Web.Edu Updates #1

Last Updated: 3/29/02
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Web.Edu Course Updates #1

As of yesterday, Thursday March 27, class discussion has shifted to the course ListServe. This is simply email addressed to WebEduW02@lists.wayne.edu. Both the WebBoard and BlackBoard discussion forums are still open for those of you who are not up to date with your postings yet.
New course tool - "Web Hub." Web Hub is a course tool that you can download from the course web site to the desktop of any Windows or Macintosh computer, to remind you about this course and to provide easy links to the course. You can install Web Hub on as many computers as you want. Delete it when the course is over. (Yes, the course will be over!) You can find Web Hub on the course web site, under Online Tools. Installation is fairly simple, and the directions are at the bottom of the Web Hub file.
Online chats. This first online chat went very well. I will be online for chats every Thursday evening on which the class does not meet, between 8:00 PM and 8:30 PM. To join the chat:
1. Log in to the course computer conference as usual
2. Click on the black-and-white "CHAT" button on the left half of the black-and-white button bar about one third to one quarter of the way down the screen
3. Select the chat room for this course (W02Web.Edu)
4. A "chat window" pops up. Type in the one-line window at the top of this, and tap the <Enter> key to post your chat message. The bigger bottom window is the chat itself, with everybody's messages.
5. If you want to save part of the chat
  1. Drag over the part you want to save with the mouse to select it
  2. Hold down the <Ctrl> key and (with <Ctrl> down) tap the <Insert> key. This puts the selection "on the clipboard."
  3. Open a text processor such as NotePad or WordPad (both are at Start > Accessories) or a word processor such as Word or WordPerfect, and use the menu item Edit > Paste to put the clipboard contents into that processor.
  4. Then save, print or whatever, as usual.
6. To close the chat, use the black-and-white "CLOSE" button at the top of the chat window, or click the window's Close Box (the "X" in its upper right-hand corner).
Practice online Quiz. Chapter 13 in Distance Learning Online for Dummies discusses online quizzes and exams. To give you an experience using these, I have made one up. It is on the course BlackBoard site. Warning: this is not a preview of the Final Exam for this course. Also, after trying the Quiz myself, I don't like some of my answers! I am trying to change them, but so far I am not able to.
Points from readings. These are points that I think are particularly valuable in the reading. These points are not an outline of or a "Cliff's Notes" version or in any way a substitute for the readings. See the Agendas for earlier chapters.
1. Chapter 13. No All-Nighters: Taking Tests. In general, I feel this is an extremely valuable chapter, for all courses, not just online courses.
  1. Pg 215. Faculty attitudes about testing differ widely, from "trust the students - they want to learn" to "it's too easy to cheat online." Understand your instructor's attitude, and your instructor's or institution's rules. On this page the assumption is that quizzes and exams in online courses will be online. Later in the Chapter the author mentions another option; proctored exams.
  2. Pg 215 bottom paragraph. Note that instructors generally have different goals for open- and closed-book tests, and generally ask different questions. But there are exceptions, such as the Final Exam for this course, which will be closed book but which will generally ask you to draw conclusions. However, the questions are available in advance, and early discussion of the answers is encouraged.
    
    Later in the chapter, the author will say that the trend in online courses is towards automated grading, which favors multiple-choice questions. This implies that the instructor motivation would be recall of facts rather than demonstrating understanding.
  3. Pg 216 - "Motivation is key" explains why some instructors feel that online students can be trusted during online exams. This feeling is based upon online students being highly motivated learners. I would just like to point out that, if online courses become run-of-the-mill, this assumption will most likely change, since students will most likely have a wide range of motivations.
  4. Pg 217. Note that the practice Quiz for this course, in BlackBoard, has a count-up clock, showing elapsed time, rather than a count-down clock, showing minutes to go. The difference is critical! The count-up clock requires that you remember how much time you are allowed, total.
  5. Pg 219. Email (or call) the instructor if you get a poor grade, asking for help or guidance, especially if there is no comment or you find the comment confusing. Always a good idea!
  6. Pg 219 bottom paragraph. Here it is - proctored testing.
  7. Pg 221 - 222. All of these items are simply excellent advice, for any type of course. We do have a study group in this course; the online conference.
  8. Pg 223. These points, "Attitude and approach" and "Master multiple choice questions," are also excellent advice, for any type of course. I would add a few more:
    1. If partial credit is allowed, as is the normal case for essay-type questions, always put down something. You will almost always get some credit.
    2. For multiple choice, if there are four choices and you guess randomly, you have three chances of guessing wrong, and one of guessing right. If the instructor does not want you to benefit from guessing, s/he can subtract a given number of points or credits for a wrong answer, and add three times that number for a right answer. For example, if the right answer is worth 12 points, subtract 4 points for a wrong answer. If more than this number of points is subtracted for a wrong answer, do not guess - the odds are against you if you do. If fewer than this number of points is subtracted, it pays to guess. If exactly this number of points is subtracted, on the average it should not matter whether or not you guess. ("Guess" here means a completely random guess, as in flipping a die.)
    3. For multiple choice, if you can eliminate some of the answers as definitely wrong, but you can't tell which one is right, it is always worthwhile to guess, even randomly, among the ones you haven't eliminated.
  9. Pg 224, Write dazzling essays. If you are not sure what is being asked, ask for clarification (unless the instructor does not allow this, but usually instructors do allow this). It helps to establish that you are sincerely confused, and not just fishing for help, if you can present the possible interpretations that you are wrestling with.
    
    Concerning the last point in this section, I do not grade for grammar or spelling on exams.
  10. Pg 225, discussing results with the instructor is always a good idea. Make clear that you are not (necessarily) after more credit (unless you think you were misgraded) but that you want to understand the course content. By the way, while some instructors are offended if students complain about grading and try for higher grades, I am not offended by this.
2. Chapter 14. I didn't think this Chapter had much to do with the course, since I don't think online courses are designed to be self-paced courses, and only a few are formatted in the way author describes.