7 Other Details: A to Z
Accessibility of course content
The course is designed to be broadly accessible to all. I want you to be able to participate as fully as possible so I provide you with the most accessible content that I can. Furthermore, Canvas is designed to be accessible. Should you require additional and specific campus-provided learning accommodations, contact the College’s Student Accessibility Services department: sas@cascadia.edu. Or see more information on the Cascadia website. I am happy to offer advice and encouragement in this regard. See the Cascadia Syllabus Learning Agreement on this too.
Attendance online and how much time to spend on class
How often should you ‘attend’ an online class? The keys to success in this course are your engagement and commitment to learning, and to taking responsibility for that learning. Checking in online to Canvas regularly, I would say daily, and deeply engaging with the course materials and assignments are part of that responsibility. You should definitely plan to check into Canvas on Sunday mornings as the next week’s modules open just after midnight, to organize yourself for the ensuing week.
How much time should you spend on class? A common expectation across all COLL101 courses is that each student will spend approximately 15 hours a week on COLL101 course engagement–regardless of the modality of their COLL101 course (face-to-face, online, hybrid). In this 5-credit online COLL101, you can expect to spend 15-20 hours a week. The time calculation is based on this:
Start with the number of credit hours—5—and then add 2 hours per credit hour earned for a light course (2×5), up to 3 credit hours (3×5) for a heavier one. So, 5 + 10=15 hours to 5+15=20 hours are what you will probably spend on this course. (If the course was face-to-face or hybrid, 2.5-5 of the 15-20 hours would take place in class on campus.) Generally, COLL101 might be considered a lighter course.
COVID
We follow the College’s policies on all things related to the pandemic.
Discussions in college
In this course, we will frequently share views and interpretations in online discussion forums on topics on which people may have strong feelings and opinions. In college, this sharing of views happens at a higher level than in casual conversation: simply- or loudly-expressed opinions are not sufficient. In this class or any college class, we always support our views with evidence and recognize that few things are simply right or wrong, or yes or no. At the same time, when people bravely and thoughtfully express themselves, the rest of us are obliged to listen carefully, ponder deeply, probe respectfully. We also make sure all voices have the opportunity to be heard: our class shall be an inclusive learning space.
Integrity, plagiarism, and citations
What is academic integrity, what is plagiarism? In the academic world–in college–if you use other people’s ideas, words, discoveries, you must specifically acknowledge or cite them. Doing so demonstrates academic integrity. Not doing so is considered plagiarism, a kind of academic cheating. Plagiarism includes failing to cite significant sources in a research paper or presentation, submitting verbatim or in a closely paraphrased form material from a printed or electronic source, and submitting material produced by another student, or for another class.
How will we cite in order to demonstrate academic integrity? In this course we will use APA citation style (in which credit is given using in-text citations of names and publication dates, which are then matched to a Reference list at the end of the document, sometimes called a bibliography). See details on the APA style: UWB library’s citation guide or the popular OWL Purdue Univ. Online Writing Lab.
How will concerns about academic integrity be handled? I will approach you or your group swiftly if I suspect that writing has been copied without proper attribution and we will mutually discuss a remediation plan for attributing quoted, paraphrased, or summarized materials appropriately. Know that academy integrity violations may ultimately result in lost credit for an assignment, a report in one’s academic file, and/or expulsion from the course. In general, there is a zero-tolerance policy on plagiarism and other academic dishonesty at Cascadia and elsewhere. Our college’s policy is described on the Cascadia College Syllabus Learning Agreement.
Visiting your professor
Each of you should plan to visit me at least once face-to-face, via Zoom, during COLL101 Instructor/Student visiting hours. See COLL101 visiting hours on page 1 of this syllabus and the Zoom tab in our Canvas course for access to these. I would really enjoy meeting you online in real time, or alternatively, via email asynchronously.
(Need some ideas for what to talk about? See Conversation Topics for College Office Hours https://www.thoughtco.com/things-to-talk-to-your-professor-about-793131 This will help you be more comfortable meeting your professors in future classes.)