This is the Fall 2012 syllabus for the Preparing to Teach Online training course offered at Madison College.

1. Preparing to Teach Online SYLLABUS
Madison College Professional Development Course
8-week format: September 10th through November 5th, 2012
INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION
Instructor: Jennifer Lewis
Office: Truax 335D.
Office Telephone: (608) 246-6277.
GoogleVoice: (608) 616-9167. Use this number to contact me at home. It will ring my cell
phone or home phone depending on my location. You may also send text messages to this
number.
Email: jlnielsen@madisoncollege.edu
Office Hours: I will be primarily off campus, so face-to-face meetings will be less common —
but I can meet with you whenever you’d like by phone or email.
Skype Name: Jennifer.L.Nielsen. I am available by Skype whenever I am at my computer, so
feel free to chat with me whenever I am online.
CLASS INFORMATION:
Course Description: Preparing To Teach Online (PTTO) provides an introduction to the design and
pedagogy of online teaching and learning. This course provides the opportunity to gain experience
in e-learning environments and online facilitation best practices, the opportunity to receive
instructional design advice while designing a specific course and constructing specific online
teaching materials, the opportunity to create online syllabus policies, and the opportunity to create
an ongoing learning plan to improve your online pedagogy, management, and technical skills.
Participants will explore online teaching methods, communication and interaction management, use
a variety of communication and assessment tools, and distinguish best practices in the online
classroom. This is not a course in tools or Blackboard usage; the focus is on how to design and
facilitate online instruction.
After completing this course, you will be ready to facilitate an existing online course in the next
semester. If you are creating an online course from scratch, your course will be ready in two
semesters.
Credits: You need to choose what kind of credit you are seeking from this course. This course can
earn 2 continuing education credits toward re-certification beyond the probationary level. If you are
still on the initial probation period, you may earn WTCS provisional certification credit for WTCS #52,
teaching methods. You may earn 2 undergraduate or graduate credits through UW-Platteville, for an
additional fee.
Course Format –This course is offered in a 100% online format. Assignments are given in weekly units,
and involve online weekly discussion, reading, audio and video presentations, quizzes, collaborative
writing, and individual writing. This is an 8-week course, which requires 5 hours per week to complete.
Class Deadlines: All weekly assignments for this course are due by 11:59pm every Monday night. You
may work on assignments whenever you like throughout the week, but you must complete all weekly
assignments before Monday night. Please note that this course requires online discussion, which works
best if you log in at a minimum of twice during the week, once between Tuesday and Thursday and
once between Thursday and Monday night.
Pre-requisites: You need to have completed the Madison College course Enhancing Your Course
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2. with Blackboard or the equivalent. Additionally, I strongly recommend that you have the following
skills and technology:
• a high-speed connection to the internet
• basic typing skills
• a webcam and/or microphone that works with your computer.
• A Blackboard master course for the course you plan to teach online in the near future.
Textbook: No textbook required. All textbooks and readings are available in our classroom, free of
charge.
Supplies: Please obtain access to a webcam OR microphone for some assignments; if you plan to
teach online, you will find these devices very helpful. You may wish to obtain a storage device, such
as a USB drive to save/backup your work.
Class participation: This course is designed to provide a forum in which you, as a practicing
professional, can work together with others to build your online course construction and online
facilitation skills. Many of the learning activities are designed to be hands-on and collaborative.
Participation is important for each participant’s professional growth and to the learning of the other
participants. Participation is defined as:
• Sharing your ideas and examples during in class discussions and in online discussion forums
• Asking and responding to questions within the course in a professional, respectful manner
• Posting meaningful responses to other classmates while respecting other opinions and
perspectives
• Completing all activities, as assigned.
In other words, just entering the Blackboard classroom isn’t enough; participation means interaction.
COURSE COMPETENCIES: You have the opportunity to learn the following skills in this course:
• Facilitate online activities
• Create an online learning community
• Encourage student engagement online
• Conduct ongoing and frequent assessments appropriate to the online learning environment.
• Design learning activities that are interactive, to fit different learning styles online.
• Select a content format that suits your specific course outcomes/competencies, delivery
strategy, and technology.
• Utilize appropriate online course organization and structure.
• Evaluate course effectiveness using Madison College Online course quality standards as
appropriate.
• Manage online communication and interaction
• Promote student to students interaction as appropriate
• Develop group management techniques online as appropriate
• Manage student questions, demands, and feedback effectively
• Use a variety of communication tools and strategies.
COMMUNICATION POLICIES AND INFORMATION: I respond to email or phone messages within 24
hours between 9am and 4pm Monday through Friday. I do NOT CHECK my email on the weekends.
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3. Tuesday Blog Announcement: Every Tuesday morning before 12pm, I will create a new posting on our
Blackboard classroom. Please log in and read the information in the entry screen each week.
Instructor Feedback/Response Timeline: I make every effort to grade any work you have submitted
within one week of the date you submitted it. If I am running late, I will do my best to let you know
when you can expect feedback from me. You will receive personal feedback from me on at least
one assignment each week in addition to a grade; you will receive peer feedback or automated
feedback on most assignments.
Netiquette: If you are unfamiliar with online culture or are unfamiliar with "netiquette," you may
appreciate a review of some guidelines covering email, IMing, and Listservs and the like.
Please do not forward any emails or documents from your colleagues in this course without their
knowledge and/or permission. You may forward my emails or documents to anyone you think might
find them helpful; however, please do not forward anything that violates your own or others’ FERPA
rights.
Required email: I will communicate with you using your official Madison College email address, the
one that ends in @matcmadison.edu. Please email me from your official email account OR through
Blackboard; I may not open emails from unknown domains for security reasons. You are responsible
for monitoring your Madison College e-mail account at least twice a week for the duration of this
course.
ACADEMIC RESPONSIBILITIES AND POLICIES:
Student Responsibilities: Students are expected to be familiar with Madison College policies and
procedures. Many of the important policies and procedures are on the Madison College website.
Because this class is online, you should also be aware of the computer use guidelines, which govern
acceptable computer interaction at Madison College.
Academic Integrity/Copyright is an expectation in all Madison College classes. I do expect you to do
your own work. However, you are welcome to copy, steal, or otherwise use anything created by
current or former instructors of this course as though they were your own. Any materials created by
current or former PTTO instructors may be used or reused in entirety or in part for teaching purposes at
Madison College.
However, please respect copyright on all other readings and documents that I did NOT create,
including the work of your classmates. Do not copy from your classmate’s work in this course without
getting permission from them, including collaboratively written documents.
Withdrawing from the Class: If your plans change and you find yourself unable to continue the class,
please notify your instructor right away via email.
Disability Act Statement: Madison College complies with all provisions of the Americans with
Disabilities Act and makes reasonable accommodations upon request.
If you have a disability which requires academic accommodations, please explain it to me via email
or telephone so we can discuss the accommodations that you might need in this class. It is best to
request these accommodations at the beginning if not before class so there is ample time to make
the accommodations.
Learner Responsibilities: As a student in this class, I expect you to:
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4. • take responsibility for your own learning.
• be prepared and be an enthusiastic participant
• treat others with tolerance and respect
• act responsibly and reliably in group work and group discussions
• set high standards for your work
Instructor Responsibilities: As your instructor, I commit to:
• communicating openly and frequently via with you about this class, including weekly emails
and blog postings in our classroom every Tuesday before 12pm.
• maintaining a professional, safe learning environment adhering to the policies of the college.
• treating all participants with tolerance and respect.
• acting responsibly and reliably in administering course activities
• establishing policies and procedures that help you learn in this format
• replying to emails or phone calls within 24 hours between 9am on Monday morning until noon
on Friday afternoon.
TECHNICAL POLICES RELATED TO THE ONLINE FORMAT:
File Format Requirements: All text documents must be submitted as directed in Microsoft Word, .html,
or .pdf format, (.doc, .rtf, .html or .pdf files). Often, I will give comments to you using Microsoft Word’s
comment feature; you will need to access Word, OpenOffice, OR Google Docs to see my
comments. Other files may require other formats; look for details in the guidelines for each
assignment.
Technical Assistance: Computer difficulties are not an excuse for non-participation. If you
experience problems with Blackboard or your computer, call (608)246-6666, or toll-free at (866) 277-
4445. They can talk you through fixing many, many problems. Their hours are 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.,
Monday-Friday and 7:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on Saturdays.
Problems with your personal computer (or help with webcams and the like) may be fixed if you take
your computer to Wolfpack Techies, a FREE computer repair service at Madison College for students
and faculty. Fall semester hours are Mondays and Wednesdays 12:30-5pm, Fridays 8am-5pm, and
Saturdays 8am-3pm in Truax 358.
Keep in mind that your instructor can be of only limited help in computer troubles. Your best bet is to
phone the professionals above.
Blackboard Outages: Madison College does its best to keep our Blackboard classroom up and
running. However, despite our best efforts, our virtual classroom may go down unexpectedly. It's also
possible your computer will contract a virus or worm that will make you wail and gnash your teeth.
Should this happen to you, do not panic! Phone the computer help desk at 608)246-6666, or toll-free
at (866) 277-4445. If an assignment is due, please attach it to an email to your instructor.
GRADING POLICIES:
Grading Scale: This course is graded on a credit/no credit basis. You need to earn at least 75% of the
possible points to pass the course and earn re-certification credit. Any missing assignments are
graded as a zero, not an F. You must complete all major assignments to earn credit for the class.
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5. Accessing Your Grades/Credit: I use the Blackboard Grade book to record your completed work
and credit earned; this grade book is updated weekly. To view your grades and progress in the class:
1. Select the main menu link “My Grades.”
2. Locate the “Running Total” column in the course to see your grade status. That column is the
cumulative total of all graded assignments; it will indicate if you are earning “Credit” or “No
Credit.”
If you see a hyphen (-) or a ! mark in any column, it indicates I have not yet graded your work.
Discussion Grading: Although I will track your discussion throughout the course, I will not grade each
discussion board post individually. Instead, I will assess your overall discussion at the end of our course
on the following four criteria:
1. Timeliness (overall, did you consistently meet the weekly deadlines for discussion? Did you
respond to others in a timely fashion throughout the week or wait until the very last day to post
or respond in any way?)
2. Responsiveness (overall, did you respond thoughtfully and consistently to posts of others--or
did you simply post and fail to follow-up on any of your classmate's posts?)
3. Relevance (overall, did your postings address the issues presented in the reading or other
material?)
4. Depth and Breadth (overall, did your postings suggest ways in which the topics are
complicated? Did you bring another perspective to the discussion?)
Late Work: In this course you may turn in most assignments one week late (if you need to) for full
credit. Late work will be graded late, sometimes not for several weeks, and will probably receive far
less feedback than work submitted on time.
However, group discussion will not earn any credit if completed late. All work for this course, including
final projects, needs to be turned in before August 6th at 11:59pm.
Incompletes: Because of a changing schedule from semester to semester, I cannot grant
incompletes in this class unless circumstances beyond your control arise after you have completed at
least 75% of the course. You are ineligible for an incomplete if you have not been participating in the
class or are failing.
Grading Errors: I am human; I may make an error in grading your work, particularly in this format. If
you see a zero and you did turn in the work within a week of the deadline, simply contact me for an
inquiry into the problem. Sometimes I simply misunderstand what requirement the assignment fulfills,
or where you submitted the assignment. Please contact me if I made an error.
Grading Disputes: If you feel a grade you received on an assignment is unjustified or you wish to
dispute a grade, you will need to talk to your instructor over the phone or visit her in person. I do not
respond to grade disputes via email--but feel free to email me to request a time for a phone meeting
or a time to stop by my office to discuss the situation. I am very happy to discuss your grade verbally
with you, but I think it’s best to be able to ask questions and respond in real time.
Below is a graphic representation of the course organization and content by week:
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6. Syllabus Changes: As your instructor, I retain the right to make changes based on the timeline of the
class, feedback from learners and/or logistical issues and will inform you as soon as a change is
made.
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