Rules are the solutions to yesterday's problems.
Survey of principles and techniques of college-level instruction via the Internet. Students create an Internet-based course or create/modify administrative policy to bring it into alignment with Internet instruction.
Prerequisites: College level instructor or administrator. Must have E-mail, Internet access and access to a web site for posting assignments. Permission of instructor is necessary for enrollment. For more details see initial information page at http://edtech.wku.edu/~internet/faq. Use of course software is acceptable and even encouraged because of its ease of use.
The person who maintains a regular schedule of working on the course and who is eager to interact with others around the course topics.
On-line learners should
NOT expect to be learning in isolation. The more you share and discuss on-line,
the more you will enjoy the class. I expect twice weekly and even daily interaction,
either with me or with other students, using any of a variety of tools, such
as E-mail or a discussion board. If the on-line student desires, face-to-face
or telephone meetings are great. Regular interaction helps you be successful.
In general I keep required synchronous and face-to-face meetings to a
minimum to maintain maximum scheduling flexibility for the student.
I would enjoy the opportunity to meet you during the first two weeks of the term if it is convenient for you. Please schedule an appointment. (I have two offices so finding me by chance is unlikely.) If coming to Bowling Green is a burden, let us schedule a phone call-- I can call you to save you the long distance charge.
Students with disabilities who require accommodations (academic adjustments and/or auxiliary aids or services) for this course must contact the Office for Student Disability Services, Room 445, Potter Hall. The OFSDS telephone number is (270)745-5004 V/TDD.
Please DO NOT request accommodations directly from the instructor without a letter of accommodation from the Office for Student Disability Services.
Sally L. Kuhlenschmidt, Ph.D.
| Professor of Psychology | Director | |
| Cravens Ground Floor | ||
| Department of Psychology | Center for Teaching and Learning | |
| 1 Big Red Way | 1 Big Red Way | |
| Western Kentucky University | Western Kentucky University | |
| Bowling Green, KY 42101 | Bowling Green, KY 42101 | |
| Contact me | Contact me | |
| http://www.wku.edu/~sally.kuhlenschmidt/ | http://www.wku.edu/teaching | |
| (270)745-6508 | ||
| FAX: (270)745-6145 |
| Time Zone: | Central |
| E-mail: |
Contact
me
|
| Office Hours: | You can
typically reach me most quickly via E-mail. I am most likely in the Psychology Department late afternoons and evenings (and weekends) or afternoons Tuesdays and Thursdays, and at the CTL on Monday and Wednesday. Fridays I may be either place, but more likely in Psychology. I respond well to scheduled meetings, either in person, by phone or via live chat. I have an administrative appointment as Director of the Center for Teaching & Learning and it sometimes results in unavoidable meetings during scheduled office hours. |
The student needs to be able to use E-mail and access the Internet reliably and on an every other day basis. The latest browser verison is recommended, preferably Netscape or Internet Explorer. I usually work in Netscape and on PC's so I tend to report directions for that environment. If you are operating under another system (e.g., Macs or IE) I'll need your help in adapting. Let me know if something doesn't make sense.
I avoid requiring specialized equipment or software. What I post can be accessed by a browser version 1 or 2 behind the most current one.
This is a Pass/Fail course. Those who participate in weekly discussions and prepare a web site consistent with the guidelines (listed at the end of the course) will pass. Completion of weekly assignments (found at the end of each of the weekly commentaries) will result in your fulfilling the guidelines. There are two tiers of guidelines, a simpler one for weekly contributors and a more detailed one for occasional contributors. Occasionally a person needs a different sort of project. Speak with me.
Contributing to course discussions is an ongoing Assignment.
On occasion you will see assignments labeled "Instructors" or "Administrators." You are only expected to do the task associated with your goals for the course.
I provide some activities, such as self-graded quizzes, (labeled "Activities" or "optional") which are, cleverly enough, optional.
When you have completed the course and I have reviewed your creation and am ready to assign a grade, I can notify you of the grade in an E-mail, with a copy to the Correspondance office person who is responsible administratively for recording the grade.
As E-mail is NOT a private medium, I need your permission to forward your grade to you personally by way of E-mail. The student information form (http://edtech.wku.edu/~internet/studinfo.htm), linked on the home page or in the Course Information section of the Blackboard/CourseInfo site, provides you the opportunity to tell me how you want to receive your grade.
If you don't want it E-mailed, it will be available in the typical manner that grades are announced by WKU.
In the event of a local emergency that results in loss of connection (a technology breakdown, typhoon, dust storm, hurricane, earthquake, war, etc.) do your best to contact me by any means once it is reasonable to do so. If circumstances permit, continue to make reasonable independent efforts toward course completion as per the syllabus.
It would be wise to arrange a back up plan for Internet access in case your primary computer fails. Libraries may offer a terminal, for example. For WKU faculty, the Center for Teaching & Learning has several computers with Internet access for instructors only (hours 8-4:30). Western tends to do maintenance tasks on the weekends so you may experience periodic outages, particularly Sunday morning.
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Course Security: In the event you use a public terminal
(say at a hotel or library) you need to completely close the browser
software when you are finished. This will prevent another person from
accessing the course using your identification and doing mischief in
your name.
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Common courtesy as explained by course netiquette (http://edtech.wku.edu/~internet/netiquet.htm or see Course Information in the Blackboard/CourseInfo site) and the rules on page 112 of Porter will serve as guidelines for behavior in the class. Please review p. 112. Another guide to on-line behavior is: Net User Guidelines and Netiquette (http://www.fau.edu/netiquette/net/index.html).
Do not copy anything (including photos and images) from anyone for your class projects unless the creator gives explicit permission. You may print a single copy of my commentaries for your personal use. You may quote short passages if you give me credit. You may use ideas and facts. You may copy html code without fear of censure. However...
This is my formal notice that you do not have permission to make multiple copies of my materials or, in any other fashion, to copy my materials beyond the single printout for personal use.
As I am in the role of model to other teachers, I'm taking a rather conservative position on the issue of intellectual property.
It is up to you to structure your time to complete the material. I am able to observe in the course software the hours and amount that you visit the course. You will find it helpful if you also track your hours. I am interested in knowing how you are working.
I have provided a schedule sheet on which you can track your hours. Obtain your schedule sheet from: http://edtech.wku.edu/~internet/sched.htm or check under Course Information in the Blackboard/CourseInfo site.
Based on reports from prior students, I recommend that you
Why twice weekly? The literature on learning suggests that several small lessons are more effective than one large one in achieving learning. You may certainly visit more often than twice weekly. I don't recommend coming less often and some assignments will assume at least two visits.
It helps me to know the actual times you work because later I arrange a few synchronous or live-chat sessions and need to structure them around your availability. A second reason is that the Internet instructor is a facilitator of the student. I can more effectively help you if I know what your patterns are.
It helps you to structure your time if you have recorded the data. Humans typically mislead themselves about how they spend their time (either over or underestimating). Recording at the time you actually do it gives you a more accurate view.
I assume that most of my current students have never taken a course over the Internet and are interested in exploring that experience. Some study skills from face-to-face courses will carry over, such as actively thinking about the information. (After all, our basic biology/options for sensory input and concept processing don't change just because we use a computer).
Some new skills will be needed, such as learning how to read on-line.
And some old skills will interfer with learning in this new medium. (Specifically, "trying to be thorough" will work against you).
I hope you will actively discuss with coursemates the effective and ineffective study strategies that you discover this semester. You may wish to keep a simple diary of your studying experiences to better help your future Internet students.
Educators do tend, however, to be perfectionists. The upside of precision is that tasks are completed with excellence. The downside may be hesitancy to share works in progress and spending excessive time in creation.
Web course construction can become a time sink. There is always something you can do to make your site communicate better. One skill of Internet instruction is learning to limit the quest for perfection and to move on to the task of teaching. A good mantra is "Keep it simple, sage." (Also known as KISS).
Sharing your working drafts with others is a fast and easy way to improve your course. I hope we will together create an atmosphere in which people are eager to share their drafts. That will require people to be careful and clear in what they convey to each other.
Communication by text lacks the nonverbal signals which smooth everyday communication. When sharing opinions, edit your messages several times for meaning and nuance. On the other hand, don't worry about your grammar and spelling in the discussion groups. It is more important that you contribute ideas and opinions than that you do so perfectly. On the Internet we all have to work harder to establish the interpersonal connections that enhance education and motivation.
As you can see, a web course offers a different degree of privacy/ publicness than does a traditional course. I am informing you about visitors before we begin so you may choose appropriate actions. I will construe your continuing in the course as permission for visitors to come. I anticipate that they will be most interested in my behavior (not yours) and I will be careful in whom I give permission to enter our space. It is rare to have a visitor (twice in four years).
Course information continues with General Internet Policies (at another webpage: http://edtech.wku.edu/~internet/internetpolicy.htm). Within the Blackboard Course Site, you can move to the next link in the Course Information section.
Contact the author with comments or questions about this site by following the directions at this page (which will open in a new window.)
Website created: December 1996. Page Created: January 18, 1998. Last Modified: August 13, 2002.