No Late Work

Inspired by posts in the Faculty Discussion area I decided to write down my thoughts and practices concerning late work.
In my courses "Late work is not accepted". That's the stated policy and it is stated often and in a lot of places in the course.

Is it a tough policy to stick to sometimes? You bet!
After a Unit closes the next day there will always beat least 4 (usually more) Emails explaining why Labs could not be submitted by 11:55 PM the night before.

As excuses come my way, these are the facts that I rely on:

1. All Unit assignments allow 3 weeks for completion. Comprehensive assignments like the Field Trip Project allow months.
That's a lot of time. In fact, it even allows for a one week+ trip to Hawaii.
My personal quote, always stated in News, and every assignment-related Email is: "A Due Date does not necessarily mean a Do Date. Early submissions are most welcome!”
To rely on Internet connections never failing 5 minutes before Quizzes, Dropboxes or Discussions close is not a wise choice.
Lab experiments can take several days to a week to perform and write-up. Trying to complete 3 of them on the weekend (or day) they are due is also not a wise choice.
(This information is shared with everyone in First Day Emails and in every Unit Email that I send.)

2. What is done for one person must be done for all.
Opening a Dropbox or Quiz for one person to me means offering the opportunity to all students.
Where does that leave course "deadlines"? Out the window and meaningless. The course might as well not state any deadlines if they will always be extended.

3. It is not fair to other students who completed their work on time.
Also, students are awaiting the release of correct specimen names so that they can proceed with the next Unit's Labs. It is unfair to the rest of the class to hold back this feedback because one person said their Internet connection failed.

Exceptions:

1. Are there exceptions? Documented medical emergencies are a definite exception.
On occasion students have provided a copy of a doctor's note (minus sensitive information of course) and an extension is willingly granted.

2. Also "history speaks for itself". History? During the first few weeks of a semester the Instructor does not have a history with students as far as diligence and submission of assignments on time are concerned.
For the first 3 weeks my response to Internet connection and computer failures will be, "That's why we have the Extra Credit" assignment built into the course. Please take advantage of that opportunity to make up lost points."

However by mid-semester, if a student has been turning in all work on time and, if that work has been up to standards, then an Email with a "family emergency or Internet failure excuse" holds a lot more weight. Sometimes "stuff" happens and puts obstacles in the way of even our best laid plans.
I will request a phone conversation and students with legitimate excuses always seem to call.
If Unit Lab feedback and answers have already been shared with the class then I offer a student an additional Extra Credit assignment to make up points.

"What is done for one person must be done for all" comes into play here. If "history" is a factor in extending a deadline then it will be so consistently and across the board for any other hard-working students who may have experienced and expressed a hardship around a Unit deadline.

3. Another exception: What about "My Financial Aid did not come through so I could not buy the Lab Kit for Unit 1? This can be a legitimate excuse!
I always request a phone conversation and, once again, those with serious Financial Aid issues tend to call.
If the first Unit’s Lab deadline has passed and, if answers were released to the class, then I offer this student another "Extra Credit" opportunity. However, students are told this is a one time concession and that, since they now have their Lab Kit, assignments are expected to be submitted on time.
Students who could not afford their Textbook until Financial Aid came through are also given extensions for the Unit 1 Quiz.

Stopped in their tracks:

1. In all cases of Email excuses I request a phone conversation. In the majority of cases, the contact seems to stop right there. Students who legitimately feel they have a "case" tend to call me to discuss the matter further.
With the occasional student who takes online course because they prefer to avoid 'personal' contact including a phone call, those with legitimate excuses will tend to keep the Email dialogue going.

2. When students call me and, if the excuse is a computer or Internet failure, then I take the opportunity to explain "Facts 1-3" at the beginning of this Blog and honestly...most people will agree that an extension is not warranted.
It is then suggested that the student take advantage of the "Extra Credit" assignment. The person is encouraged to begin assignments earlier and to submit in advance of deadlines to allow for unforeseen 'digital' problems and/or to allow enough time to complete assignments at a library, at work, on a campus or on a friend's computer.

3. In the cases of Email excuses concerning serious medical reasons, when a doctor's note is requested, in some cases all student communication stops. Those students who had medical emergencies will tend to follow up with some form of documentation.

4. “D2L was down!”
My reply will state: “I was online all evening and D2L did not experience connection problems. Also, other students submitted their labs on time and with no problems. Please call so we can talk about this.”
Contact seems to stop right there.

5. In cases of Email excuses stating that uploading of assignments was attempted on the evening that Labs were due but none of the uploads went through. "Something was wrong with D2L and it would not let me upload my Labs".
I always go to the student's "View Progress". There I look to see if the student was online at the time they said they were. I also change to “Dropbox View” to see if any uploading attempts were made around the time in question.
If the excuse appears to be unfounded then an Email reply to the student might go something like this: "I could be wrong so, please correct me if you feel this is in error but, I took a look at your course Progress and I see no logons for you at all on the day your Labs were due".
Student contact usually stops there as well.
When "Progress" shows attempts to upload assignments then a 24 hour extension is granted.


My personal belief is that “life is about deadlines” whether it is an assignment, a doctor's appointment, reporting to work on time or boarding a plane for Hawaii.
Closing out one Unit of the Course and then moving onto the next is a good thing that works well. Students know what is expected of them along with how, where and when.
So, while some excuses will 'tear at my heartstrings', I do my best to stand firm on deadlines and I expect my students to as well.
By the way, on the morning after a Unit closes, how wonderful is that occasional Email in which a student apologizes for missing the deadline, taking full responsibility for not managing time efficiently.
And how wonderful it is to reply to that person with thanks, praise and admiration for their having taken responsibility.

Lorrie...now stepping down from her pedagogical soapbox.

Online Discipline Problems

I enjoyed reading Dan's Blog about "Students Behaving Badly...Online". It made me think.
On occasion in our Webinars the subject of handling online student discipline problems came up, especially relating to incidents in the public Discussion Forums. I recall that in one Webinar specifically devoted to the subject of student discipline we were asked to indicate whether we've had any problems by showing a smiley face.
I thought for a minute and realized that I must have been very fortunate. I couldn't recall any problems and I considered myself extremely lucky while wondering just how bad a "problem" could be.

This semester was different but fortunately only one incident reared its ugly head. Chalk it up perhaps to student frustration adjusting to a new learning environment coupled with the fact that the course was not suited to that person's needs.
Within the first week one student used the Discussion area to derail the course and its requirements along with me and my standards. It was a scathing post to say the least; a veritable "doosie".
However, that's what the Discussion delete button is for...followed by an Email to that student.
Ironically the Email surely went unread since, immediately following the offensive post, the student dropped the course. I guess the post was a departing 'gift'.
I will admit that I came away thinking, "Gosh! I sure hope that never happens again!"

This experience reinforced my own practice of checking new posts daily and checking them often, whenever possible, throughout the day.
Even if I have a specific block of time allotted for reading and grading all posts, I always try to take a quick look-see several times each day just to be sure what is going on in the Discussion Forum.

I thought about why only one problematic incident occurred over many semesters. While I don't have a definitive answer perhaps some of my "standards" that were the target of that derisive discussion post have actually helped to avoid such incidents in the past.
Within the Discussion area the standards are clearly stated; the Forum is for science research and it is not a place to vent frustrations, negatively criticize in a personal way any other member participating in the Forum, or to express personal political or religious views.
Perhaps the tone I set in replying to students is also a factor, that being a professional one rather than too 'personal', discounting of course the occasional Instructor reply in which a bit of humor might be called for though never directed 'at' or 'about' a student or their research.
Also, one of the things that annoyed the student who 'took me down' in the offensive post, might work in my favor; that being my insistence that Research Discussion Posts are well written, well organized and easy to read and follow with respect to grammar, spelling, sentence structure and uniform fonts. After all, this is college.
Yes, it took a lot of people a full Unit to get used to editing their Discussions but, by Unit 3, they were looking very professional and downright attractive.

I can't help but believe that the students also experience pride when they realize they've mastered the art of publicly presenting a well written research message to their classmates, reinforced by an instructor reply that says, "Thank you for your very well written, well organized and informative research!"

Lorrie

Why didn’t I think of this before?

Here’s something I tried today.

In Physical Geology our Discussions are research-based.
There are 2 discussion Deadlines. The first deadline is when the main research post is due.
Then there is a second deadline about a week later. The time between the 2 due dates is for editing research and replying to other students.

In the old Learning Environment we used, there was an option to set Discussion settings to allow student replies only.
Because that option is no longer available, students were posting their main research days after the first deadline had passed. Emails, News and Discussion alerts were going unnoticed.

So today, after our Unit 3 research posting deadline passed, I composed a new message that appears right above the last student Discussion message that was posted on time.

The Message Title is: Primary Research Posting is now closed.
The body of the message is:
Thank you for your posts!
No additional posts should appear above this one.

Hopefully this “News” will be noticed. Anyone who uses 2 Discussion deadlines may want to try it too.

Lorrie

Don't Assume

Everyone may already do this but I thought it was worth sharing.
Viewing "as the Student" is a good idea when making changes in a course, especially to "News".
When clicking on "Now" to end a News item sometimes the "AM" will prevail even if the time is "PM". This may go unnoticed when saving.
So I always go back to the Home Page then change to student view just to be sure that the item is inactive.
Also, not often but on occasion, even after double checking for the correct AM or PM entry, I have clicked on "End" for a News item but when I took a peek as a student, the item was still active.
I have come to trust and use viewing "as a student" for all updates and changes I make.

Lorrie

GIMP – An Alternative to PhotoShop

I love to use custom designed images to embellish discussions and I enjoy creating images for the tutorials that I write to help my students.
Sometimes a graphic cannot be found that will be "just perfect" for the information contained in a D2L tip, tutorial or externally linked webpage that we have written to help our students better understand a concept or procedure.

I use Adobe PhotoShop to create graphics that will specifically apply to a concept I am explaining.
I also use it to “Print Screen” to save D2L windows as graphics so that I can provide students with “Tips” on how to perform a task such as using the MS Word copy/paste icon for Discussions and Emails.

But Adobe PhotoShop is pricey! Is there an alternative? The answer is “Yes!”
There is an Open Source program called GIMP. [http://www.gimp.org/]
The program will allow you edit and retouch photos and images as well as create your own images from scratch. (Take care with copyright infringements when using other people's images!)
GIMP is free to download and the main program already includes many “brushes” and “filter effects” that will enhance photos and graphics. See the List here: http://manual.gimp.org/en/filters.html

GIMP downloads are available for Windows and MAC.
No small program…GIMP is loaded with “image effects” and supported with tutorials and online support. I have tried it and I've found it to be an excellent, free alternative to PhotoShop.

GIMP enthusiasts have developed even more plugins that will bring the basic program up to the standards and capabilities of PhotoShop. These plugins are also offered free to the public. See a sample list here: http://en.addons.pl/gimp.php
These additional plugins are available for different operating systems including Windows, MAC and Linux.

GIMP is something to consider trying if you are toying with the idea of creating your own images for use in your courses.

Lorrie

Using Multiple Programs to Simplify Instructor Tasks in D2L

When I am logged onto D2L I have other programs open to speed up and simplify tasks.
They include MS Word, Notepad and Dreamweaver.

Here is an example of how I use either Notepad or Dreamweaver to simplify the sending of the same Email to several classes using HTML.

1. In Dreamweaver or Notepad compose an Email using HTML.
2. Click on the HTML Tab at the bottom of the Compose Message Window and then copy/paste the HTML code into the Email.
3. Type a Title into the Subject line.
4. Either "Save as Draft" or Send.
Sending more of the same:
5. Then to send additional Emails, when the first word of the title is typed the entire Subject Title will appear as a choice. (The Title is now simplified for all additional similar Emails written.)
The HTML code is still on the computer's clipboard so copy/pasting of the HTML code is easy for each new Email that is composed and then 'Saved as a Draft' or Sent.

As an alternative to writing HTML code, this copy/pasting will also work well if copying from an MS Word document by using the Advanced Tab Word Icon in the Compose Email Window.

By the way, I always save copies of Emails written in Notepad, MS Word and Dreamweaver to a folder on my computer. This speeds up the task of writing and sending the same Emails to classes in upcoming semesters. Generally all that is needed is to change due dates.

Using Notepad or MS Word to simplify Grade comments:

This is how I use either Notepad or MS Word to simplify grade comments when grading Discussions or Lab Reports.

For Discussions:
1. Under "Grades", similar comments are often left for many students. In advance I write and save some brief, standard comments in either Notepad or MS Word.
Notepad will allow for comments without any fancy markup but, if Discussion comments need bold type or italics for example, then MS Word is used. (Again, MS Word comments require using the Word Icon under the Advanced Tab.)
Those who favor using HTML only can always use Dreamweaver or type HTML into Notepad but I find that simple grade comments generally need only a Notepad or Word copy/paste.
2. When a grade is entered for a Discussion then a simple copy/paste from my already prepared list of comments into the Comment box under 'Grades' significantly speeds up the grading process for me.

For Lab Reports: These documents often require more succinct feedback for students. To separate and call attention to specific areas in Labs, such as a 'Data Table' or a 'Question Response', bold type is occasionally used. Therefore, I generally use MS Word copy/pastes to accomplish this task in the Dropbox, which then also reflects under "Grades".
1. In advance I prepare a set of feedback comments for each Unit Lab. Each 'set' of comments targets specific areas of concern that normally present themselves for that lab experiment.
2. When grading a Lab Report I select the best set of comments for a student's Lab and then copy/paste them into a saved document titled "Comments Lorrie Immoor". (Lorrie's Lab comments are saved for the entire semester so that I have an ongoing record of whether the student is repeating the same concerns from one Lab Report to another. Every student has their own "comments document" saved in a folder which also contains copies of their Lab Reports.)
3. After copy/pasting a standard Lab comment into the "Lorrie's Comment Document", adjustments are made as necessary, deleting those comments which do not apply and adding any additional ones that do. This generally requires the deletion or addition of only one or 2 comments from the initial 'set' that was used.
4. From Lorrie's comment document, feedback is then copy/pasted into the Dropbox feedback area using the Advanced Tab, MS Word Icon.
5. Even more! If a Unit Lab Report is lacking in format and content, then I upload an already prepared Adobe Acrobat .Pdf file in the Dropbox. This document explains Lab feedback in greater detail. The Dropbox comments that I leave will alert the student that the file has been uploaded and that it should be read. The .Pdf is used and uploaded throughout the semester as needed.

Again, in designated folders on my computer I save copies of "Discussion and Lab Comments" so that they can be used each semester.

In short, D2L is never alone or lonely. Keeping it company on my computer are one or more open programs that save time and redundant typing of the same Emails and Grade comments.

Lorrie