What is MU Online?
WebCT-Vista was the official software
for teaching online courses at Marshall University until we moved to a newer version called, Blackboard Learning System Vista Enterprise, during spring 2008. Blackboard Vista is used at many other
institutions in the state, nation, and worldwide. For our purposes, we refer to the e-course program as MU Online to avoid software-specific confusion.
Briefly, MU Online provides a password-protected course site which is
accessed with a web browser such as Microsoft Internet Explorer or Firefox.
Once you log in to your MU Online e-course site, you can work on
course activities anywhere, anytime – at your convenience!
Using
MU Online, Marshall University faculty members assume the role of
course designers as well as course instructors.
As the Course Designer, you develop the content and design of
your course. As the Course Instructor, you teach
your course, using a set of interactive tools such as
E-mail, Electronic Bulletin Boards, Assignments, Exams and Quizzes.
The course content you provide can include syllabi,
lecture notes, articles – just about anything you would use in a
traditional classroom setting. Whether you are new to teaching
courses online, or are an experienced instructor, you will find
Vista very easy to use!
What Can I Do with an MU Online Course
You can use MU Online as a supplement to a traditional class or
you can use it to teach a class completely online.
MU Online is
really just a way to make course content available to your students.
If you hand out class materials in your traditional class, such as
your course syllabus, assignments, schedule, lecture notes, and
copies of articles, you can upload the same materials to your
MU Online course for students to view or print. The material you
post is available throughout the semester (or until you remove it).
MU Online also makes it possible to provide hyperlinks in your
course website to materials you want your students to use. Consider
the savings in labor and expenses.
You can also use your MU Online course as a place where
students can submit assignments, take tests online, participate in
class discussions via an electronic bulletin board, and in real-time
chats. Just about any activity students do in a traditional class
can be adapted to the online environment.
Interested in what a course might look like? Click
below.
Sample Course for
Faculty
Information About Teaching Online
-
Marshall University MUBOG IT-5 Policy governs every aspect of
online instruction including intellectual property rights. As the
online course developer, you hold the intellectual property rights
to your course, which allows you to take your course content you
developed with you and teach it if you go to another institution.
Another faculty member cannot teach your online course you developed
here at Marshall University without your permission. It would be up
to you to grant permission for someone else to teach your course
here at Marshall.
- If you accept financial or technical support from Marshall as you
develop your course, and you choose to market your course at some
future time, then the University has an interest in any profits.
(see MUBOG IT-5 Policy for details)
- As a full-time faculty member at Marshall University,
subject to department approval, you can
teach an online course as part of your regular teaching load
or as an overload. Adjuncts may also teach online courses,
subject to department approval.
- The compensation for full-time faculty who teach
as an overload is currently $70 per student enrolled at the end
of schedule adjustment, and $70 per student who receives a
grade for the course.
If a full-time faculty member teaches in-load, the same
compensation will be paid to the faculty member's department. Those
funds are to be used in ways that encourage online course
development.
A Few Tips for Teaching Online
Your students will expect quick response times. You should
plan to log on to the course at least five days out of seven and to
respond QUICKLY to questions and to student work.
We encourage all online faculty to build required inter-action
into their courses by whatever means they determine is most
effective. Courses that lack interaction among students and
instructors typically are not successful.
All courses must begin with the start of a regular semester. Most
online instructors build due dates into their courses just as they
would for a traditional class.
Student Evaluation of your course. Towards the end of each
term you will receive instructions for your students on how to
access the online evaluation survey for your course. This is the
same evaluation instrument that is used in traditional classes.
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