Completing a program at La Sierra University entails more than successfully completing courses. It is an endeavor in professionalism as well. I will strive to maintain professional relations and interactions with my professors, fellow students, and with those with whom I come into contact while completing any practicum requirements in the field. I understand that my professionalism is one of the criteria on which my program completion hinges. This includes email interactions, phone conversations, and face-to-face meetings.
The online learning environment is very different from the on-campus, face-to-face format. As an online learner, I must take a greater responsibility for my learning. I understand that the teacher's role in the online environment is to coach and facilitate, read my submissions and give helpful feedback, help me steer in the right direction, and give me grades on my assignments/final course grade. It is my responsibility to read and comprehend the material, and to ask the instructor clarification questions when I do not understand course content. In addition, I can converse with other classmates to grasp course content, and can ask to be connected with previous students from the course who might be able to answer questions that I feel uncomfortable asking the teacher. I understand that the teacher is not responsible for presenting a synthesized lecture to me every week to get the course content. In the online environment, I am responsible for reading, digesting, reflecting, and contemplating on the information on my own. I understand that I will do best in the classes I take if my learning style corresponds with the needs described above.
I understand that a fully online course will take more time to complete than an on-campus course. Because I am an online student, I am fully responsible for processing and understanding course content instead of attending lectures in which the professor has already synthesized much of the course information for me. I understand that in addition to the approximately 10 hours per week of contact with faculty via synchronous virtual meetings, discussion boards, and other virtual course activities, that I will also need to spend and three to four hours of study time per week doing course assignments, in addition to working through actual course content. This means that for a 3 unit course, I can expect to spend about 10 hours per week working with faculty on virtual course content and an additional 9-12 hours per week working on related assignments and research.
I am aware that these time estimates assume that the online environment is suitable to my learning style, and that if my learning style is different than that described above, the time spent may be increased.
I understand that all students are required to purchase a LiveText membership. The cost of this is a one-time fee of $139 which covers five years of membership and can be used in all of my courses at any college or university (including La Sierra University) that uses LiveText.com. I understand that, to purchase a membership, I can contact DeAnne Knipschild, the Administrative Assistant for the Curriculum & Instruction Department in the School of Education, by visiting her office (Room. 118A), calling her (951-785-2203) or emailing her (dknipschild@lasierra.edu). I understand that, for each course I take at the School of Education, I should upload one or more assignments, per my professor's instructions, to show my progress toward demonstrating proficiency in meeting the standards aligned with my course. This assignment is called a "signature assignment," and it is assessed by my professor using a 4-point rubric (Beginner, Developing, Proficient, Advanced) that indicates my progress toward achieving proficiency, as measured against what a graduate of my program should know or be able to do. I understand that, the score I achieve does not affect my GPA unless I fail to upload my signature assignment to LiveText.com. In this case, I will receive a score of zero on the assignment, per School of Education policy, which may lower my course grade and affect my GPA. However, as long as I submit my assignment, my assessment score is only used to generate statistics that measure students progress toward reaching proficiency in meeting the standards expected by the accreditation agencies (e.g., CTC, WASC, NAD).
I understand that all students enrolled in fully online courses in the Curriculum and Instruction Department must meet virtually (online conference) with their professor at least once a week during a designated time chosen by the professor. Online discussion opportunities will count for this meeting. The purpose of this meeting is to provide opportunities for professors and students to communicate about the course and to provide and receive feedback. I understand that failure to meet with the professor on a weekly basis will result in a lower grade for the course.
I understand that the communication between the teacher and students is very important and the main method for communication is via the La Sierra email address (A Gmail based account). I understand that I will need to check my La Sierra email and communicate with my teachers on a regular basis.
