Month: March 2020 (Page 3 of 5)

We had a nice first pet party this morning. It seems like everyone’s pretty stressed out about this strange situation we’re in, but everyone’s doing their best. That’s all that we can hope for. Obviously, everyone’s health and well being is the priority, but we’re going to try to keep things as normal as we can moving forward so that those of you who are able to, will end this semester with course credit.

Connection glitches

At this morning’s pet party meeting (shout out to Joanna’s amazing dog Maximus), we experienced some real connection problems with Webex. Most of us were able to move over to Blackboard’s videoconferencing system, but some users still experienced connection problems there. For this afternoon’s sessions, I’ll keep Webex as plan A, but I’ll add details to this post for plans B (Blackboard) and C (Zoom). We’ll clearly need to have these backup plans for when our class resumes on Monday, so I’ll post updated details on this post as well.

We will probably have times where there will be connection problems during official class meetings and I know that not everyone will continue to be able to attend all the class meetings. I’m planning on recording all sessions and sharing the recordings with you. I will also using an iPad as my “board” so I will be able to share my own notes from each session as a PDF. I’m still learning about all these options and your patience is appreciated!

It will probably take a few weeks to figure out what works best for us, so your attention and feedback will be especially important.

Staying in contact

Classes officially resume online tomorrow. If you haven’t heard from one of your professors by tomorrow, send them an email. Even if they don’t know what’s going on in their course yet, it’s important for them to know how to get in touch with you and that you plan to remain engaged in the course.

As we move to distance learning, it’s especially important for us to remain in regular contact with each other, so you will be required to check in with me on a weekly basis. I’ll determine shortly exactly what it means to “check in” and I’ll let you know how, but there will be a variety of check-in options from attending a full class to just sending me an email. I know that a lot of your lives have been upended and that things will probably keep changing for all of us, so checking in will be something easy and short that you can do even if your schedule changes.

Edit 3/19: Here is a link to your check-in form. Submissions are due by 11:59pm on Sundays. You can complete the form in about 10 seconds if you like but there is room for you to write more details about your own situation, if you’d like to share them with me. Nobody else will have access to your responses to these questions. These submissions will be used in place of attendance moving forward. Each submission is worth one participation point.

Submissions are due by 11:59pm on Sundays:
– March 23
– March 30
– April 6
– April 13 (optional)
– April 20
– April 27
– May 4
– May 11
– May 18

Study groups

During this morning’s pet party we discussed the advantages of having official study groups. Especially now, relying on your fellow students will be an important part of staying engaged in the course to succeed. Of course, you are welcome to be in touch with each other as much as you can be, but I’ll also assign official study groups soon.

Grading

I don’t have full information about how end-of-semester grading will work yet, but we received a notice from the provost that has some information I can share with you. Keep in mind that no information is final; anything could change in the future.

1. The last day to withdraw from the course is now May 14. Final exams are still scheduled for the following week, so now you’ll get to decide almost at the last minute whether you’d like to stay in the course or not.
2. A lot of students (and faculty) have asked about having a “pass/fail” grade option, instead of having a letter grade. Some students might prefer this option over a letter grade, depending on their performance during the semester, but it’s not necessarily a good idea for everyone. I’ve never actually given a grade like this myself, so I don’t know all the details, but I’ll copy what was in the provost’s email:
   • Last Day to File for Pass/No Credit/Fail Option –For eligible students that meet the requirements of our “Pass/Fail/No Credit Option” policy,(https://www.cuny.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/page-assets/about/administration/offices/registrar/resources/CUNY-Uniform-Grade-Glossary-and-Guidelines-08012018-1.pdf – Page 5), the University will move the deadline to Thursday, May 14, 2020. This is the published “Last Day of Classes,” and before final examination week, and also prior to the “End of the Spring Term”. See note below on possible financial aid impact on students.
   • Students should consult with their academic and financial aid advisor to confirm if such election will still allow them to count the course towards their major/degree requirements, if credit is earned with a grade of P. In order to receive this grade, a student needs to continue participating in academically related activities, complete all assignments, and take the final exam/culminating experience. If a passing letter grade is earned, the student will receive a grade of ‘P’ and credit for the course with no impact on GPA. If a failing grade is earned (F), the student will receive a grade of NC/NP which does not affect the GPA. Students must remain in compliance with Federal and State Satisfactory Academic Progress guidelines.]
   • The University is consulting broadly about the possibility of extending the Pass/No Credit/Fail Option to additional courses, understanding the extraordinary circumstances we face ant the fact that a blanket, centralized move in this direction would be warranted with both expediency and consistency in mind..  Furthermore, a temporary blanket approach could alleviate the need for students to consult their academic and financial advisors.  Preliminary discussions on this from had been had with the Chair of the University Faculty Senate and the corresponding regulatory agencies.

Stay tuned for more updates and stay healthy.

I hope everyone is staying safe and has been able to find some enjoyment in staying home. We’ve been watching disaster movies on Netflix at my house the past few evenings and, while it’s possibly not the best choice for our mental health during these anxious times, it’s fun and sort of reassuring that disaster movies usually have some kind of happy ending.

Online class meetings

After trying out a few different videoconferencing options for our Monday/Wednesday 8am lessons, I’ve settled on a product called Webex. You don’t need an account and you don’t need to download the app to join the video sessions (you can join meetings from your browser with a meeting link and password) but your experience will be a bit better if you are able to download the (free) app to your computer or your phone and create a (free) account. Whether you use the app or the website, you’ll need internet access, a webcam, and a quiet place (if you don’t have these things, please send me an email and we’ll figure something else out). You can even participate in the audio part of a class meeting from your phone using a phone number and PIN.

I’ve set up a recurring Webex meeting from 8:00am to 11:00 am on Mondays and Wednesdays. This will cover our usual class meeting from 8:00am to 9:40am as well as office hours after class. I’ll take attendance as usual. If you need to, you can join the meeting late.

• Meeting number: 959 161 780
• Meeting link: https://kpoirier-450.my.webex.com/kpoirier-450.my/j.php?MTID=m7f18ed5f32effbe547666bfd7a5dea19
• Password: H9xStCp4Tk3
• Join by phone 1-650-215-5226, Access code: 959 161 780

I plan on recording these sessions and sharing the links to the recordings on the OpenLab for you to review later.

Please see the details for our practice sessions (aka Meet the Pets!) on Wednesday (tomorrow) here.

We’ll see how Webex goes for the first few weeks. It should be free for 90 days, which is long enough for us. If it’s not working for us, we can try something similar like Zoom or Blackboard Collaborate.

Edit 3/19: Please see this page for meeting links in Webex, Blackboard, and Zoom.

Pre-class Prep Lessons

At this point, I’m not planning on giving full lessons during our 8am video meetings. Instead, I’ll prepare some reading material and links to short videos for you to read and watch before class. Then during our video meetings, I can give a mini-lession and go over any questions that came up in your preparation or examples you’d like to see in more detail.

Please stay tuned for more pre-class prep lesson posts on the OpenLab. You can see the first one from last week here. I’ll collect these pre-class prep lesson posts and add a button to the menu at the top of our OpenLab site.

Quizzes and Tests

Yes, there will still be quizzes and tests. I’ll post more details about how you will take them soon. For now, make sure you’re keeping up with your Webwork assignments.

As usual, please send me an email if you have any questions or concerns. There are still many things I don’t know about how the rest of the semester will go, but I will let you know everything I do know.

I hope everyone is doing well and keeping safe. Things have changed a lot over the past few days and they will probably keep changing quickly. This might cause some anxiety, but it makes me feel better to know that we are all doing everything we can to keep everyone as safe as possible.

For details related to our class, please see Friday’s update for some important details and stay tuned for more. There’s still lots we don’t know about how the rest of the semester will go, but I just noticed on the College academic calendar that the last day to withdraw from the course has been moved from April 1 to May 14, so that’s some good news!

Meet the Pets

Our first online class meeting is Monday, March 23. For now I would like to invite you to an online Meet the Pets party. This is really just our chance to resolve any technical issues on either end before we go live with our official online class on Monday at 8am. You can also ask any questions you like.

Since we’ll be at home, I’ll introduce you to our two cats, Batman and Petunia; they misbehave A LOT but we still love them because we have to. Anyone else who has a pet and would like to introduce them to the class is welcome to do so too (I would really really love to meet your pets).

Meeting Details

You’ll need a computer with internet access and a webcam, and a calm and quiet place (if you can find one…if you can’t, we can work something out); headphones are a good idea too, if you have them.

We’ll hold three sessions and you can attend any of them. Sign up for a session in the comments on this post (or comment if you can’t make any of them). You don’t have to stay long, just long enough to check in and see that the technology is working…and show us your pet! Attending one session will earn you one participation point.

PLAN A: WEBEX

We’ll use a free videoconferencing system called Webex. You can download Webex to your computer or phone, but you can also access the meeting through your browser with the meeting link. You can even join the meeting (just the audio) by calling a phone number.

• Session 1: Wednesday, March 18 at 8am-10am
  • meeting link
  • meeting number: 952 278 365
  • meeting password: 6fgAVwUM6G7
• Session 2: Wednesday, March 18 at 12pm-2pm
  • meeting link
  • meeting number: 952 278 365
  • meeting password: btNvpqph333
• Session 3: Wednesday, March 18 at 2pm-4pm
  • meeting link
  • meeting number: 958 576 496
  • meeting password: DRa4QvNWv27
• Phone number for all sessions (if you don’t have internet access): 1-650-215-5226

PLAN B: BLACKBOARD COLLABORATE ULTRA

If Webex doesn’t work, we’ll use Blackboard Collaborate Ultra. You can access the Blackboard Collaborate Ultra meetings using the links below or by logging into our regular Blackboard course and clicking on “Content.”

• Session 2
  • Blackboard link
  • Phone number: +1-571-392-7650 PIN: 840 767 8732
• Session 3
  • Blackboard link
  • Phone number: +1-571-392-7650 PIN: 345 545 7531

PLAN C: ZOOM

If Webex and Blackboard Collaborate Ultra don’t work, we’ll try Zoom. You can download the free Zoom app or join the meeting from your browser here: https://zoom.us/join or at the links below.

• Session 2
  • Zoom link
  • Meeting ID: 484 960 705
  • Password: 053431
  • Phone: 484960705
• Session 3
  • Zoom link
  • Meeting ID: 954 093 516
  • Password: 058142
  • Phone: 954093516

PLAN D: THERE IS NO PLAN D!

If you need to, you can send me an email with any private comments, questions, or concerns. I’ll get back to you as quickly as I can.

(It’s gonna be me)