Orientation FAQs
How is the course different from the traditional
courses offered on campus?
The Internet presentation of this course allows you to
fulfill the requirements of the course without attending classes on campus.
The course's content, like the other courses offered on campus, is writing
and reading intensive. I have not watered down the content at
all. It is different in that it will require you to
interact with both other students and the instructor by using
Internet. It is different, too, because it requires much more
discipline than a face-to-face course
What do I need to do first?
Acquire your e-portal address on the www.accd.edu
website. You’ll need to follow the e-portal prompts to get your
email address. Should you run into trouble, email me or call the tech
help desk at 220-1616. Every paying student receives this web
email site that offers much more than emailing. Do explore it
thoroughly. You can look up your grades, transcripts, all courses,
and much more. I will be using your e-portal email address to send
pertinent course materials and comments.
I know that the e-portal address is not what some are
expecting to use but I’ve taught Internet courses for several years
now and this one constant address that the teacher can always access is
essential in submitting consistent information to students.
Since I do not start teaching until the first official
day of class, I do not expect my students to turn in work before
then. You’ll hear from me on the first day of the class, most definitely--or
unfortunately, as some may feel.
How will we meet for this course?
Internet classes officially start on the first day of
the San Antonio
College’s
published start date of spring classes. This means that I will not
expect you or I to begin the course’s work until then. Also
note that editorial and content changes to the online syllabus will often
be made during the week or weeks prior to the first day of school. As
a result, you may want to print a copy after the first day of school.
All work for this course can be accomplished without
coming to San Antonio
College campus and
using your PALS email box, an option which allows you --
through “My courses”-- to email your fellow
classmates.
By sending your weekly homework to your classmates
through PALS' Message Board, we are able to share as we might in a
more traditional classroom. Each week you will be
expected to contribute at least one homework assignment, which will be
shared with all classmates (homework assignments are listed on the calendar
site). Further, using the PAL's Message Board, we will discuss the papers
you will be writing. Invariably my students like the online
publication of their homework assignments because they get to share and
compare their writing efforts and drafts. Do not use this
public email for personal questions (e.g., “Did you receive my
paper?” or “What’s my final grade?”) These
personal questions should be directed to my personal work email address: khochmeisteri@mail.accd.edu.
Why use PALS email and not
WebCt?
Every professor has his or her unique way to present
material to students. My method and subject-matter works best with a
class class email . WebCT would work for me if I included lots of
objective testing. Since I include only subjective testing, the class
email suites this course best.
What texts will I need?
Ways of Reading (8th ed) by Bartholomae and Petrosky
The Scott, Foresman Handbook by Hairston (7th ed)
How will papers be submitted?
Concerning formatting: all final essays should adhere to the MLA
format.
- Follow
the sample student paper in your Scott, Foresman Handbook, p. 882. Your grade will
be lowered if you do not submit in this fashion.
Email your papers in this way: Send an email
with your attached essay to this address always
(khochmeister@mail.accd.edu). Make sure the attachment is saved as a
.rtf, .txt or .doc file. I’m not able to read Word
Perfect files, so resave these as .rtf files before sending. Always
in the subject line, list your full name, course and section number,
assignment name (essay 2). If emailing does not work due to technical
difficulties, don't hesitate to fax or hand deliver your paper to the
English office.
What should I do if my computer crashes just
as I’m printing my essay or sending my essay via email?
The easiest alternative is to fax or hand-deliver your
essay to the English department. Do let me know that
you’re doing this delivery method so that I can receive your essay.
Always have a back-up email address. I suggest a
web-based address for easy accessibility, such as Hotmail or Yahoo.
Home addresses or work addresses are fine too. A caution:
unless your new address is subscribed to the class email , you will not be
able to send. Send me a request to add the back-up address to the class
email so that I’ll note this change in my address books.
.
Free access to computers on campus at SAC can be
accessed in the SLAC lab (MLC 726). Also call your closest public
library which generally will have Internet access. Kinkos and other office
supply stores (Office Max) offer hourly computer rentals if you really get
desperate.
When and how will I receive my graded
papers?
I will grade essays online using Word’s comment
feature and then email both paper and comment back to you. Usually I
grade all papers between 1 and 1.5 weeks but will be on a more rigorous
schedule during summer sessions.
How soon will my
emails be answered?
If
you email me on regular weekdays, day or night, I usually have a 24-hour
turn-
around.
Generally I’m off the computer for the weekends. So if you
email me
Friday
evening or the weekend, I’ll answer you on the following Monday or
Tuesday.
Why don’t
you grade every single homework assignment?
I’ll
compile the best three from your class, yours might be one of them, and
write a lesson
and comment about
that week’s work. Please review this commentary carefully to
better
understand how your
work compares and what you might do better. Some of you might
ask the same questions of me so that I send a response to all
that answers that one
question.
Homework is
practice work with no penalty of
getting a grade for it being right or wrong.
Submit the
requirement and you will receive a grade for participation. And in
the end of the
semester, just by steadily
keeping up with the work, you’ll be able to help your final course
average.
What if I need technical support?
There are three sources which you can rely upon:
1. Technology
Center 785-6330
M-F 8-5
2. ACCD Student Help Line 220-1619 M-F 7:30 a.m. -- 8:00 p.m.
3. Email message to Helpdesk@accd.edu
Email me if all else fails.
4. Contact the SLAC lab for online
tutoring.
What if I need help with my paper?
Don't hesitate to send me copies of work in
progress. Also know that I'm available to help during my office hours
on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Call, too, if you would like to go over your
questions on the phone. The SLAC lab (located in the Moody Learning
Center) and the
English Dept. do offer composition tutoring also. Please call SAC's
general number (733-2000 ) to reach either of them.
English teachers have always intimidated
me with their grading and red ink marks. How do I know what to expect from
you as my instructor?
To make things simpler, I've provided a grade sheet
that reflects my thinking during grading your papers. The grade
breaks down the essay into parts in which I feel are significant to essay
writing. I've also included references from your grammar book, The Scott, Foresman Handbook to
clarify and allow you to review.
How do I know what to do each week?
The calendar site is a weekly guide for your work
in this course. Each week you should visit and/or do the
following categories found on the calendar site:
Class Message Board Assignment:
Each week you'll have an assigned discussion topic to send to our class email
group. All students will read this information when you send it so keep
this in mind. Remember too (from reading your syllabus) that each
week I count this submission as your attendance. Three missing homework
assignments will allow me to drop you from the course. When sending class
email s, please place your full name in the subject line along with your
course and section number so that I may give you full credit.
Virtual
Field trips: This is an auxiliary site that you may want
to visit. They often are related to the paper topic we are currently
completing.
Reading:
You'll either read from our reader, Ways
of Reading or our grammar text, The New Scott Foresman Handbook.
How do I drop this course?
Visit either Records (Fletcher) or the English dept.
(Gonzales Hall, 123) asking to drop. Complete before published drop
date (see catalog). Let me know too that you've dropped so that I may
withdraw your name from the roll sheet.
Please do not count on instructors to drop you.
Always take the initiative to do this yourself.
Updated 7/21/08
