Welcome to Academic StrategiesWelcome to Academic Strategies

CS120-08CS120-08

Janine PrzybylJanine Przybyl

"When there is a start to be made, don't step over! Start where you are." ~Edgar Cayce

AGENDA

– Guidelines for Seminar

– Course Syllabus

– Weekly Schedule

– Discussion Boards

– Projects

– Quizzes

– Grades

– Case Study

Guidelines for Seminar

Focus on what we are discussing. Seminars will be interactive so you need to pay attention.

Practice netiquette.

If you come into class late or have to leave early, please do NOT announce it as it distracts from the discussion taking place.

Participate, participate, participate!

• There will always be a written option for you to complete should you miss a Seminar.

• This is found behind the Seminar tab in each Unit. • You will complete option 2 and submit it to the Dropbox to earn the

Seminar points.

What if You Miss a Seminar?

• The syllabus is your “key” for the class.

• It is located in Course Home.

• It is also located in Doc Sharing.

• Please print it out and read it carefully.

• The syllabus will refer to different assignments in the

course.

• There are also excellent tutorials under the Course Home

that will assist you in learning to navigate the course.

Course Syllabus

• You can contact me at jprzybyl@kaplan.edu

• My office hours are scheduled by appointment. Please contact me to set up a time for us to meet.

• I will be using AOL instant messaging.

• If you have not downloaded this, it is free at: http://www.aim.aol.com/

• If you email me during the week I will return your email in 24 hours; on weekends in 48 hours.

Key Information from the Course Syllabus

• Kaplan’s weeks run Wednesday to Tuesday and end at 11:59 pm Eastern Time on Tuesday.

• The Units in the course are the actual weeks in the course.

• Please focus on one week at a time.

• Right now-please focus on the Course Home and Unit 1.

Weekly Schedule

Content of Weekly UnitsWhen you click on the Unit you will see several items under the tab.

ReadingLearning ActivitiesDiscussionQuizSeminar

•In some weekly Units you will see a tab for a Project. •We will discuss Projects later on in this seminar.

Each unit will have one discussion board that will havemultiple questions that you must answer in that unit.

• When you click the discussion tab, the board will appear.

• Please keep in mind when you are answering your discussion board questions and responding to your fellow classmates….does your post move the conversation forward? This is the single most important question that I will use to evaluate.

• I will also give higher message board grades to those who post not only quantity, but quality work. 

Discussion Boards

• Provides a place for you to discuss material in the Unit and ask questions.

• Think of it as a class discussion like you would have in a face to face classroom.

• This will be the place where you probably learn the most.

• When you enter into the conversations you may find that you will learn something outside the box!

Purpose of the Discussion Board

• You must respond to questions posted on the board in each Unit.

• You must respond on at least two separate days on the board in each Unit.

• A good schedule: Respond on Wednesday or Thursday, again on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday and/or again on Monday and Tuesday. The more you respond, the better the discussion will be throughout the week.

• You must use correct spelling and grammar on the discussion board and in all written assignments.

Expectations for the Discussion Board

Professional formatting for Discussion Questions

Greeting (“Hi, Classmates and Prof,” e.g.)

<space>

Para graph 1 with first point

<space>

Para graph 2 with second point

<space>

Use as many paragraphs as you have different points.

<space>

Signature (your first or first and last names)

• Several Units have projects that will be due at the end of the Unit.– Unit 5, 6– Unit 9 Final– Grade: Unit 5: 50 points; Unit 6: 75 points– Final: 200 points

• You must submit your project in Microsoft Word.

• I can not open projects submitted in anything but Word.

Unit Projects

Quizzes

• Units 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8

• Each quiz is worth 30 points

• Total: 180 points

• Our Units end on Tuesday night and your grades for all assignments will be posted no later than the Sunday night after the Unit ends.

• Grading rubrics are located in the syllabus for Seminar, the discussion board, and for all class projects.

• When I grade, I always write comments in the

gradebook to tell you what you have done well, as well as suggestions for improvement.

• Please remember to read my comments.

Grades

Scott is a 44-year old working professional who has recently returned to school to complete his college degree. He has a wife, a teenager daughter in high school, a full- time job, and is the resident tennis coach for his homeowner’s association. Due to his busy schedule, Scott has decided to take classes online so he will be able to do his schoolwork from home. Scott is very nervous about his first online class, and, in particular, how he will communicate with his classmates and instructor during the Seminar and in the discussion.  He has plenty of experience surfing the Web and sending emails to his friends, but he is not sure that he will be able to effectively apply his communication skills to the online learning environment.  He also does not feel certain that he will be able to apply the rules of netiquette, a concept with which he is only vaguely familiar.  He tends to write quick emails to friends and family, with quite a few abbreviations, and slang terms, but he knows that a "Whazz'up, dawg?" greeting will not be advisable for his communications in the classroom.

Case Study – Online Communication

Points to Consider:• How can you help Scott feel more comfortable

communicating online with his classmates and instructor during the synchronous seminars or asynchronous discussion boards or with the idea of “netiquette” in general?

• What is “netiquette” and why is it important to learn the rules?  Consider the impact of nonverbal communication in the online environment; how important is it to consider communication styles when writing posts or responding in seminar?

More Points to Consider:• What are some examples of "poor netiquette,"

and how can Scott avoid using slang and abbreviated text in his communications with his fellow classmates and with his instructors?

• What tips can you give Scott that may help him when he attends his first seminar?

• Effective communication is an important component of any online course.   What type of advice would you provide to Scott for communicating effectively in class discussions, specifically in his Psychology courses?

• When writing an email to the instructor, what information should Scott include to identify himself?

Unit 1 To-Do

• Introduce Yourself• Readings• Learning Activities• Discussion Board• Seminar• Quiz

You’ve completed your first seminar!