated already).
  5. Click Copy and share this code with your students or other UBC invitees somewhere that only they can see it.
  6. Anyone at UBC with this code can use it to join your team.
  1. Open the Microsoft Teams application and sign in, if you haven't already.
  2. Click Teams in the navigation.
  3. Select more options (the 3 horizontal dots) at the top right corner of your team name, and choose Add channel.
  4. Give the channel a descriptive name and description. Try to make it easy for others to understand what this channel should be used to communicate about.
  5. Choose a privacy setting:
    • Standard: Accessible to everyone on the team
    • Private: Accessible only to specific people that you select from the team
  6. Click Add.

Tips

  • Add channels for specific topics/projects in your course to help organize your team space. The easier it is for students to understand the structure, the easier it will be for them to engage.
  • The general channel is always included for non-specific discussions. This channel cannot be removed or renamed in any team.
  • Non-UBC users can access Microsoft Teams as a guest. To add a guest to your team, click "Teams" in the navigation. Then click the 3 horizontal dots at the top right corner of the team name, and select "Add member". Enter the guest's email address and click "Add".

Upload a file to Microsoft Teams

You can upload a file to a channel, and everyone with access to that channel will be able to view and download the file.

  1. Open the Microsoft Teams application and sign in, if you haven't already.
  2. Click Teams in the navigation, and select the team to expand its channels.
  3. Select the channel you want to upload the file in, and click Files at the top.
  4. Click Upload, and choose Files from the drop-down menu.
  5. Select the file you want to upload and click Open.

Tips

  • Microsoft Teams has a file upload limit of 250 GB per file and 25 TB per team. For additional multimedia file storage and sharing, you can consider using Kaltura, the media platform that is built into Canvas.
  • Files uploaded to a channel can be downloaded by any team members who have access to that channel. Please advise your students that any downloadable files with course-sensitive material (like lecture videos) should be for personal use only and should not be shared publicly.

Collaborate on documents in Microsoft Teams

With Microsoft Teams, you can collaborate on documents with other instructors, staff, or students in real time. Files can be edited by multiple people at once, and each person can view the edits as they are being made.

  1. Open the Microsoft Teams application and sign in, if you haven't already.
  2. Click either Chat (if you want to share documents through a chat) or Teams (if you want to share documents through a channel) in the navigation.
  3. Select the chat or team channel you want to use. Under the message bar, click the paperclip icon to share a file.
    • If you are sharing a file in a team channel, you may need to click New conversation to open the message bar.
  4. Select the location where the file is stored and choose the file you want to share.
  5. Write a message to go along with your file to help collaborators know what you're sharing.
  6. Click the send icon in the bottom right corner.
  7. Once the message has been sent, anyone who can see it (i.e., anyone with access to the chat or channel) can open the file and start editing.

Each shared file has something called a version history. This history tracks changes and saves different versions over time You can see who made which edits and restore or save older versions.

  1. Open the Microsoft Teams application and sign in, if you haven't already.
  2. Access the file you want to view versions for. You can click Files in the navigation as one way to find it.
  3. Once in the edit screen, click File at the top, then select Info.
  4. Click Version History.
  5. This action opens the file in versioning view. You can navigate between different versions and see who made which edits. You can also save a copy of a specific version or restore that version.

Tips

  • You can switch between editing and reviewing mode when viewing a file to make direct edits (editing mode) or add comments and suggestions (reviewing mode).

Chat in Microsoft Teams

In Microsoft Teams, you can chat privately with individuals or groups of people. Chat is best used for casual conversation. It is not meant for exchanging confidential or sensitive information, nor for formal decision-making. Chat messages exchanged in the "Chats" area of Microsoft Teams are deleted after 90 days, as part of the UBC Records Management Office retention schedule.

  1. Open the Microsoft Teams application and sign in, if you haven't already.
  2. Click Chat in the navigation.
  3. At the top of the application, click the new chat icon that is to the left of the search bar.
    • Or, if you have used chats before, click the pencil icon that is to the left of the search bar.
  4. Enter a name, email, group name, or tag in the “To” section to invite others to the chat.
  5. Enter your message in the message bar and use any of the additional options for chatting there:
    • Enhanced message formatting: Use the additional features of a rich text editor.
    • Delivery options: Change the status of a message to important or urgent.
    • File sharing: Collaborate on a document by sharing a file.
    • Loop components: Collaborate on smaller elements like lists or tables by adding a component.
    • Reactions: Send emojis, gifs, and stickers.
    • In-chat meeting scheduler: Schedule a meeting with chat participants.
  6. Click the send icon in the right bottom corner.
  7. You can also launch audio, video, or screen-sharing with people in the chat by using the options in the upper right corner.

Tips

  • The search bar at the top of the Microsoft Teams application can also be used to start and view chats. Begin a chat or bring up a chat history by typing in a person's name. You can also choose what chat history is available for any people you add to an existing chat.
  • Know that one-to-one and group chat messages will be deleted after 90 days, even if they have been bookmarked. To exchange information and files that are kept beyond 90 days, consider using a Microsoft Teams channel or sharing files on Microsoft OneDrive.

Schedule a meeting in Microsoft Teams

You can schedule meetings to hold lectures, office hours, or check-ins with individuals or groups in Microsoft Teams. Meetings are capped at 300 attendees.

  1. Open the Microsoft Teams application and sign in, if you haven't already.
  2. Click Calendar in the navigation.
  3. Click + New meeting at the top.
  4. Fill in the meeting information, including the title, attendees, date and time, recurrence, or any of the other applicable fields.
    • To invite people, you can search for them by name or by email. Alternatively, you can add an entire channel, and anyone who is part of the channel will have access to your meeting.
  5. Click Save and send your meeting invite.

Tips

  • Some students may not have access to their Microsoft Teams account right away, since it can take up to 48 hours for students to have their UBC Microsoft account activated. Therefore, you may need to invite them initially outside of Microsoft Teams.
  • You can schedule a meeting directly from a public team channel, which will automatically allow anyone with channel access to join. From the channel, click the arrow next to "Meet" in the top right corner, and select "Schedule a meeting".

Run a meeting in Microsoft Teams

During Microsoft Teams meetings, you can interact by video, audio, and text. You can also share things like your screen, applications, and files.

  1. Open the Microsoft Teams application and sign in, if you haven't already.
  2. Click Calendar in the navigation.
  3. Click Join for the meeting in your calendar.
  4. When you are ready, click Join Now.
  5. During meetings, you have several options available to you:
    • Talk to students over video, audio, and text chat.
    • Record the meeting.
    • Share your screen, applications, and files.
    • Create breakout rooms for participants.
    • Take meeting notes that will save in the meeting details.
    • Manage participants, such as muting their microphones.
    • Add documents in chat that can be collaborated on in real-time.
    • Collaborate on a Microsoft Whiteboard to visualize ideas using tools such as notes, shapes, templates, and more.
  6. To end the meeting, click Leave at the top right.

Tips

  • If you experience unexpected lag time when running a meeting, turn off incoming video. Click the 3 horizontal dots at the top, select "Settings", and choose "Turn off incoming video". This feature disables video for all meeting participants. You can also try turning off your own video.
  • There is no call-in number for meetings in Microsoft Teams. Attendees must join through the Microsoft Teams application or the web.
  • It is useful to have someone (e.g., a teaching assistant) who can help moderate during an online lecture. This person can monitor chat questions and handle technical troubleshooting with students.

Edit the expiration date of a video recorded in Microsoft Teams

Videos that you record using Microsoft Teams are stored in Microsoft OneDrive. In keeping with UBC's video retention policy, Microsoft Teams automatically adds an expiration date to all new videos.

The automated expiration date will schedule the video for deletion one year after it was recorded. If you wish to keep the video for longer, you can remove the expiration date from the video file in Microsoft OneDrive.

  1. Open the Microsoft Teams application and sign in, if you haven't signed in already.
  2. Click either Chat (if you recorded the meeting outside a team) or Teams (if you recorded the meeting in a team channel) in the navigation.
  3. Select the chat or team channel where you recorded the meeting, and find the recording in the message history:
    • Click the recording to open it.
    • Below the video, you will see its expiration. Click this information, and select Remove expiration. This change will save automatically, and the video will be kept indefinitely.
  4. If you have trouble finding the recording, or if you want an overview of all recordings, log in to Microsoft OneDrive from portal.office.com in your web browser instead:
    • Enter your Firstname.Lastname@ubc.ca email and your UBC CWL password when prompted to log in.
    • Click the dotted square in the upper left corner, and select OneDrive from the apps. The interface will open in a new window.
    • Click My Files from the sidebar navigation.
    • Click the Recordings folder name to access the video recordings you’ve made with Microsoft Teams.
      • If you don’t see the video in this folder, you may have recorded it from a Microsoft Teams channel. In this case, go back to the Microsoft Teams application, and navigate to the channel you used. Click Files at the top and click the Recordings folder, if you see it.
        • If you don't see this folder, you may have recorded the video in a private channel. Click the 3 dots at the top and select Open in SharePoint. Click Documents in the sidebar, then click the Recordings folder.
  5. For any video you want to keep, hover over it, click the 3 dots, and select Details.
  6. In the panel that appears, click inside the “Expiration date” field and select Remove expiration. This change will save automatically, and the video will be kept indefinitely.
    • You may continue to see a warning about the video's expiration. Because UBC has a video retention policy, Microsoft Teams unfortunately displays this warning for all videos, regardless of their actual expiration date.

Tips

  • UBC's video retention policy ensures that videos recorded in Microsoft Teams and Zoom are removed automatically, one year after each video is recorded. The policy ensures these tools are used for real-time, synchronous activities as intended, rather than for long-term video storage.
  • Videos that you record in Microsoft Teams are stored differently, depending on how you start the meeting. Meetings started outside a team—in a chat or from the calendar—can be found through the Microsoft OneDrive web portal. Meetings started through a team public channel can be found through Microsoft Teams. Meetings started in a team private channel can be found through the Microsoft SharePoint web portal. These different access points are captured in step 4.

Microsoft Teams FAQ

Find UBC-specific answers to frequently asked questions by clicking any bar below.

No. Microsoft Teams will not be replacing any current tools, such as Zoom. It is available as an additional collaboration tool. It gives you and your students a single place where you can communicate, chat, and collaborate on documents in real time.

Yes, if you want them to do more than attend a meeting. To join your course space (called a "team"), students will need to create a UBC Microsoft account. You can direct them to instructions for setting up an account in UBC's Microsoft Teams student guide. Once students have accounts, you can invite them to your course.

Yes. Microsoft Teams meets UBC policy and BC requirements for security. All data in Microsoft Teams is encrypted, stored securely, and hosted in Canada. The data for Microsoft Teams is technically stored in Microsoft OneDrive, which you gain access to when you create a UBC Microsoft account. You can read more about Microsoft OneDrive privacy and security from UBC IT.

Yes. However, these limits are quite high and should allow you to meet your pedagogical goals. You can add the following:

  • 250 teams (e.g., courses or other collaborative spaces)
  • 5,000 members (e.g., students) per team
  • 200 public channels (i.e., communication threads) per team
  • 30 private channels per team

No. We recommend installing the desktop or mobile application to run Microsoft Teams as an application. But you can also access it from your browser by signing in at teams.microsoft.com with your UBC Microsoft account. The same is true for your students.

The primary goal of Microsoft Teams is to support real-time group work for students, through instant messaging and document collaboration. In addition, when you and your students create a UBC Microsoft account, you gain access to Microsoft OneDrive, a secure file-hosting service that allows you to store, share, and synchronize up to 1TB of encrypted file storage.

Chat messages exchanged in the "Chats" area of Microsoft Teams are deleted after 90 days, as part of the UBC Record Management Office retention schedule.

A retention schedule ensures that records which are intended to be temporary are not stored indefinitely. By regularly removing records that do not need to be stored, UBC reduces the risk related to data breaches and maximizes available storage space.

To exchange information and files that are kept beyond 90 days, consider using a Microsoft Teams channel or sharing files on Microsoft OneDrive. Chats in a channel and files on OneDrive will not be deleted on a schedule.

Where can I get more support with Microsoft Teams?

Technical support

If you have trouble with Microsoft Teams:


Pedagogical support


Student support

Learn more

  • In the Microsoft Teams application, click “Get Started” in the navigation to learn more about Microsoft Teams at UBC.
  • You can also click “Help” in the navigation to find learning topics and training options.

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