Distance Learning at Volunteer State
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| Familiarize yourself with these requirements in order
to maximize your opportunity for success in your distance learning course.
After you review the course orientation, you can begin working with your
distance learning course content on the first day of
classes. |
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Click on any of the questions below: |
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| Tuition is the same as any
other course. Students in this distance course are expected to purchase the
COM 100 Pre Pak. It includes the text, workbook and CD-Rom. This is
available in one package in the Vol State Bookstore or can be ordered from
the bookstore at
http://shop.efollett.com/htmlroot/storehome/volunteerstatecommunitycollege655.html |
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Yes. Successful completion
of this course is exactly the same as any face to face course. In fact,
your transcript does not distinguish between a distance course and a
traditional "in class" course. |
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Yes, just like any Vol State
course. Always check the catalog for transfer information. |
| Leonard Assante, Associate
Professor Department of Communication 218 Ramer Administration Building Volunteer State Community College Gallatin, TN 37066 Phone 615.452.8600 Ext 3727 or Toll Free 1-888-335-8722 Ext. 3727 Here's my office hours schedule and additional contact information: http://www2.volstate.edu/lassante/schedule.htm http://www2.volstate.edu/lassante/ email: Len.Assante@volstate.edu (Since this course will be managed through the Vol State WEBCT server, you will have email within the course and if enrolled you should use the WEBCT email to deal with questions or messages about the course. |
| This course is offered over
the internet. It requires significant reading on your part as well as
participation in discussion board activity, video taping of an informative
and persuasive speech, preparation of communication activities from the
workbook as written assignments. You must be self directed and motivated to
stay on track. You will have specific deadlines for submission of
speeches and communication activities. Quizzes and exams are taken on line
within the WEBCT course. You will have specific times to take the exams and
specific time limits with which to complete them. |
| NO! All work may be
completed away from campus. However you are welcome to come visit with me.
Just make an appointment. Speeches must be mailed to me by specified
deadline on VHS tape. (no other tape format is accepted) Communication
activities must be submitted as Microsoft word or excel documents. You may
participate in this course from any computer where you have access to the
world wide web (internet)
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| All course materials are
found in the WEBCT site for COM 100. You will have a user name and pass
word. That information will be sent to you at the home address you have
listed with the college. Typically the username is your first initial and
last name (in my case, lassante). However for many students someone
already with that initial and last name has been a student so your username
ends up being your first initial, last name and a number such as
wsmith6. Your password will be your birth date, mm/dd/yr
The Volunteer State WEBCT URL is
http://vswebct.volstate.edu |
| Access to a computer that is
connected to the internet with a minimum 56k modem and a browser, such as
Internet Explorer 5.0 or later version will be sufficient. Obviously, any
connection speed above 56k will give quicker response and access to the
course. All college computers exceed these minimums. No special software is
needed. You should have Microsoft Word and Excel (or other software that
can save files in these formats) for completing and submitting (as
attachments) the Communication Activities you will need to submit. All
college computers have Word and Excel.
You need minimal typing skills, the skills to
use a simple e-mail program (or be willing to learn some minimal tasks), the
ability to use a discussions board (or be willing to learn some minimal
tasks) and some minimal web-browsing and website navigation skills. You
will be expected to navigate the course website, do web searches and use
e-mail and the discussions board feature. I will expect you to complete a
library tutorial to insure that you can conduct library research if you are
not on campus. |
You can log into this course
on the first day of classes at:
http://vswebct.volstate.edu.
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What
do I do if I need assistance with technology or the
course? |
| I can help with simple
procedures required in the course, but for technical questions, you should
call the college's Help Desk. 615-230-3302 or Toll Free 1-888-335-8722 Ext
3302 When you have course questions (navigation, for example), you should e-mail len.assante@volstate.edu or post questions on a the course discussions board. Since your classmates may think of questions before you do, you should also check the discussions board regularly to learn from student questions and answers (and/or my answers and comments). For help with course content, assignments, course topics, etc., you should post questions on the course discussions board for all members of the class to read. Probably, others have the same or similar questions. By posting on the discussions board, all can review my answers and may contribute answers and explanations. I particularly enjoy seeing students work together to help explain aspects of the course, and I can always "join" the discussion to lend assistance and provide further explanation. |
| While I don't call roll to
determine who is in class, the WEBCT site tracks each student's time in the
course. It tracks dates of log in, discussions posted, assignments
submitted etc. It's really quite amazing how much information is tracked
about student performance. You can rest assured, the email contents of your
messages are not seen by the instructor unless I am the addressee. If you
email another student, I cannot monitor that message. |
| The course calendar provides
detail on what is expected from you and when it is due. The Course Content
is contained in the Lessons Tables of Contents. This course is sub divided
into 3 major components: Chapters 1-6
- Interpersonal Communication You will be expected to do each of the following by posted deadlines:
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| Your assignments are located
on the course website. Your "Lessons Table of Contents" will specify the
assignments. And you can confirm on the course calendar. Again the course
website is:
http://vswebct.volstate.edu. Once you have registered for the
course, you will have access on the first day of classes for the term. Go
to this address and log in. Select your course name from the list, click on
the course name and proceed to navigate the site. |
| Check the Course WEBCT site
calendar. The calendar specifies the due dates for Communication Activities
submissions, Exam dates, and Dates when VHS recordings of speeches are due.
Note that on the calendar, you can click on the DATE for a list of all
activities due that day, and you can also click on a specific activity
listed on that day for more information on that specific activity. |
| The email system within WEBCT
allows you to send email to any other student in the class. You have the
flexibility to email an individual student, groups of students, or all
students in the class. Additionally, your Vol State Student email system
allows you to send email to any other currently enrolled student. Refer to
the section on "How do I get Started" to determine how to find email
addresses of other students. |
| The WEBCT Homepage for this
course will have an "Assignments" link. Use this link to
find and submit assignments. Generally, you can e-mail me any written
assignments (the assignment must be an attachment to the e-mail and must be
in .doc, .wpd, .rtf, or .txt format), exams are taken online. |
| Your tests will be taken on
line. They will be available at specific days and times for you and will
only appear at those times. You must follow testing directions for
submission of the exam. They are set for a specific time limit and will go
away at the stated amount of time from when you began. You will get nearly
instant email feed back on your test results after you submit them. |
| Yes, but early taking of
exams must be established by the instructor. Call or e-mail for permission. |
| The "My Grades" feature of
WEBCT allows you to follow your course progress. Your scores are available
only to you and are viewable after your instructor assigns the grade for the
assignment. I may choose NOT to use WebCT to keep grades. In
that case, you will receive an e-mail from me with grades and you may check
your grades using Pride OnLine at the end of the semester. |
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