Online Courses Courses that are offered entirely online require some different activities then the traditional face-to-face classes. This means that the student must adjust to a number of procedures and requirements not normally observed in traditional face-to-face courses. The electronic medium opens wonderful opportunities while carrying a large baggage of lethal misconceptions. James Burke and Robert Ornstein state the following in their book The Axmaker's Gift:
Through history, when the axmakers [inventors in general] changed our world …, we were in most cases willing and eager participants in the matter. Most of the time the axmaker's gift was irresistible. More often than not it was a cure for a disease, or a faster way to do something, or a means to facilitate what we wanted to do. So we came back for more, unmindful of the other, not easily visible, changes the gift may eventually bring. But we could never unmake history, and with each gift there was no choice but to adapt to the effects of the change. (James Burke and Robert Ornstein, The Axmaker's Gift: Technology's Capture and Control of Our Minds and Future. New York: Putnam, 1995): p.xivOne of the difficult adjustments to make when taking courses online is to fit the demands of our everyday life to what on the surface appears to be the relaxed even unchallenging atmosphere of the course's requirements. The fact that we can attend classes in a virtual environment while eating a dessert or having dinner, or the fact that one may have an entire day to engage in a discussion in the Discussion Board colors the seriousness of the course requirements and hides the self-discipline needed to meet the deadlines. The assignments themselves, no matter how many references the instructor may give, are mistaken by inexperienced students as being modern versions of courses by correspondence. The point is frequently missed that the assignments the instructor gives, are only tips of incredibly large icebergs. They only scratch the surface of all of the information available throughout the world on a particular subject. How much to do and how far to go into the never-never land of the World Wide Web in search for information about the subject or subjects studied are entirely up to the student. How much has the student done on his/her own is shown in the outcomes of the course's quizzes, assignments and exams.
We make use of Blackboard to deliver the course. Blackboard is an electronic environment with a wide range of services. An explanation of how to enter and register in Blackboard will be sent to you before or during the first days of the term. In the mean time, we have the following suggestions to succeed in the course.
1. Read all correspondence and documents from the instructor.
2. Check regularly the sections of Blackboard labeled "Announcements", "Homework", "Lecture" and "Course Documents".
a. Important unexpected changes in the schedules of the class, reminders of deadlines, and explanations of passages that may be unclear in a given assignment are listed under Announcements.
3. It is the responsibility of the student to keep a copy of all assignments pertaining to each course.
4. Completion of all required work at the required deadline is itself a requirement of crucial importance to each course.
5. The adherence to instructions is probably the most important point to follow in order to avoid difficulties. Following a simple procedure makes it possible for the professor to answer expeditiously all processed assignments and exams.
6. Begin to prepare your assignments, exams etc., ahead of time. Do not assume your computer or the server will operate the moment you need them. Test your computer every so often to make sure it is operating satisfactorily. Do not wait until a few moments before discussion time to try to enter Blackboard. Entering your group in Blackboard to do the chats takes time under the best circumstances. DO NOT WAIT FOR THE LAST MOMENT.
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