WELCOME and WHERE HELP IS AVAILABLE
Welcome to my Internet class. Although this course is designed to be user-friendly, I expect some of you to experience difficulty from time to time. If it is not a technical difficulty, remember that you can always call my office (903) 510-2778 or my home (903) 894-6757 and leave a message. You can also send an e-mail to my office at
or you can come by my office in Jenkins Hall, room 137. My office hours for this semester are found on my web site.
If you have technical difficulties, please call the TJC Help Desk at 510-2413. Be aware that their office hours are as follows: Summer M-F 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.; Fall and Spring M-R 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. and F 6:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. If it is after hours, leave a message for a return call. Your message should include (a) your name and social security number, (b) the course for which you are enrolled, (c) a brief description of the problem, a telephone number where you can be reached and the times you can be reached at that number. You can also send an e-mail to the Help Desk at
to receive technical assistance. However, make sure of the following before you call for technical assistance. (a) You do not have access to the course unless you are officially enrolled in the class. (b) Your access to the class does not become available until the semester begins, which is the first day of regular classes, not the day of your orientation to the class. (c) You must have adequate computer capability and appropriate software (See #2 below).
COURSE and COMPUTER PREREQUISITES
The following prerequisites must be met in order for you to remain enrolled in the course:
1. You must have successfully completed English 1302 or 2311 or an equivalent course.
2. You must have access to a computer with the appropriate software, including Netscape Navigator 4.7 (or better) or Microsoft Explorer 4.0 (or better) and a modem for Internet connectivity. MICROSOFT WORD is recommended as the word processing program. The computer should be a Pentium or better with 32mb of RAM, equipped with Windows 98 or above. Computers are available in several areas of the TJC campus, including the Vaughn Electronic Research Center (2nd floor of the library, telephone 510-2570), the RTDC (Room 124, telephone 533-0330), and the Pirtle Technology Computer Lab (Room T315, telephone 510-2531). Check for times available and terms of use. There may be a reasonable charge for the printing of each page of material, and you should also bring your own disk to use, if needed.
3. You must be reasonably computer literate.
4. You must attend a scheduled orientation for the class or agree to be responsible for all of the information in the ORIENTATION TO ENGLISH 2333I handout (This is the handout that you are reading.).
5. You must come on campus to complete the major tests, the in-class themes, and the final examination. In addition, you must make written postings to either (a) class discussion questions or comments by other students or (b) answer questions posed by me via WebCT on a bi-weekly basis. In most instances, you will be making a response to questions/prompts over the assigned reading materials. These postings must be made to the Discussions site or to the Mail site of my WebPages.
6. You must purchase the textbooks for the class, which are The Norton Anthology of Western Literature, Vol. II, 8th ed. and Trimmers Guide to Documentation, 6th or 7th ed., both of which are available in the bookstores.
7. You must log on at least twice a week during specified days (Monday through Wednesday and Thursday through Saturday) and complete the tasks by the stated deadlines using the methods prescribed by the instructor.
LOG ON INSTRUCTIONS
STEP 1: To gain access to my course on the web, go to the TJC home page and click on Apache Access, which will bring you to this website:
Enter your "A" number (TJC ID) and then your password, which is the six digit date of your birth (mmddyy), then click on the Login box. Next, click on the phrase My Online Courses on the left side of the page. Next, click on the on-line course you desire to access (World Literature II) .Next, under the phrase which reads "To Access Your Course, Please click on the line below" there is a phrase that reads Click Here. Click on those words!
STEP 2: You are now at the WebCT log-in page. Click on the log on to link. When the next page appears, type in your username (WebCT ID) and password. Your username is your TJC ID, commonly called the "A number." Your password is your six digit date of birth, mmddyy. For example, Roger Don Smith, whose A number is 00011111 and whose birthday is December 1, 1983, would have the username (or WebCT ID) of A00011111 (note that the A is in capital letters) and the password would be 120183.
VCT STUDENTS ONLY: The log-in for VCT students is somewhat different. Those students use the following procedure once they have completed STEP 1 above and are at the WebCT log-in page (STEP 2).
The Username or WebCT ID for Students from other Colleges taking VCT Classes from TJC = your three initials (Use lower case) + the last four numbers of your telephone number. For those who registered using only your first and last name, use only the two first letters of those two names, followed by the last four numbers of your telephone.
Password = tyler (Be sure to change the password to something you'll remember during your first log-in)
Example:
For All Students:
Note that you may access your web-based course from any computer that has Internet access. You get to the course by going to the TJC homepage and clicking on Apache Access. Note also that your access to the course is password protected, so you must log on each time you enter the classroom.
ATTENDING TO BUSINESS
I strongly recommend that you access your course daily to read the discussions by other students and mail messages. I also strongly advise you to make a copy of your "posts," which should be printed by you after the "posts" have been placed on the Discussion Board. Those posts have a time and date of the posting and are your "proof" that you posted to the topic as required. I strongly advise you to keep postings and other copied material (such as lecture notes) in a course notebook. Remember that you usually have a responsibility to post items to the Discussions or Mail site twice a week; that's how I know you have been to class and it's how you earn 2/5 of your grade in the course. May I suggest that you first explore the web pages of my class, and then you should quickly begin to take care of your first "assignments"?
REALITY CHECK (ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND?)
Here's a word of caution for those of you who are taking your first online learning class. Realize that this class will require you to spend at least the same amount of time as a class that meets three hours a week in a classroom, and some students find that a web-based course takes more time. The chief difference is that the student chooses the time of day or night to "enter" the virtual classroom, but not how often. For this class, plan to spend approximately three hours a week in reading information sent to you by your instructor or in making the usual (not always) two postings per week. In addition, plan to spend six hours a week completing the reading assignments in your textbook or reading material posted on the web. You will also have to go to the TJC Testing Center to complete two major tests and take the final examination except for Virtual College students.
Here are some questions to ask yourself before you decide to remain enrolled in this or any other web-based class. If you are unable to answer "yes" to all of the questions below, online learning is probably (95% probability) not for you.
1.
Am I self-directed, highly motivated, and self-disciplined?2.
Can I set a personal schedule and complete tasks by required dates?3.
Are my writing and communication skills better than average?4.
Do I try to solve problems and work through difficulties independently?5.
Can I read and follow detailed instructions on my own?6.
Am I already comfortable with using the Internet as a means of communication and research?7.
Do I own or have access to a computer with Internet access and email?IMPORTANT AREAS ON THIS WEBSITE
Once you have logged on to the course, you'll be at the Homepage. On the left side of the Homepage is the Course Menu on what is called the Navigation Bar. The Navigation Bar is the quick way to move from screen to screen. Directly under the Course Menu is a link listed as e-Learning Hub. If you click on the e-Learning Hub, you'll find a site that helps in understanding all WebCT courses. Two links that are very helpful in this tutorial site are Student Orientation and Academic Support (free tutorial assistance). On the right side of the Homepage are the box icons that will connect you to the major links of the class when you click on them. Here's a summary of those links:
Weekly Assignments-This link contains a month's list of tasks to complete, beginning with the first month of the class. When you click upon a particular month, you'll find each week's assignments, which are divided into twice-a-week tasks to complete (by certain deadlines). Observe those deadlines carefully. The two weekly time periods are Monday through Wednesday and Thursday through Saturday. The day starts at 12:01 a.m. and it ends at 11:59 p.m.
Course Content and Related Materials-This site has four links for you to access and is where most of your time will be spent. The Calendar link helps you to keep track of weekly assignments, important dates, and deadlines; it restates what is in the Weekly Assignments. The link entitled Assignments clearly sets forth the tasks for you to complete and are listed by the number, so you would click on Assignment 1, Assignment 2, etc. to obtain instructions to complete each task. The Lecture and Discussion Topics link contains topics for thought/discussion and lectures of your instructor. This information is needed to complete certain assignments, and much of this information will be found on major tests and the final exam.. Click on one of the lectures to see what you find. The External Links will not be used until later in the course, but they will be useful when you begin to write your research paper.
Communication Tools-This link has two sub-links that will be frequently used by each student. The Mail link can be used for students to communicate privately with your instructor. The Discussions link is where students "post" assignments for the instructor and other students to read.
TJC Testing Center-This link connects you to the web page of the TJC Testing Center, which allows you to know their office hours and other services/restrictions. I encourage you to view that site to see their office hours before you take a test.
Getting Started With an Internet Course-This link is especially designed for students who are enrolled in their first internet course.
Syllabus-This link contains general information about the course and the instructor, including office hours, etc.
GRADING SCHEME
Completion of Assignments (Includes Research Papers) .. 40%
Two Major Tests 20%
Two themes (best two grades) 20%
Final Exam ..20%
*Posting completed after the deadline will not be graded and the student receives a zero for that assignment.