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Turn It In

If you are interested in one of the workshops, but can't make one on the schedule, let Daryl know and he will negotiate a more convenient time. Workshops will be available throughout the semester.

To contact Daryl, please send an email to Dr. Daryl Grider at griderda@wvstateu.edu, call him at 766-5702 or fill out the form below and it will be emailed to him.

Workshop descriptions

WebCT Introductory Workshop
 WebCT Hands-on Workshop Introduction
The Non-Geeks' Guide To WebCT As A Teaching Tool (3 hours)

This workshop should be taken before you take any of the five hands-on workshops that follow. It provides an overview of Web Course Tools (WebCT), the software program we use on campus to create and maintain web sites specialized for teaching.

The workshop is called "The Non-Geeks' Guide To WebCT As A Teaching Tool" because the focus is on pedagogy not geekagogy. The aim is to provide you a non-technical explanation of ways WebCT can support your classroom teaching.

We begin by considering some pedagogical reasons you might want to use six basic WebCT components: (1) an online syllabus; (2) a course handouts page; (3) course-specific email; (4) a course discussion area; (5) the tool for making online quizzes and surveys; (6) and the online gradebook.

We follow the overview with some hands-on exploration of the six tools in realistic teaching contexts so that you can get a feel for how they match up with your own teaching needs. And we end with information on where and how you can learn more, if you are interested..

WebCT-Syllabus
 WebCT Hands-on Workshop #1
Using The Syllabus Tool (1.5 hours)

In this workshop you will learn how to set up the WebCT Syllabus page and import an already existing syllabus in html file format.

The workshop will also show you how to convert an existing syllabus in Word format to an html format. And you will show yourself how easy it is to make corrections and additions to your syllabus within WebCT once it has been placed there as an html file.

The suggested prerequisite for this workshop is completion of the WebCT Introductory Workshop or some previous experience with a version of WebCT.

WebCT-Handouts
 WebCT Hands-on Workshop #2
Creating A Course Handouts Page (1.5 hours)

Using a WebCT Content Module, in this workshop you will learn how to create an area where you can place all the handouts used in your course--in downloadable form. Your students will be able to get any handout they need outside of class, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, without needing to call on you.

Those who complete this workshop will receive a copy of the full Adobe Acrobat Standard 7.0. Acrobat allows you to convert handouts to a universally downloadable format that will open and be printable on any of your students' computers.

The suggested prerequisite for this workshop is completion of the WebCT Introductory Workshop or some previous experience with a version of WebCT. This workshop and the Course Syllabus Workshop are generally taken together, but can be taken separately if you so choose.

WebCT-Discussion Board
 WebCT Hands-on Workshop #3
Setting Up and Managing The Discussion Board (3 hours)

The Discussion Board is one of the most popular and widely used of all WebCT Tools. It is flexible enough to be used for everything from whole class discussion to group projects to private journals. In this workshop you will get practice in setting up public and private Topic groups on the WebCT Discussion Board and explanations of the strengths and limitations of each.

You will get hands-on practice creating and posting Messages to Topic areas, and experience in reading and managing Messages. You will practice organizing Topics and messages to meet particular needs. And you will use the Search Message, Compile, and Download functions to see how they can be used to save you time and effort.

The suggested prerequisite for this workshop is completion of the WebCT Introductory Workshop or some previous experience with a version of WebCT.

WebCT-Quizzes/Surverys
 WebCT Hands-on Workshop #4
Using The Quiz/Survey Tool (3 hours)

This workshop will teach you how to create a WebCT quiz from scratch and how to create one using already existing questions from a publisher's test bank. We will be using Respondus, a third party software program. Respondus saves us time by allowing us to create WebCT quizzes and surveys on our own computers, without being logged into WebCT.

The finished quiz can then be uploaded to WebCT. We have a sitewide license for Respondus. You will receive a copy of the latest version of Respondus and of its companion program StudyMate, a program for making self-study games (Jeopardy, Flashcards, etc.) from your quiz questions.

The suggested prerequisite for this workshop is completion of the WebCT Introductory Workshop or some previous experience with a version of WebCT.

WebCT-Gradebook
 WebCT Hands-on Workshop #5
Setting up The Gradebook in WebCT And Maintaining It in Excel

In this workshop you will learn how to set up the WebCT online gradebook. Once you have the gradebook set up, you will learn how to download the WebCT gradebook to a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet so that you can maintain your WebCT gradebook in Excel.

You then periodically load the grades back up to the WebCT gradebook so that students can view them in their individual "My Grades" areas. Through this My Grades area, students see only their individual grades and only if and when you choose to release those grades to them. Nobody but you sees all the student grades.

Keeping the grades in Excel is easier, more efficient, and safer than keeping them online. Even if you have no previous experience with spreadsheets, picking up only those spreadsheet basics needed to maintain a gradebook is fairly straightforward (hey, if an English type like me can muddle through it, how hard can it be!).

Unlike the WebCT gradebook, in Excel we can freeze columns so that student names are always on the same screen as the grades we are working with. And we can more easily use powerful grading formulas such as the Small Function that lets you drop two or more of the lowest quiz or daily grade scores from an average.

This is hands down the most popular tool with students. And once faculty learns to maintain the gradebook in Excel, it becomes one of their favorites too.

The suggested prerequisite for this workshop is completion of the WebCT Introductory Workshop or some previous experience with a version of WebCT.

Turn It In
 TurnItIn.com Plagiarism Prevention
Setting up an instructor account and use

In this workshop you will learn how to set up and use your Instructor TurnItIn.com account. You will learn what TurnItIn can and can not do, learn how to create assignment submittal areas for students, learn how to have students students create an account on your site and submit their own papers. Finally, you will learn how to interpret the Trunitin 'originality report' that results when Turnitin examines the work of your students against its extension databases of published works, material on the Internet, and the work of others students.