Thursday, January 8, 2009
Will that be face-to-face or online?
Most of us would prefer in-person courses, but for many reasons, online courses are necessary. So I try to set it up so students get the best of both worlds - the camaraderie that develops in face-to-face classes and the flexibility of time and place of online courses.
As I say in my introduction, I took my Masters Degree entirely online. It was great, so I know it can be done. I hope that is some encouragement to all.
Thanks for signing up, even if the format wasn't your first choice. No, the online course experience isn't the same as an on-campus class. It isn't better or worse - just different. There are many benefits to both styles of classes.
.
As I say in my introduction, I took my Masters Degree entirely online. It was great, so I know it can be done. I hope that is some encouragement to all.
Thanks for signing up, even if the format wasn't your first choice. No, the online course experience isn't the same as an on-campus class. It isn't better or worse - just different. There are many benefits to both styles of classes.
.
Assignments and Notes
Everyone is reading the Assignments page and the Notes page for this week, right?
At the top of the links section for each weekly module, there is an Assignments link. The list of all the assignment activities and what to do will open in a new window. Please read the the entire list. Then do all the activities.
The assignment activities for the module can be done in any order, but top down is usually best. The activities are relatively short to provide flexibility and to encourage you to do some everyday. This will help you manage your time.
The textbook readings are great background information, and the assignments will help you have a better understanding of the internet technologies and how they apply to a broad range of situations and communities.
The notes provide additional guidance and information about the module topic and the associated textbook reading.
.
At the top of the links section for each weekly module, there is an Assignments link. The list of all the assignment activities and what to do will open in a new window. Please read the the entire list. Then do all the activities.
The assignment activities for the module can be done in any order, but top down is usually best. The activities are relatively short to provide flexibility and to encourage you to do some everyday. This will help you manage your time.
The textbook readings are great background information, and the assignments will help you have a better understanding of the internet technologies and how they apply to a broad range of situations and communities.
The notes provide additional guidance and information about the module topic and the associated textbook reading.
.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
CIS2 blog and RSS feed
I am using this blog for CIS2. This is another way to send out information about the course. If you are using any of the RSS feed readers, subscribe to
http://cis2z.blogspot.com/
There is a link on the blog sidebar (to the right -->) to subscribe from many of the popular feed readers.
Think of blogs a public notes or messages. You will have an opportunity to create and report your project work in your own blog. Some students use their blogs as ePortfolios to show their course work publicly - to instructors, certificate program coordinators and future employers.
.
http://cis2z.blogspot.com/
There is a link on the blog sidebar (to the right -->) to subscribe from many of the popular feed readers.
Think of blogs a public notes or messages. You will have an opportunity to create and report your project work in your own blog. Some students use their blogs as ePortfolios to show their course work publicly - to instructors, certificate program coordinators and future employers.
.
Managing emails from discussions
No one has asked this question yet, but they will...
Managing emails from discussions
There are a lot of discussions in this course, so you need to figure out how to manage the flow. Each person is different so you will need to experiment. There are several different controls for viewing and receiving updates when new information is posted to a discussion.
Viewing postings - there is a pull-down menu over the forum topic display where you can control how you see all the postings - newest first, oldest first, threaded or nested.
Tracking - if you turn tracking on, you will see the number of new unread postings for each discussion forum displayed on the main page and in the forum page. This is a great feature, so you don't miss any new posts, and it tells you how many there are.
Subscribe - will send you notification whenever anyone posts to this forum or forum topic - these controls are in the forum itself, in messages you post, on the forums page that lists all the forums. You can un-subscribe to any of the forums except the News forum. Subscribe/Unsubscribe is a"link" in the upper right of a forum page.
In your personal profile, there are more controls where you can select to receive individual emails for posts or get them in a digest or batch emailed to you once a day. I like the daily batch - an email comes once a day that is a quick reminder of what's going on. This is a big help for busy students who appreciate a snapshot of the activity in the course without logging in. It is also a reminder to log in!
Experiment with these until you find the set that works best for you.
If this doesn't make any sense, wait a week. Then come back and review the information and adjust your discussion controls.
Managing emails from discussions
There are a lot of discussions in this course, so you need to figure out how to manage the flow. Each person is different so you will need to experiment. There are several different controls for viewing and receiving updates when new information is posted to a discussion.
Viewing postings - there is a pull-down menu over the forum topic display where you can control how you see all the postings - newest first, oldest first, threaded or nested.
Tracking - if you turn tracking on, you will see the number of new unread postings for each discussion forum displayed on the main page and in the forum page. This is a great feature, so you don't miss any new posts, and it tells you how many there are.
Subscribe - will send you notification whenever anyone posts to this forum or forum topic - these controls are in the forum itself, in messages you post, on the forums page that lists all the forums. You can un-subscribe to any of the forums except the News forum. Subscribe/Unsubscribe is a"link" in the upper right of a forum page.
In your personal profile, there are more controls where you can select to receive individual emails for posts or get them in a digest or batch emailed to you once a day. I like the daily batch - an email comes once a day that is a quick reminder of what's going on. This is a big help for busy students who appreciate a snapshot of the activity in the course without logging in. It is also a reminder to log in!
Experiment with these until you find the set that works best for you.
If this doesn't make any sense, wait a week. Then come back and review the information and adjust your discussion controls.
Friday, January 2, 2009
CIS2 Winter 2009
Course format
- one topic per week - textbook chapter, notes, assignments, activities, discussion
- all assignments due at 11:30pm on the specified due dates - see Syllabus for dates. Late work will be accepted but late penalty will apply
- watch for new posting to the News forum for announcements, changes and important information
- college level writing is required for all discussions and assignments
- many assignments require web research and citations (APA preferred though MLA citations will be accepted).
- NO on-campus meeting
- ask if you have questions or need clarification
- regularly participating in discussions
- allocating adequate time to do course work during the week
- completing all assignments on time
- taking responsibility for your own learning
- learning to use technology as an important part of the course work - online discussions, chat, collaborative writing, online tutoring, wikis, web-based supplemental materials
- understanding the Catalyst course management system tools and process
- appreciating the unconventional course experiences and the opportunity to interact with other students online
Friday, September 26, 2008
CIS2 does ePortfolios
This is a proof of concept - a demonstration of the use of ePortfolios in a Business / Computer Systems class.
While there are a number of products and services to support ePortfolios, Edublogs provides a great introductory platform. The prices is right - free. It supports the course-level aggregation of students’ work, and it lives beyond a school semester.
So here we go!
.
While there are a number of products and services to support ePortfolios, Edublogs provides a great introductory platform. The prices is right - free. It supports the course-level aggregation of students’ work, and it lives beyond a school semester.
So here we go!
.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
