| Important
Information for Online Students:
Accessing Your Online Course(s)
Taking an Online Course
Attendance
Feedback and Responses
Technical Requirements
Technical Assistance
Study and Survival Tips
Course Evaluations
College Honor Code
Accessing Your Online Course(s)
Please read as the process has changed for accessing online courses at FCCJ.
FCCJ now assigns students with a global student ID. Students will use this ID for all FCCJ web applications, such as student email, ARTEMIS (student registration portal), and online class access. Students do not need to email Instructors for access to their online courses. Once a student registers and pays for their online course, they are automatically enrolled and have access to the course on the first day of class.
If you do not have your FCCJ Student ID, or if you need more information, please read the guidelines at:
http://www.distancelearning.org/so/gs_artemis.htm
Please note that access to online courses does not officially begin until
the official start date of class. You will not be able to access the course
until that date. You may email me or call me at any time before the term
officially begins if you have any questions about the course.
Top Taking
an Online Course
Taking an online course is ideal for students with busy schedules and
can be more convenient than an on-campus class. But please remember, online
classes are not easier and do have deadlines, assignments, and participation
requirements just like on-campus classes. Please budget your time carefully
and keep an open line of communication with me. If you are having technical
problems, problems with your assignments, or problems that are impeding
your progress let me know as soon as possible by calling or emailing me
so that we can work together to ensure your success in this class.
You should review the Online Course page at the Distance Learning web
site carefully for important information about technical requirements,
online learning FAQs, technical support resources, and tips and resources.
All of my online courses are offered through WebCt or Blackboard. Please see the course syllabus for specific information on the platform being used for that course.
WebCt and Blackboard are learning management systems used to deliver courses over the
Internet. They are web-based software platforms that you will log into and
use to access course materials and exercises that I make available to
you such as the syllabus, calendar, bulletin board discussions, links,
and much more. The only experience you need is basic world wide web browsing
skills and email skills (attaching documents to email or uploading documents to a server and downloading documents to your computer).g
You will always use your FCCJ Student ID to access our BlackBoard platform. The login page for BlackBoard is http://bb.fccj.edu/
Top
Attendance
All online courses that I teach are offered online or through a blended approach which includes some classroom visits during the term. There will be participation requirements
and field experience requirements for some of the Intro to Education classes. Participation is interpreted
as a way to measure your online attendance as well as your overall comprehension of the course topics, and is always weighted into your final grade.
Top
Feedback
and Responses
Generally, you can expect an email or telephone response from me within
1 business day (24 hours). I will always let you know if I will be unavailable to respond to emails within 24 hours so you won't wonder if I received your email request. Email is the BEST way to contact me. You can expect assignments
to be graded and grades posted with feedback within one week. If I am
delayed, I will let you know in advance.
Top
Technical
Requirements
All online courses require the following:
- Computer
with personal access to the Internet (e.g., computer with a modem, or
cable modem connection)
- An e-mail
account
- Web-browser
software (Internet Explorer, FireFox, Safari)
- Windows
95 operating system or higher or Macintosh OS
- Virus-checking
software
- Check your computer configuration at http://www.distancelearning.org/so/gs_comprequirements.htm
Please note that when turning in your assignments, if you send me an infected
file I will deduct 10-20 percent from your grade on that assignment. FCCJ
offers all paid and enrolled students a FREE email account and Dial-In
Access. If you have a computer with a modem, you can use FCCJ's Dial-In
service to connect to the Internet free of charge. You must have an FCCJ
student e-mail account BEFORE you can use the student dialup services.
For information about how to activate your Student Account and Dial-In
Service, see http://www.fccj.edu/current/stucomputing/internetdialup.html.
My classes require that you meet the general technical requirements, and
also have an understanding of the World Wide Web, word processing, and
email. Please see http://www.distancelearning.org/techrequire.html for more information on the technical requirements and additional tools needed for most online courses.
Be honest
with me if you feel that you may not meet the technical requirements.
If you are forthcoming, then we can work together to help you meet the
requirements.
Top
Technical
Assistance
Technical assistance is provided by the Learner Support Center. Please
call 904-632-3151 for assistance, or email helpdesk@fccj.edu.
The hours of operation are:
Monday
- Thursday 7am - 10pm
Friday 7am - 5pm
Saturday 9am - 1pm
Sunday 1pm - 5pm
Please consult me with any problems related to the course and reserve
technical problems for the Help Desk staff. The Help Desk will not be
able to assist you with problems related to the course, such as deadlines,
content questions, etc.
Top Study
Skills and Survival Tips
Taking an online course should be an enjoyable, rewarding experience.
However, you must:
Be willing to participate, and understand the rules of participation.
For example, in the "online" world of communication there are
codes of etiquette (netiquette) that you should familiarize yourself with.
See http://www.distancelearning.org/howtosucceed.html for more information.
Always use
proper grammar when using the Discussion Board. Do not use slang, and
use emoticons :-) ;-) :-( sparingly.
Keep on
track and don't fall behind. If you fall behind in short session courses,
it will be difficult for you to catch up. Find a calendar tool that you
can live with and use it to chart all of your due dates and assignments
on a timeline. Word has a Calendar Wizard that does the job thoroughly
and inexpensively.
Learn how to evaluate and cite Internet resources. See How to Evaluate
a Web Site and the Information It Delivers for a great discussion of this
topic. I will provide more information within our course if you are required to write any research papers or provide resources in our discussions. Top
Course
Evaluations
All FCCJ distance learning courses are surveyed. All surveys and results
are completely anonymous. If you have questions about any of the surveys,
please contact the Distance Learning Office.
Three types of surveys are administered to students:
Orientation
Survey
If your distance learning course requires an on-campus orientation,
you will be asked to fill out a one-page orientation survey. All of
my orientation material is online, so you will not be asked to fill
out Orientation Surveys.
Withdrawal
Survey
After the term withdrawal deadline (usually 5-6 weeks after the official
start date of the term), a withdrawal survey is mailed to students who
have withdrawn, or received an AW (Administrative Withdrawal) from a
distance learning course.
End
of Term Survey
Distance learning courses are evaluated at the end of each term. For
each distance learning course you are enrolled in, you will be asked
to fill out a one-page survey. End-of-term surveys are administered
within the final week of the term. For my courses, online evaluations
are administered. As always, the results are completely anonymous.
Top
College
Honor Code
All of my courses follow the Academic Dishonesty and Discipline Procedures
set forth by FCCJ. These college-wide policies can be found here.
Return
to Top |