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Welcome to ECO 180 Citizens, Energy and Sustainability. My name is Professor Klein, and I will be your instructor for this course. This video tutorial will show you how to navigate this web-based course on Blackboard so you can find all of the information you need and so that you will be ready to turn in assignments when they are due.
When you sign into the course for the first time, you will see this welcome screen, which can be accessed later at anytime by clicking Start Here on the lefthand side of the screen [click].
Since you are currently viewing this Walkthrough video, then you have already seen the welcome screen, and hopefully you have viewed the Welcome video [click] and have clicked on this link here [click].
After you finish viewing this Course Walkthrough video, please click the arrow here [click] to advance to the next section of the Welcome area and read the Netiquette Guidelines. These guidelines are important to ensure that we all have a positive learning experience throughout this course. You will be expected to follow these guidelines in all communications throughout the course in order to receive full credit for all assignments and pass the course successfully.
After reading the Netiquette Guidelines, please proceed to the Course Syllabus [click].
If you want to access the syllabus again later but don?t want to have to go through the Start Here section again, you can click on Syllabus directly on the left-hand side of your screen here [click].
This list on the left-hand side of your screen [show] is a handy way to jump quickly to many important areas of the course, including syllabus, announcements, information on how to do be successful in course discussions, groups, group submissions, semester lessons, grading information, extra credit, email, and Help.
The Syllabus [click] contains contact information for me and the teaching assistant, Eva Manandhar [click], a description of the course [click], course goals [click], learning objectives [click], information about readings and videos we will be using in the course [click], information about course policies (including grading [click], extra help [click], communication [click], disabilities [click], academic integrity [click]) and the required procedure for citing sources in discussion assignments [click]. You can use these arrows on the top right hand corner of the screen [show] to advance to the next syllabus section or you can click on the section you want directly in the Table of Contents here [show].
In Contact Information [click], please note that I will be on maternity leave until February 17. If you have questions that you cannot find an answer to in the General Questions section under Course Discussion [click], please contact the course TA Eva Manandhar through the Blackboard email system either here [click] or here [click]. If need-be Eva will be able to contact me while on maternity leave, but in general, I won?t be responding to email until February 17.
Please read all pages of the Course Syllabus [click] to make sure you thoroughly understand the goals, objectives, expectations, and procedures for this web-based course. Make sure you pay particular attention to the Course Grading Policies [click], so you know what is expected of you in the course and are prepared to meet all deadlines. It is especially important that you understand the Course Discussion procedures and grading process [show]. Please read this section thoroughly.
Weekly discussion assignments and unit exams comprise 50% of your final semester grade each [show]. Under the umbrella of Weekly Discussion Assignments [show], there are two grading categories: in-group discussion and cross-group discussion [show]. When you enrolled in the course, you were randomly assigned to a discussion group [click]. [turn Edit on and show Group Submissions page] Each week your group will be responsible for posting a group response to at least one discussion assignment.
Let?s look at Week 1 for an example. To access Week 1, click on Unit 1 on the left-hand side of your screen [click]. You will see a Unit Intro video [show], brief summary of unit content [show], key ideas for the unit [show], unit objectives [show], assignment deadlines [show], and a link to the Q/A forum [show] at the beginning of each Unit. The content for individual weeks is posted below the Unit content [show].
Week 1 [click] is a little different from the other weeks because it is the only week in the semester that has 2 discussion assignments [show]. The first assignment [click] is a get-to-know-your-group assignment and will be relatively quick and easy. In the instructions for Discussion Assignment 1, there is a helpful tutorial on discussions that should help clarify the process [show].
The second assignment [click] is more representative of what assignments will look like throughout the rest of the semester. At the top of each assignment, you will see the deadline for the group response to the assignment [show]. Except for the first assignment, which is due on a Wednesday, all group responses will be due on Fridays at 11:59pm [show]. The Discussion Questions appear below the deadline [show]. Your group must answer all parts of all questions to receive full credit.
Your group also must cite sources appropriately in the response to receive full credit [show]. Instructions for citing sources are included in the syllabus [click], and there is a direct link here [click] on the left-hand side of the screen.
Below the discussion questions is a reminder of how to post the group response [show]. Each week the person who posts the group response must rotate so each member of the group posts roughly the same number of group responses throughout the semester.
[Turn Edit On before showing this] When it is your turn to post the group response, go to Group Submissions [click] in the left-hand menu and find the thread for the appropriate discussion assignment [show]. Click on the link for the appropriate discussion assignment. You can either copy and paste the submission directly here [click] or upload a file from your computer here [click]. You can write comments to the TA or instructor here, but if there is something important you need to communicate, it is better to email the TA or instructor directly through this link [show]. Make sure you click Submit so your response will be submitted for grading.
Looking back at the Grading Procedures in the Syllabus [click], you?ll see that the collaborative group response to the weekly discussion assignments is only part of your in-group discussion grade [show]. Everyone in the same group will receive the same grade for the collaborative group response [show], and each individual will receive another grade for their contribution to the in-group discussion leading up to the group response posting [show].
It is important to note that during the week leading up to the group post, you as an individual must post at least 2 separate messages of 200-250 words [show] each to the Collaborative Group Discussion Forum in order to receive full credit for the individual portion of the in-group discussion. These individual postings should occur between Monday and Friday so that the collaborative group post is turned in on time on Fridays at 11:59pm. The initial individual post should occur by Wednesday to be considered timely [show diagram]. The collaborative group response and your individual portion of the in-group discussion comprise 40% of your semester grade.
Cross-group discussion [show] occurs after the collaborative group post has been submitted. This is another individual assignment. You must post a response to your partner group?s collaborative group response by Tuesdays at 11:59 pm [show] ? they will be available to view starting on Sundays at 11:59pm [show]. It is very important that you read the Grading Rubrics for each of these discussion assignments [click] carefully so you know how each assignment will be graded.
Exams [click back to Syllabus-Grading] will be straightforward ? 20 multiple choice questions 4 times during the semester. However, it is important to note the deadline for exams and that you will have a limited amount of time in which to complete the exams. Again, the unit page will summarize deadlines for each unit [click and show]. Once the exam is available, a link to it will appear below the Weeks in the Unit [show].
Once you have read the syllabus and make sure you understand the grading policies, please proceed to Unit 1 to start to learn the course material. As mentioned before, each Unit will begin with an overview [show]. And the format of each week will remain consistent throughout the semester. Except for Week 1, each week will begin with a recap video related to the week before [click]. However, the recap video will not be available until after the collaborative group response deadline because it will contain material related to the correct answers to the Discussion Assignments.
After you view the recap video from the week before, please view the Introduction video to the current week [click]. Then, view the learning objectives [click], paying particular attention to the questions listed at the beginning [show] so you will know what to look for throughout the week?s material. The required course material (including readings and videos) is on the next page [click]. I have included estimates of time and page length for videos and readings to help you plan your time accordingly. Please view all videos and read all readings in their entirety to make sure you understand all course material for discussions and Unit Exams.
Some weeks will also include Optional readings and videos [click]. These are of course optional but may help enrich discussion and/or contribute to extra credit assignments should you choose to do them.
Next, you will see the Discussion Assignment for the current week [click]. And, finally, you will see a helpful summary [click], which can help you make sure you haven?t missed any major ideas during the week.
Week 1 differs from this format in 2 ways [click]: 1) there is no recap from the previous week and 2) there is an extra Discussion Assignment due on Wed.
You will notice that Units 2-4 [click], [click], [click] are still under construction, and they should be available in the coming weeks.
The Unit Exam [click] will be due on Sunday night the last day of the unit [show] and will be available beginning on Thursday morning so you can choose to complete it during the week or over the weekend. Keep in mind you will only have 1.5 hour to finish the exam once you begin it, so make sure you plan your time accordingly.
I hope you have found this tutorial to be useful. If you have any questions about how to access course content on this site, please post a question to the Q?A forum [click] and you will receive a response through that forum within a day or two. After the first few weeks of the course Start Here [show] will be redirected to the Unit page for the appropriate time period [show] and you will be able to access this video through a new link called Course Introduction.