Preparing, Monitoring & Supporting Plus Students
(Draft 4.09)
Contents
Promoting and Supporting Student Success & Persistence 2
Preparing Students for Online Courses 2
Creating Awareness of the Online Course Option 2
Screening (In Development) 2
Required Course Pre-Requisites & Materials 3
Orientation (In Development) 6
AiPOD Online Course Policies (Source eCollege 4.24.09) 6
Campus-Specific Plus Policies & Practices (In Development) 17
Developing Plus Policies & Practices: 17
Monitoring Percentage of Student Coursework Taken Online 18
Student Communication & Coordination (In Development) 18
AiPODTools for Monitoring Students 19
Overview of Available Student Information 19
Activity Report: Overview of Report Content 21
Guidelines to Use Communicator Information System 22
Accessing Student Activity Reports from eCollege on the FTP Site 29
Student Issue Escalation Procedure 35
Overview of the Issue Escalation Process 35
Initial Review by Plus Lead/Advocate 35
Completing the Online Student Issue Escalation Form 37
Online Program Director Review 37
Promoting and Supporting Student Success & Persistence
Preparing Students for Online Courses
Creating Awareness of the Online Course Option
Campuses employ a variety of strategies and techniques to introduce and create awareness of the online course option to prospective new and continuing students. Some techniques are singular in focus, like a promotional campaign, and intended to creatively get someone’s attention and highlight the benefits of taking online. Other communication techniques go beyond this and convey more information on what students can expect in online classes.
* See the Plus Resource Link / Best Practices for a look at some exceptionally creative Promotional Campaigns
Screening (In Development)
Students that are new to online courses (including both new and continuing students) require additional support and care as they consider the online course option. It is important that any campus staff working with potential students (Plus Lead, Advisor, Admissions Rep) take the time necessary to educate and screen students.
§ Reasonable expectations of the work necessary to be successful: It is important that campuses accurately communicate not only the benefits, but also the rigors and expectations of these classes. Often students make assumptions about the level of difficulty and the amount of time flexibility in an online class. The accelerated pace of most AiPOD’s courses is often overlooked when students consider online.
§ Information to assess their learning style and comfort level with the online learning platform. There are important differences between the traditional and the online classroom.
Some of the screening techniques that campuses employ are listed below.
§ One-on-One Meetings: Some campuses require prospective students to meet one-on-one with a Plus Advocate so that they can share Plus program information and allow the student to ask questions.
§ Self - Assessment Surveys: A few campuses distribute some type of a self-assessment survey for students to complete and determine if they are a fit for online courses. (See Plus Resource Link / Best Practices / Student Assessment Questionnaire for Online Courses).
§ New Student Orientation Sessions or Freshman Studies Classes: Some Advocates will make a brief presentation about the online course option during New Student Orientation or Freshman Studies course.
§ Campus Restrictions: Approximately ½ of Ai Plus campuses have set up program restrictions on what students can take online classes. These restrictions can be based, i.e. academic standing, student classification (new), whether they are enrolled in any on ground classes.
§ Websites: A few campuses have developed websites that not only serve to communicate program information to Plus students currently enrolled in online classes but also set up to provide introductory program information to new Plus students. Below is a list of some of these websites:
Required Course Pre-Requisites & Materials
To get off to a good start in an online course, it is important that a student has met the course pre-requisites and have the proper course materials prior to the first day of class. The AiPOD Online Course Catalog includes course sequences and descriptions which list prerequisite courses (knowledge and skill areas) as well as the required text books, software and any other course materials. No special accommodations are made for online students, including Plus students that have not met pre-requisites or do not have the required course materials on-hand by the first day of class. Course descriptions can be found in AiPOD’s Online Course Catalog, in a student’s online classroom and on the Plus Resource Link. For specific questions about pre-requisites or course materials, contact the applicable AiPOD Online Program Director.
Pre-requisites
AiPOD’s Online Course Catalog, its descriptions and course sequences, reflect Ai Pittsburgh’s curriculum and are geared to AiPOD’s fully online students. Even if a campus has determined an AiPOD course is fully equivalent to an on ground course, campuses must pay close attention to the pre-requisites listed in the online course description and the prior year’s course sequence.
Some information to keep in mind:
· Plus students should have completed the pre-requisite courses listed in the course description OR obtained the equivalent skills and knowledge in another course on ground.
· If a pre-requisite course is listed in the AiPOD course description, it is also important to review any pre-requisites noted in that course(s) as well.
· Regardless of whether a pre-requisite course requirement is listed, AiPOD’s prior course year sequence should be reviewed to ensure that a student has obtained the pre-requisite knowledge and skills.
It is assumed that AiPOD will not force a student to drop an online course if they have not met the required pre-requisites; however, they can advise a student (or Plus campus Lead) that it may be in their best interest to drop the class until they have met the pre-requisites
Regardless of how Ai schools handle registration for online courses, it is essential that students be made fully aware of pre-requisites and the assumed risk if they are not met in advance of a course start. Campuses are encouraged to develop mechanisms to ensure that this critical information is relayed to students and all those on campus that support Plus students.
Texts, Software and Other Course Materials
It is essential that students have the exact textbooks, software and other materials cited in AiPOD’s Online Course Catalog on hand by the first day of class. Students that do not have course materials will have difficulty catching up on reading and assignments because most of AiPOD’s courses are accelerated (5-1/2 Weeks).
§ Differences in Software /Books: Sometimes there are differences in the course materials required for an equivalent course offered on ground. Plus students are required to use the exact text books and software listed in the AiPOD Catalog. Special care should be given to reviewing software requirements. One of AiPOD’s factors in determining classroom software is that it be affordable to fully online students. As a result, software requirements in an online course may differ from what is used in an equivalent on ground course.
§ Purchasing Software/Books: Students can purchase their course materials through any vendor. MBS and JourneyEd are vendors that generally have an inventory of AiPOD’s course materials in stock. (If a student purchases a text from a vendor other than MBS they should take special care too make sure that is the exact edition listed in the AiPOD Catalog.) Students should search for their course materials on these sites by using the AiPOD course code, not their campus code for the equivalent course. MBS and JourneyEd links are available on the Plus Campus Common and on the Plus Resource Link. Typically the MBS bookstore is opened one month of advance of a new session start. AiPOD/OHE will contact the Plus Leads if there are any problems with course materials.
§ First Week’s Readings: For some classes, AiPOD has permission from publishers to make available the First Week’s Readings to students. If a First Week’s Reading is available in a specific class, a student will see the link in their online classroom. Below is a list of the First Week’s Readings (Updated 2/9/09).
Orientation (In Development)
AiPOD Online Orientation Tutorial – AiPOD provides access to an Online Orientation Tutorial when students first register for online classes. This orientation is a requirement for AiPOD’s fully online students; however, it is up to the campus to determine if it enforces this policy. Plus Leads have the ability to check whether its students new to online learning have completed the orientation, but checking in the appropriate Orientation Term (See Plus Resource Link / Plus Student Registration Processes & Timeline for more details)
AiPOD Knowledge Tutorials – See Plus Resource Link / Plus Program Overview of Services & Operations.
Campus-based Orientation – A number of campuses have developed a campus-based orientation to present to students. This program augments the AiPOD Online Orientation and sometimes provides an overview of Plus specific policies and practices on campus.
AiPOD Online Course Policies (Source eCollege 4.24.09)
♦ Attendance / ♦ Reliable Research and Use of Sources / ♦ Instructional Commitment to Our Students♦ In Case of Emergency / ♦ Course Materials / ♦ Grading
♦ Participation Policy / ♦ Disability Information / ♦ Important Information for Interior Design Students
♦ Communications / ♦ Lessons and Days of the Week
♦ Policy on Plagiarism / ♦ Late Work Guidelines
Attendance
Students must be present in class at least four out of seven days each week during Weeks 1 through 5, and at least two out of three days in Week 6. Attendance is measured by electronically recording the posting date on which a student makes a classroom posting, such as submitting an assignment or interacting in the course discussions.
A one-day period is defined as the period of twenty-four hours from 3:01 A.M. MST to 3:00 A.M. MST the following day. For a post to count as attendance towards a particular day, it must be completed within this time period. For example, if a student posts on Wednesday 2:58 A.M. MST, it counts as attendance for Tuesday. If the same student posts seven minutes later at 3:05 A.M. MST, it counts as attendance on Wednesday.
Students are not required to attend on any specific day; however, all assignments must be posted by the specified due date. Students may post assignments prior to the due date during the week the assignment is due.
During the drop/add period of Week 1, the student must post at least an autobiography and respond to one discussion question or assignment to be confirmed as a participant in the course. Failure to accomplish this could result in the student being automatically withdrawn from the course.
A missed day of attendance is calculated based on the attendance requirements for each week. A student, who accumulates more than four days of missed attendance per course, will be placed on Participation Probation. Should a student miss eight days or more, he/she will be suspended from the course and receive a failing grade. The faculty member has the right to exempt a student from termination if there are mitigating circumstances and alternative arrangements have been made.
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In Case of Emergency
For absences due to prolonged serious illness or personal emergency the student is expected to follow the steps outlined below:
· Contact your facilitator as soon as possible. The facilitator can be reached by e-mail or within the classroom. Failure to notify the facilitator will be considered a missed deadline. All assigned work must be completed regardless of the reason for absence.
· Contact your AIP-OD Advisor or On-Campus PLUS point/contact person and advise them of your personal emergency within 48 hours.
· Provide documentation substantiating the mitigating circumstance.
For absences due to technical problems, the student is expected to follow the steps outlined below:
· Contact technical support immediately to make a record of the incident.
· Contact your facilitator as soon as possible. Failure to notify the facilitator will be considered a missed deadline. All assigned work must be completed regardless of the reason for absence.
· Contact your AIP-OD Advisor or On-Campus PLUS point/contact person and advise them of your technical difficulties within 48 hours.
· It is your responsibility to find another source for Internet service such as a public library, Internet café or a friend's computer.
· Please be advised that in the unforeseen event that you must formally withdraw from the course you are required to contact your AIP-OD Advisor or On-Campus PLUS point/contact person.
· Student should write down the instructor's, advisor's, and helpdesk contact information outside of the computer in case of such situations.
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Substantive Participation Policy Criteria
Successful online learning requires active and timely participation in the Discussion Area. Students earn weekly participation grades based upon the quality of their responses to weekly assignments, including discussion questions. Participation point values in the learning experience are defined within each assignment as presented in the grading criteria or as directed by the facilitator.
Students are expected to read the online lecture and all posts in the Discussion Area. Posting assignments or e-mails to students and/or faculty outside of classroom threads does not count as participation.
1. Substantive participation consists of responses to classmates or the instructor in classroom discussions that relate to the course subject matter. Substantive responses should not be mere opinion, but must be based upon:
o the course content
o assigned reading
o related outside resources
o personal experience relevant to the week's topics
2. Quality participation in the discussion occurs by:
o asking a question that generates more discussion
o providing a statement of clarification
o providing a point of view with rationale
o challenging a point of discussion
o making a relationship between one or more points of the discussion
3. Participation is an opportunity for your instructor to see what you have learned and for you to demonstrate your comprehension of the materials. Substantive discussion should include the use of: