Thursday, August 19, 2010

New CCCS Email Accounts Revisited

Please do not reply to this message. If you have questions, please email me directly at donna.welschmeyer@cccs.edu

We've had several messages in the last few minutes about accessing the new email tool.

If you do not have an email account at one of the 13 CCCS community colleges, you should be able to access your CCCS email account by using the "Faculty/Staff" email icon at the top of the portal page.

If you do have an email account at one of the 13 CCCS community colleges,  you should use the link to Outlook Web Access that appears in the upper left corner of the Welcome tab.

For more information about using either of these methods to access your email, you can visit the Wiki page or contact the 24/7 Helpdesk.

Thanks, and happy emailing!

Copy/Paste 101

The Markup tool directions are on the Dropbox page, not the Nav bar page.  I swear I copied the correct one, but obviously did not.  

Sorry for the confusion!

Lisa

Lisa Cheney-Steen
Lisa.Cheney-Steen@cccs.edu

Portal Update: New Email Addresses for faculty

Hello Everyone-

I hope most of you have had a chance to log in to the new portal for CCCOnline.  A complaint we received frequently from faculty was that, while we have a lot of information available for you, that information was scattered across too many locations.  The portal has given us an accessible place to organize everything you need.  Please let me know if something is missing or on a tab within the portal that is not relatively intuitive.

As part of this effort we have also set up a cccs.edu email address for each of you.  The email is accessible from the portal (and from the web in general).  This email address will give you a way to communicate with your students outside of D2L without involving your personal email addresses.  While our preference is to have as much email communication with students as possible occur within D2L we know that isn't possible between terms.  

And while I hate to worry overmuch about lawsuits and other student protests we have more students now than in the past and the risk is higher.  In those cases it is much better when all communication with students happens on CCCOnline software and servers so that your own personal computers are not at risk in any way.  Along those lines, we have also purchased a second tool from Turnitin (the anti-plagiarism company) called Markup.  Markup allows you to grade papers online without ever downloading them to your personal computer.  Information about Markup is available in the wiki at https://at.ccconline.org/faculty/wiki/Tech_Tools_-_D2L_-_Dropbox#Grade_Dropbox_Folders_with_Online_Markup.3F.

Please take a moment to set up your cccs.edu email address.  We will begin to use that address to communicate with you this fall.

Thank you for all of the hard work you do!

Lisa

Lisa Cheney-Steen
Co-Exec. Director, CCCOnline
Lisa.Cheney-Steen@cccs.edu

New Nav Bar!

Hello Everyone-
One of the improvements to D2L in the new version we installed this summer is a slightly changed top navigation bar.  We didn't want to turn that on in the middle of a semester for fear it would cause confusion for the students, but it is now available to you.  

The most significant change is that the Nav Bar now wraps when it reaches the right edge of the browser window instead of disappearing out of the edge of the window.  That means you can put more links there then you could in the past.  The default is in fact that all tools are shown as links on the Nav Bar. Nothing has changed in terms of removing unused links from the bar -- you can still do that (and probably should); directions are available on the wiki at https://at.ccconline.org/faculty/wiki/Tech_Tools_-_D2L_-_Homepages_and_Navigation#Remove_Tools_from_My_Course_Navigation_Bar.3F

Last, when you hover over a link on the nav bar the link will now be highlighted in gray (see content link below.)


Best,

Lisa

Lisa Cheney-Steen
Co-Exec. Director, CCCOnline
Lisa.Cheney-Steen@cccs.edu

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

End-of-Semester Tip

We often get emails from students at the end of the term complaining that faculty aren't responding to them, when in reality the course is over. Please post a quick note in the News tool or your course email to tell students when you will no longer be logging in and to give them alternative contact information. Thanks! I hope you have a good break between terms. Thanks!

Thursday, August 05, 2010

Respondus and Studymate License Updates

Please do not reply to this message. If you have questions, please email me directly at donna.welschmeyer@cccs.edu.

Everyone, here is an opportunity to try out your login to the new CCCOnline portal if you haven't already done so! The new Respondus and Studymate license information is now available in the faculty gateway. You can go directly to the gateway OR you can find this information on your portal Faculty tab (in the Faculty Gateway channel).

I think I'm REALLY going to enjoy this single-sign-on aspect of the portal, and I hope you all do, too!

Wednesday, August 04, 2010

Summer Grades Due August 19

I apologize, the wrong due date was listed in the previous e-mail for grades, they are due August 19, not August 12.

I apologize for any confusion.
Dear Faculty;

It's that time of the semester, Summer grades are due no later than Thursday, August 12, 2010.

Please follow the directions below to enter grades for your courses. If you have any questions regarding grades, please contact me (john.schmahl@cccs.edu).

Once you have submitted your grades, we will pull a daily report listing the grades and they will be entered into Banner for the students. Grades will not be viewable by the students until the day after they are entered.

You must report a Last Date of Attendance (LDA) for any student who receives a grade of “F”. The LDA is the date that the student submitted their last graded assessment or assignment. To find this date in D2L, you can follow the directions here http://at.ccconline.org/faculty/wiki/Tech_Tools_-_D2L_-_Classlist#How_do_I_review_student.27s_access_to_the_course_or_a_tool.3F

If the student never accessed the course, you can enter the first day of the session, June 7, 2010.

If you have any students needing their grades earlier, or any students not listed on the grade roster, please contact John Schmahl, john.schmahl@cccs.edu or Roxanne Manske, roxanne.manske@cccs.edu.

Please note that students from Dawson Community College will NOT show on the grade roster. Please e-mail these grades to John Schmahl, john.schmahl@cccs.edu or Roxanne Manske, roxanne.manske@cccs.edu.

To submit final grades:

Login through Faculty Portal at https://myportal.cccs.edu/jsp/misc/schoolLoginNew.jsp?school=ccco

(For a tutorial on the new Faculty Portal please go here, https://at.ccconline.org/faculty/wiki/Tech_Tools_-_CCCOnline_Portal_Overview)

- Select the Faculty Tab

- Under the Faculty Gateway channel, Click on the Online Gradebook

- Select the appropriate section

If you are missing any section(s) or have extra section(s) listed, please contact John Schmahl, john.schmahl@cccs.edu.

Enter the appropriate grade for each student, accepted grades are listed below

Remember, developmental courses (those with course numbers under 100) must use the developmental grades, see below

**All students on the grade roster must be given a grade, even if they have not participated in the course**

Click “Update” and return to the menu to select the next section if needed

Approved grades

Standard courses (course numbers 100 and above, e.g., PSY 101)
A
B
C
D
F (must include last day of attendance)

Developmental courses (course number less than 100, e.g., MAT 060)
S/A
S/B
S/C
U/D
U/F (must include last day of attendance)
Dear CCCOnline Faculty:

I am pleased to announce the launch of the CCCOnline Portal! The portal is a one-stop connection to essential sites, resources, and tools for CCCOnline Faculty. The portal can be accessed from the “faculty” tab of the CCCOnline home page, or from the faculty wiki. By logging in to the CCCOnline Portal, you do not need to log in or visit multiple locations around the web. Items available via single sign-on to the CCCOnline Portal include:
  • D2L Course Access
  • CCCS.edu Faculty Email
  • Faculty Gateway Resources
  • Faculty Wiki
  • Faculty Handbook
  • Faculty News Blog
  • Training & Professional Development
  • Banner ID/S# Account Management
  • Employment Information
  • And More....!
Prior to your first visit to the portal, please see the training link - https://at.ccconline.org/faculty/wiki/Tech_Tools_-_CCCOnline_Portal_Overview where you will find excellent instructions on how to use the portal, or get help if you need it. Frequent access encourages better communication for teaching, training, and current news updates — all now available through the portal access! Many kudos to Cheryl Comstock and Jonathan Fuller on the CCCOnline staff for organizing and managing this new service for CCCOnline faculty!

Sincerely,

Rhonda Epper

New D2L Tools to Use as you Update your Courses for Fall!

As you prepare your courses for the fall term, please remember that you must have a content related graded assignment completed prior to the census date for fall 1 which is September 14th. This assignment will help you determine how to mark students on the attendance roster that you will complete.

We would also like to announce the addition of some new tools in D2L. The first is TurnItIn which you may have already noticed in your Dropbox tool. Plagiarism Detection scans Dropbox submissions resulting in an "Originality Report" icon for instructors on the "Submissions" and "Leave Feedback" page with color-coded percentages of possible plagiarism. Online Markup allows instructors to insert inline text, highlight text, and add and reuse comments across submissions in a variety of document formats all from the Dropbox Folder "Leave Feedback" page. Visit the wiki page for more instructions, tutorials, and information on Plagiarism Detection and Online Markup in D2L: http://at.ccconline.org/faculty/wiki/Tech_Tools_-_D2L_-_Dropbox

Some suggestions to keep in mind when using the plagiarism detection tool:
-Before you use the plagiarism tool, consult with your Program Chair about expectations.
-Include information for learners that this tool will be used when grading assignments and consider adding to your course "Instructions" about viewing the Originality Report and/or Online Markup.
-View the Faculty Handbook Academic Integrity page for ideas about constructive use of the Plagiarism Detection option (link below).
-Select to "Allow submitters to see Originality Reports" and leave all other settings at defaults.

Another exciting, handy tool for faculty as you update your courses for fall is the Manage Dates Tool which you access through Edit Course. Using the Manage Dates tool for Dropbox and Quiz items adjusts the start and end date for these items. Students can see them, but not access them until the dates you set in Manage Dates. Be careful, using the Manage Dates tool for Content, Discussions, and Grades affects the VISIBILITY of these items. If you set dates for Content, Discussions, and Grades from the Manage Dates tool those items are not VISIBLE to students before or after the dates you set in Manage Dates. CCCOnline strongly discourages the hiding of any content in our courses.

If you have any questions about this post, please contact me directly at karen.kaemmerling@cccs.edu

Monday, August 02, 2010

D2L Grades Webinar

Do you have trouble using the Grades tool in D2L? Do your grade columns match up with your grade items? Do you need a bonus column? Come to the D2L Grades webinar from 1-3pm on tomorrow, Tuesday Aug 3rd where the voice of Profhelp, Amy Sorenson, will answer all these questions and more.

Join us at https://sas.elluminate.com/m.jnlp?sid=2008363&password=M.085ABAE2B05F344DCC68DC9E8172C3

Also, don't forget to register for the faculty conference! Sessions are filling up quickly!

Saturday, July 31, 2010

2010 Faculty Conference Registration is now open!

Time to roll up your sleeves and join us for our 2010 CCCOnline Faculty Conference Constructing Quality: Expand your Toolbox.



Go to our 2010 Conference wiki page to find:

-Registration
-Conference Details
-Descriptions of the sessions and times
-And a fun graphic created by our Flash Developer, Beth Kitts. Can you guess whose voice she used?

Can’t wait to see you there! I’ll be the one in the red tool belt.
Please send me your questions about the conference directly at Karen.kaemmerling@cccs.edu

Thursday, July 29, 2010

August Training Opportunities

As we wrap up the summer term, you have several training opportunities you will want to mark on your calendars.

On August 3 from 1-3pm Donna Hall, Design Team Coordinator, will provide a D2L Grades Webinar where participants will learn the basics of using the D2L Grades tool effectively, including the basics of setting up Grades and making sure your Grades tool is accurate during and at the end of a term. Use this link to access the webinar https://sas.elluminate.com/m.jnlp?sid=2008363&password=M.085ABAE2B05F344DCC68DC9E8172C3

Register today through the Faculty Gateway for our Learning Styles Workshop with Leecy Wise facilitating that begins August 9th and concludes August 20th.

We will have a two part webinar series on August 25th and August 27th on Second Language Writers with Ruth Brancard from 1-2:30 pm. By examining profiles of 5 non-native speakers of English, participants will explore strengths such students bring to the college classroom as well as challenges these students face. Highlights from recent research on second language writers and older research in the area of contrastive rhetoric will inform a discussion of how instructors can use knowledge about students’ linguistic backgrounds to support students’ learning. Log in information can be found on the upcoming webinar wiki page at https://at.ccconline.org/faculty/wiki/Professional_Development_-_Upcoming_Webinars

Finally, be ready to roll up your sleeves at this year’s faculty conference Constructing Quality: Expand your Toolbox on September 17, 2010 at Arapahoe Community College. Bookmark this wiki page for session information coming soon https://at.ccconline.org/faculty/wiki/Teaching_Resources_-_Presentations_-_2010_CCCOnline_Faculty_Conference

Monday, July 26, 2010

Student Survey Now Available

Please do not reply to this message. Email me directly at donna.welschmeyer@cccs.edu if you have questions or comments.

The student survey is now available to students. Note that students will receive a popup message when they log into D2L until they have completed the survey for each of their courses. Please encourage students to complete the survey in order to help us better serve them. Thanks!

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Training Opportunities This Week

As Summer Heats up, join us for two training opportunities this week!

Session 3 - Second Life Series - Expression and Learning through Communicating in SecondLife
When: July 22, 2010 (3:00PM - 5:00PM - Mountain)
Who: Cheryl Comstock, CCCOnline Director of Online Programs
What: In this session, we will be presenting and practicing the use of various communication tools for traditional and non-traditional forms of communication.
Where: In Second Life. http://slurl.com/secondlife/Colorado%20EduIsland/133/111/22Contact Cheryl Comstock with questions: Cheryl.Comstock@cccs.edu

Authentic Assessments
When: Friday, July 23, 2010 (1:00PM - 3:00PM Mountain)
Who: Karen Kaemmerling, CCCOnline Director of Training & Professional Development and Social Science Program Chair
What: Participants will leave this session able to define and compare Authentic Assessments and Traditional Assessments and have knowledge about the development of authentic assessments implemented in history courses based on Colorado Common Course Numbering System. Where: Online via Elluminate. Access up to 15 minutes before the start time from:https://sas.elluminate.com/m.jnlp?sid=2008363&password=M.B52B6F7AF023620CDD22540AF91F18

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Faculty Voices

Hi Everyone-

Please take a few moments to read this summers Faculty Voices blogs.  You can access them from the Faculty Community shell in D2L or I have again set up a public Netvibes page at http://www.netvibes.com/lisacs#Faculty_Voices.

They are truly wonderful blogs to read -- Dave Trott's post on gardens today is a gem.

Lisa

Lisa.Cheney-Steen@cccs.edu

Friday, July 09, 2010

Summer Training Opportunities

As you beat the heat and stay inside on a hot summer afternoon, how about joining us for a webinar or workshop. Also, mark your calendar for our upcoming annual conference at Arapahoe Community College on September 17th. Our theme this year is Constructing Quality: Expand your Toolbox. Be looking for registration information soon!

Here is a list of upcoming events , visit the upcoming webinar page on the wiki for more information.
Authentic Assessments
When: Friday, July 23, 2010 (1:00PM - 3:00PM Mountain)
What: Participants will leave this session able to define and compare Authentic Assessments and Traditional Assessments and have knowledge about the development of authentic assessments implemented in history courses based on Colorado Common Course Numbering System.
D2L Grades
When: Tuesday, August 3, 2010 (1:00PM - 3:00PM Mountain)
What: Participants will lean the basics of using the D2L Grades tool effectively, including the basics of setting up Grades and making sure your Grades tool is accurate during and at the end of a term.
Second Language Writers Part 1 - Understanding Second Language Writers
When: Wednesday, August 25, 2010 (1:00PM - 2:30PM Mountain)
What: By examining profiles of 5 non-native speakers of English, participants will explore strengths such students bring to the college classroom as well as challenges these students face. Highlights from recent research on second language writers and older research in the area of contrastive rhetoric will inform a discussion of how instructors can use knowledge about students’ linguistic backgrounds to support students’ learning.
Second Language Writers Part 2 - Working with Second Language Writers and Their Writing
When: Friday, August 27, 2010 (1:00PM - 2:30PM Mountain)
What: Using student writing samples, participants will discuss strategies for working with second language writers to improve writing in English. Drawing on research on second language acquisition and second language writing, the presenter will address issues of content, organization, grammar, and voice. Suggestions for the timing and content of feedback to students will be addressed.

You may also register for our Learning Styles workshop facilitated by Leecy Wise starting on August 8th through the faculty gateway.

Tuesday, July 06, 2010

D2L Version 9

Hi Everyone-

Yesterday we upgraded to version 9 in D2L.   Today you may have noticed some of the new features.  Among them you should see:
  • If a student has added a picture to their My Settings widget, it will show up in the classlist and in discussion posts.
  • When grading you can now leave feedback for each student's discussion in the Topic Score Details window.
  • Classlist now shows the last time a student has accessed the course.
  • Files can now be edited in Manage Files.  Rolling your mouse over a file and then clicking the drop-down arrow will give options to edit, rename, copy, cut, delete, download, preview, and add content topic.
  • When something is saved a bkue bar appears at the top of the D2L page (covers the Global Navbar) for about 5 seconds saying "saved successfully".
  • Rubrics  are similar to grade forms in BB.  This is a really cool tool and training on it will be available later this summer. (We recommend you wait for training before trying to set it up.)
More information coming soon as we spend time with this version!
Lisa

Lisa Cheney-Steen
Lisa.Cheney-Steen@cccs.edu
CCCOnline

Colorado EduIsland 1st Anniversary Celebration!

We will be celebrating Colorado EduIsland’s 1st year in Second Life (SL). There will be music, games, and fun tours around the island.

When: Thursday, July 8th
Time: 3-6 pm
Where: Colorado EduIsland : http://slurl.com/secondlife/Colorado%20EduIsland/132/110/22
How to get there: You will need to start an account and download SL (viewer 2) and then you can access the link.

If you don’t already have a SL account you can easily create one by visiting SecondLife.com. Please use the CCCOnline Faculty wiki, to get you started in SL. http://at.ccconline.org/faculty/wiki/Tech_Tools_-_Other_Tools_-_Second_Life .You can also email questions to me directly at, Cheryl.comstock@cccs.edu.

If you are interested in virtual worlds as a teaching tool to deliver synchronous topics in your classes, and /or create community among your students and educational peers, please feel free to join us on Colorado EduIsland to share your ideas! Colorado EduIsland is a space for our Colorado colleges to use and research learning possibilities within virtual environments.
See you in-world!
Cheryl/ a.k.a. Ize Mesmer
Cheryl.comstock@cccs.edu.

D2L Operational

Hi Everyone-

Yesterday evening beginning around 8:30 we were having database issues with D2L that resulted in an inability to login.  Those issues were resolved around 10:00 pm last night.

Lisa

Lisa Cheney-Steen
Lisa.Cheney-Steen@cccs.edu
CCCOnline