Since this is an asynchronous course, you have a lot of flexibility as to when and where you do your work. Your attendance is indicated by your participation in course activities.
You will be considered present if there is evidence of your participation in course activities including, but not limited to, participating in an online discussion, completing a quiz, or posting an assignment. Simply logging in does not qualify as attendance.
You will be considered absent if there is no evidence of your participation. Students who do not complete the first assignment or are absent for more than two weeks may be dropped.
At any time during the course, if you find yourself having difficulty participating for any reason, please let me know as soon as you can! That way, we can work together to plan for your success.
Netiquette is a set of guidelines for respectful behavior in an online environment. In other words, it is etiquette for the internet, and using these social rules can help us create a positive learning environment. The guidelines below are especially important in our online classroom.
Participate thoughtfully. To contribute to an environment that fosters intellectual growth, think carefully about the discussion topics and your classmates’ ideas before you post. Post responses that encourage critical thinking and constructive debate of ideas.
Remember the human. Even though we may not be face to face, there is a real person behind each discussion post. Do not post something you would not feel comfortable saying in a face-to-face classroom setting. Discuss ideas, not people. In other words, do not attack a classmate for expressing an opinion; instead, discuss your position on the ideas that have been presented.
Respect others’ time. Develop an online communication style that is clear and concise. If you post a long response, state the main point in the first two or three sentences. Aim for posts that are focused, organized, and clear so your classmates can quickly grasp your point.
Help others. If you can help a classmate with a question, please do! Your efforts will be appreciated by both students and instructor.
No flaming. “Flaming” is an angry message, often directed at another person. When another person responds in anger, a “flame war” takes over the discussion. Personal attacks are unacceptable. If you feel attacked, contact me rather than responding to the flaming student. We all have implicit biases, and sometimes we are not aware of how what we say may be viewed by others, so let’s be generous and kind in our responses to one another.
To do your best in our course, completing assignments on time is key! Doing so ensures that you will be able to give and receive timely feedback, and assignments are designed as steps in the learning and writing processes, so meeting due dates will help you progress most efficiently and effectively.
Because peer review workshops require coordination to work for everyone, it is especially important to post review drafts and peer reviews on time.
Your essays have a 24-hour grace period for submission and are considered late after that. I accept one homework assignment and posts to one discussion late no questions asked. Aside from these automatic extensions, if you need more time to complete an assignment, please send me an Extension Request via the Canvas Inbox.
According to the Southwestern College catalog, our college “is a community of scholars and learners committed to the principles of honesty, trustworthiness, fairness, and respect for the academy” (Academic Integrity). These principles comprise academic integrity, and when you follow them, you nurture your own intellectual growth.
Part of academic integrity includes giving credit to every source you use in every assignment. If you use text generated by ChatGPT or a similar tool, you must acknowledge that, too. Not giving credit is defined as plagiarism, which is a considered a form of academic dishonesty.
Academic dishonesty of any type by a student provides grounds for disciplinary action by the instructor or college. In written work, no material may be copied from another source without proper quotation marks, footnotes, or appropriate documentation.
Copying exact words is not the only form of plagiarism. You must do every part of your writing, from generating ideas to proofreading. If somebody else (or a text-generating tool) does any part of the process and you present it as your own work, you are plagiarizing.
Plagiarism is a serious offense with serious consequences. These consequences may include receiving an incomplete on the plagiarized assignment with no chance to redo it, receiving an F in the course, and/or facing misconduct charges.
If you have any doubt about whether you are documenting your sources correctly, please let me know. I am here to help!