Good Morning,
This is the first of your "daily" messages (since I'll be sending them 3-4 times per week). I’ll use these messages to provide more information about the course materials, remind you of deadlines, keep you on track, and answer questions that are relevant to the whole class.
This first message is the same one that I use in all of my classes.
As you will read in the “Getting Started” module, I will be at my computer M-R from 2 p.m. to 4 pm. I will use this time to respond to your individual questions, update the WebCampus site, review/respond to your work, and keep track of your progress. But remember, I will only respond to messages on WebCampus mail. DO NOT send messages to my personal university account. If you’re able to check in online during these hours, you are more than welcome to send me an invitation to chat through the Web Campus chat feature.
For this first message, I want to offer a little free advice. This class is not meant to be easy, especially as online delivery. In fact, this class is hard work, and I expect you to work hard to be successful in this class. So it’s important that you take the work in this class seriously. That is your responsibility. And even though this is an online class, there are still due dates for all of the work that you are required to do in this class. Due dates are VERY IMPORTANT to me. If you miss deadlines, your grades will suffer and there are no opportunities to make up missed work or to do extra credit.
So you must keep up with the work every week. Don’t let yourself get behind. Check the calendar regularly and be vigilant about when work is due. But work hard to stay ahead in this course. Do not try to do all the work on the day things are due. There is just too much.
Standard workload during the regular semester is three hours outside of class for every hour in class. Just because this is an online course does not mean that you will do less work. This course is a three-credit course just like a traditional face-to-face course. With that in mind, I expect you to spend at least 10 hours per week on this course. That includes all of the reading, quizzes, exercises, and writing projects. You need to set time aside every day to work on this course. You will not be successful if you think that you can complete this course in a great burst of energy at the end of the semester. If you do not keep up with the workload every week, you will fail the course. I guarantee.
Also, you are expected to participate in the class on a regular basis, both in whole-class discussions and peer-review activities. This class is hard, but if you all work together, the class can be more manageable. If everyone participates and helps everyone else, we all can succeed. I guarantee.
And now that I’ve acted the mean professor, I hope that you get a lot out of this class. This class is for your benefit, and we’ve worked hard to give you the necessary materials for success. We believe firmly that you will improve as a professional writer if you take the work seriously and think reflectively about HOW you write. What you write will certainly be graded, but you will do better for yourself if you think deeply about your writing process and learn to develop the skills for writing that you will need to be successful in the future. I will do everything that I can to help you achieve all of your goals in this class.
Good Luck. I look forward to a great semester.
Dr. Staggers
