Haywood Community College

General Course Information & Instructional Support

Department of Business & Industry

CIS110INA1 - Introduction to ComputersSpring2017

Delivery Method:Online

Instructor:Russ Virgo

Office Phone:(828)564-5121

Email:

Office Hours:Tues/Wed10am-11:301pm to 2pm; or by appointment)

Office: Freedlander Learning Center (200 Building), Room 213

Class Time:None

Department Assistant:Julie Newland at (828) 565-4080)

Learning Support Services (LSS)-Main Campus

Free Tutoring, Grammar Evaluations, Workshops, and Test Proctoring

Mon. - Wed. & Fri. 8AM-4PM (Testing begins at 9AM)

Thurs. 8AM-7PM

Appointments: (828) 627-4696

Learning Support Services (LSS)-Regional High Technology Center

Free Tutoring: Mon. – Thurs. 4PM-6PM

Distance Learning Help Desk (Moodle): (828) 627-4619

IT Help Desk (email, Portal, WebAdvisor): (828) 565-4009

Library (LRC) Circulation Desk: (828) 627-4550

HCC Security Office: (828) 627-4514

HCC Security Cell: (828) 734-5410

Armed Resource Officer: (828)593-8477

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Course Syllabus

Section 1, course-specific policies & information

Course Description

This course introduces computer concepts, including fundamental functions and operations of the computer. Topics include identification of hardware components, basic computer operations, security issues, and use of software applications. Upon completion, students should be able to demonstrate an understanding of the role and function of computers and use the computer to solve problems. This course has been approved to satisfy the Comprehensive Articulation Agreement general education core requirement in natural science/mathematics (Quantitive Option).

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Prerequisite:None

Instructional Materials

  • New Perspectives on Microsoft Office 2013 First CourseISBN 978-1-285-16764-0
  • This course requires access to a computer with MicrosoftOffice 365 (2013 or 2016 version), a suite of office productivity applications. Be aware that previous versions such as Office 2010 will not be an acceptable substitute.If you do not currently have Microsoft Office on your home computer, you can download the free student version. See the Course Information section of the course home page for information on downloading the free student version of Microsoft Office.
  • Mozilla Firefox or Google Chrome web browsers should be used for best performance with HCC’s online course software.

Grading Practices

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How Grades Are Computed:
Hands-On Tasks: 50%

Review Questions: 20%
Quizzes: 20%
Final Exam: 10%

Grading Scale

A: 90-100

B: 80-89

C: 70-79

D: 60-69

F: 0-59

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Please note that grades are not mailed. You may access grades, unofficial transcripts, and schedules online through your student WebAdvisor account.

Task Completion Policy

Due Dates

Assignments will be posted weekly on the course home page and due as specified, usually every Tuesday night at 11:55pm. It is the student’s responsibility to keep track of weekly assignments and insure they are submitted on time. Keeping up with the weekly assignments without the pressure of regular class meetings takes discipline but it’s vital to your success in this course. The course home page is always the most current source of assignments and due dates.

Every semester there seems to be at least one student who misses several consecutive weeks and then asks to "make up" the work. Experience has shown this is not a practical alternative. Additional course work keeps coming on a weekly basis and those who want to "make up" course work never get caught up. If you've encountered issues that will prevent you from completing the course work for a limited period of time, we may be able to work out an alternative if you contact your instructor ahead of time.

Late Assignments

Given the nature of technology, an occasional connectivity problem with the course website is not only possible but likely. Computer failures, communication problems, power outages, and ISP issues can all interfere with your ability to access this information and post your assignments. There is no way to guarantee 100% reliable access to the course material throughout every moment of the semester. For these reasons, late assignments will be accepted without penalty up to one week following the due date. This one-week grace period is intended to cover a myriad of potential problems including personal emergencies and equipment issues at your end as well as connectivity issues at our end.

I urge you not to use this grace period as additional time to complete assignments. If you grow accustomed to using the grace period to complete these assignments, you'll eventually find yourself trying to finish on a Sunday night the week following the due date and run into a connectivity problem. Even if the issue is an equipment failure here at HCC, I will not be sympathetic in such circumstances. The one-week grace period is intended to compensate for equipment and connectivity problems, not to give you an additional week to complete assignments. Late assignments will not be accepted after the one-week grace period for any reason. There will be no exceptions and no excuses. It is the student's responsibility to keep track of all assignments and insure they are completed and submitted on time.

Attendance Policy

Students who fail to submit an assignment for two consecutive weeks will be withdrawn. The last day to voluntarily withdraw is Friday, April 7th. See Attendance Policy in Section 3 for full details on attendance and withdrawals.

Academic Honesty: see Section 3 for full HCC policy and consequences of academic dishonesty.

A guide for understanding plagiarism and how to avoid it is available through the Library’s resource webpages:

Course Competencies

Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:

  1. Understand and explain the different types of computers available
  2. Identify and explain the role of the core hardware components of a personal computer including motherboard, CPU, RAM, storage devices, expansion cards, input devices, and output devices
  3. Explain the role and function of computer networks, including common connection methods such as dialup, Wi-Fi, DSL and cable
  4. Use the Internet to browse and search the World Wide Web and to send/receive email
  5. Identify and explain how to avoid common security threats present on personal computers
  6. Explain the role and function of computer software, including system software and application software
  7. Use storage management techniques such as creating, copying, moving and deleting files and folders
  8. Create, edit, and save Microsoft Office documents
  9. Understand how to copy, paste, move, and delete text
  10. Use formatting capabilities such as fonts, bold, underline, text alignment, bullet points, tables, headers, and footers
  11. Enhance the appearance of a document using WordArt, borders, and images
  12. Use formulas to calculate values in a spreadsheet
  13. Copy formulas using relative and absolute cell referencing
  14. Understand how to use Excel functions in a spreadsheet
  15. Create charts and graphs using data in an Excel spreadsheet
  16. Create PowerPoint presentations including the slide design, slide transition, and animation features

Course Instructional Methods

  • lecture
  • cooperative learning
  • problem-based learning

Projected Schedule of Assignments

Unit Slide Presentations: These presentations about computer concepts are provided with an accompanying voice lecture so you have the opportunity to hear a lecture similar to what you’d find in a classroom setting. The same presentations are available without the voice lecture as well. The Review Questions are based on the Unit Slide Presentations.

Review Questions: These are objective questions based on the computer concepts discussed in the Unit Slide Presentations. You may take as long as you wish to answer these questions and can make multiple attempts. Thus there is no reason to do poorly on these Review Questions and they serve as excellent preparation for the Quizzes.

Quizzes:These are similar in format to the Review Questions but will be timed such that it is not possible to research each question and finish within the given time period. Also, only one attempt is allowed. Thus a firm knowledge of the course material will be required to do well on the quizzes.

Hands-on Tasks: These are designed to give you experience working with and using various features of the Microsoft Office applications. These exercises are usually (but not always) based on tutorials in the Microsoft Office text. These tutorials tend to be highly detailed and will be challenging to complete in a distance learning setting but the ability to utilize Microsoft Office is a key part of the course objectives.

Final Exam:This is a comprehensive exam comprising the material in the four quizzes found throughout the semester.

The schedule of topics and assignments is as follows (subject to change):

WeekTopics
1Course Intro Unit 1A - Computer Basics

& Unit 1B – Files & File Management

Syllabus Review Questions

Unit 1A Review Questions

Unit 1B Review Questions

Windows File System Exercise

Submit Using Help Hands-on Task

Submit Word 1 Hands-On Task

2Unit 1C – Computer Networks & Unit 1D – Introduction to Digital Data

Quiz 1

Unit 1C & Unit 1D Review Questions

Quiz 1

Submit Word 2 Hands-on Task

3Unit 2A – The Internet Unit 2B – The World Wide Web

Unit 2A & 2B Review Questions
Submit Word 3 Hands-On Task

4Unit 2C – Electronic Communication & Unit 2D – Internet Threats and Security

& Quiz 2

Unit 2C & 2D Review Questions

Quiz 2

Submit Word 4 Hands-on Task

5Unit 3A – Hardware Overview

& Unit 3B – Processors & Memory

Unit 3A Review Questions

Unit 3B Review Questions
Submit PowerPoint Hands-On Task

Submit Excel 1 Hands-On Task

6Unit 3C – Storage Devices

& Unit 3D – Peripheral Devices

Unit 3C & Unit 3D Review Questions

Quiz 3

Submit Excel 2 Hands-On Task

7Unit 4A – Intro to Computer Software

& Unit 4B – Operating Systems
Unit 4A & Unit 4B Review Questions

Submit Excel 3 Hands-On Task

8Unit 4C – Protecting Your Information

& Quiz 4 & Final Exam

Unit 4C Review Questions

Quiz 4

Submit Excel 4 Hands-On Task

Final Exam

Concerns with Course

If you have any concerns about this course, including accessibility concerns, first consult your instructor. If after meeting with your instructor, you feel that your concern has not been satisfactorily addressed, or if you feel that you cannot effectively communicate with your instructor about the issue, you may contact the following people in the following order:

First Contact

Business & Industry Dean:Doug

Second Contact

VicePresident of Instruction:Wendy Hines 828

Section 2: Department-specific policies & information

Honors Program

If you are eligible to participate in the Honors Program and wish to pursue honors credit for this course, please let your instructor know as soon as possible so that you can work together to develop a project and compose an honors contract.Honors contracts cannot be submitted for short semester courses or courses completed during summer semesters. More information about the honors program is available:

Section 3: HCC -specific policies & information

General Competencies

Haywood Community College seeks to take learning beyond the classroom by encouraging individuals to develop their abilities in collaboration, communication, and critical thinking/problem solving.

Collaboration is the process of working cooperatively to achieve the needs of a group or team.

Students will:

  1. Respect group members' individual viewpoints and roles.
  2. Develop group ideas, goals, and consensus.
  3. Meet deadlines and goals responsibly.

Communication is the ability to comprehend and communicate through various forms of media.

Students will:

  1. Communicate, verbally and nonverbally, in relation to his/her course of study.
  2. Communicate with a diverse audience.
  3. Use appropriate mediums for communication.
  4. Use appropriate grammar, spelling, style, and mechanics.

Critical thinking is the process of analyzing and evaluating issues and ideas, identifying good and bad reasoning, and constructing creative and sustainable solutions to problems, in a variety of settings.Students will:

  1. Raise vital questions and issues.
  2. Gather and evaluate information from a variety of sources.
  3. Compare and contrast different points of view.
  4. Develop well-reasoned, creative conclusions and solutions.

HCC Rules and Regulation

Electronic Communication:Faculty will only contact students throughHCC email or Moodle message (an option for online class communication).

Food and Drink:NO food or drink allowed in computer labs.

Children:According to NC law, minors, under the age of sixteen, are not permitted in classrooms, shops, or laboratories during regularly scheduled courses unless they are attending as students enrolled in the Career and College Promise Program, Haywood Early College high school, or the Intellectually Gifted Program. Students are asked not to bring children to class, campus meetings, or activities, unless the activity specified it is open to children.

Classroom Behavior: Any conduct by the student, which is detrimental to that student's success or best performance or to the success or best interests of the class as a whole may result in the permanent removal of the student from the class. Detrimental activities include rude or disruptive behavior including but not limited to inappropriate emails, chats and discussion board posts to student or the instructor, lack of effort, negative influence upon others in the class, non-instructional use of cell phones, etc.

Firearms/weapons:See Policy 3.31: Weapons on Campus.Information regarding the current laws as they apply to North Carolina Institutions of Higher Education are available online at

Tobacco:HCC is a tobacco-free campus.

More information is available at

Classroom Safety

The College reserves the right to maintain a safe and orderly educational environment for the students and staff. Therefore, when, in the judgment of College officials, a student’s conduct disrupts or threatens to disrupt the college community, appropriate disciplinary action will be taken to restore and protect the sanctity of the community.

No disciplinary sanctions other than temporary removal from class or activity (only for duration of said activity) may be imposed upon any student without due process. Due process procedures are established to guarantee a student accused of a Student Code of Conduct violation the right of a hearing, a presentation of charges, evidence for charges, the right to present evidence, the right to have witnesses on one’s behalf and to hear witnesses on behalf of the accuser(s), the right to counsel, and the right to appeal.

Students have the right to a voluntary medical withdrawal. When illness, injury, or psychological/psychiatric conditions or disabilities occur while a student is enrolled that interfere with a student’s ability to participate in the College’s programs, a student or guardian may request a medical withdrawal from school. The Vice President of Student Services must approve all medical withdrawals.

It may become necessary for an involuntary/administrative withdrawal for a student with illness, injury, or psychological/psychiatric conditions or disabilities when Section III.E of the Student Code of Conduct is violated due to behavior related to a disability that is sufficiently serious to constitute a direct threat.

See the Catalog and Student Handbook (Student Rights and Code of Conduct) at for a full explanation of policy and procedures.

Attendance Policy

First attendance: Students are expected to be in immediate, regular attendance for all HCC classes beginning with the course start date and prior to the census (10%) date. Students registered for fully online courses must complete the HOP attendance quiz in each fully online course prior to the census (10%) date. Students registered for a hybrid course must complete the HOP Assignment before the 10% census date unless the class physically meets prior to the 10% date.Students who do not meet these requirements will be reported as “No Shows.” To access Moodle, HCC’s online course delivery system:

“No Shows” forfeit their registration in the course. This may negatively impact academic progress and any financial aid award per federal guidelines. Reinstatement will be made only under the most unusual circumstances. Reinstatement requires the recommendation of the instructor, the consent of the division chair, and the approval of the Vice President of Instruction.

Attendance throughout the semester: Students who miss fifteen percent (15%)* or more of the total possible time for a course for any reasonbefore the “last day to withdraw from a course” as set forth in the Academic Calendar, will receive a grade of “W” for the course.

It is the student’s responsibility to withdraw from course(s) if they cannot meet the requirements of the course(s).The student should first consult his/her instructor or advisor before requesting to be withdrawn from a course. Students receiving financial aid should also consult a financial aid advisor before requesting to be withdrawn from a course.

To officially begin the withdrawal process: The student should notify Enrollment Management of withdrawintent by completing the web form found on the college web site. To find this form:

  1. Go to the web site in your web browser
  2. Click the Students link found near the top of the page to display a list of additional links
  3. Click the Enrollment Management link in the All Students column
  4. Click Withdrawal Request at the bottom of the sidebar to the left
  5. Fill out each data item on the form and click the Submit button at the bottom

The student may alternatively visit Student Services (1500 bldg.) and complete an official withdrawal form. A grade of “W” will be recorded on his/her academic record. Withdrawals are recorded on the transcript, but not computed in the GPA.

If students do not initiate the withdrawal process, the instructor is required to initiate the administrative process to withdraw the student from the course assigning a grade of “W”. A student who registers for a course as audit work, but withdraws, will be assigned a grade of “W” for the course.

Students who stop attending courses may not be given a grade of “F”. They must be given a grade of “W”. Students are given an “F” if they attended the entire semester but failed to complete academic work with a passing grade.

Students have the right to appeal any grades given due to lack of attendance.

Faculty members are responsible for administering the attendance rules for their respective courses, for excusing absences, for determining how missed work should be made up, and for assessing grade penalties. An instructor may drop a student from a course whenever the instructor concludes that a student’s class attendance or punctuality endangers the student’s success or places other students at risk.