Orientation for CDEC 2328 PCM

In a PCM format, Administration of Children II places more responsibility on the student for completing assignments, reading the text and interacting with other students online than the classroom-based section.

To be successful in this course, you must understand how to use Blackboard. The first part of this orientation requires that you review the Blackboard Support site at http://irt.austincc.edu/blackboard/student.html
If you need assistance understanding how to use Blackboard, you can go to an ACC library or learning center.

Once you understand the basics of Blackboard, then go into the Blackboard material for CDEC 2328.

How The Course Works

You’ll use  textbooks, supplemental materials, a variety of assignments and participate in Blackboard Discussion Forums to learn the course material.  Please remember that I am also a learning resource and am available during office hours or by appointment. You can also email or call me with your questions.

In "Course Materials" on Blackboard, there Supplemental Course Materials Sections based on course competencies and the chapters of your texts. Each section explores an area of developing and managing a child care center. Each section also has learning objectives, and as needed, supplemental required reading, resources and websites.

"Course Assignments" on Blackboard contains all the course assignments. Each assignment is listed on the course calendar and can then be found in the appropriate assignment folder.  

The “Discussion Board Forums” are in the “Course Tools” section of Blackboard.

“Course Documents” on Blackboard contains all the forms you must complete to be eligible to continue in the course. These must be completed at or by the first course meeting.

All my course materials are saved as Microsoft Office Word or PowerPoint documents. If you do not have these programs on your computer, you can download them from the Blackboard Student Information/FAQ in the Blackboard Orientation at Acconline/Blackboad. Just follow the direction or call me for assistance.

Before posting comments to the discussion site or entering into the virtual classroom, read the Netiquette and Discussion Tips.

Netiquette: Good Net Manners

Thanks to Chip Donohue and Dave Linsmeier for developing these points for child care providers

Let's keep our discussions lively and interactive by using good "netiquette".

" Identify yourself each time you post a response.
" If you want to discuss a point with another student in the discussion, personalize your statement by using the person's name.
" Invite a response if you want one.
" Capitalizing words is the same as screaming at someone on the net! So, proof your responses before submitting them.
" Be careful about humor or sensitive comments on the net. You can't gauge someone's reaction over the net. It's easy for people to misinterpret your intent.
" Keep your messages brief-no more than two or three paragraphs. It's difficult to read more than that.
" Never forward someone's message to someone else without his or her permission.

Have fun and word process away!

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Back to Orientation Page
ACC Main Blackboard Page
Orientation for 2328
Netiquette

Gale Spear
Child Development Professor
Austin Community College
Eastview Campus
3401 Webberville Road
Austin, Texas 78702
512-223-5209 phone
512-223-5219 fax
gales@austincc.edu
Contact Gale

"To look into some aspects of the future, we do not need projections by supercomputers. Much of the next millennium can be seen in how we care for our children today. Tomorrow's world may be influenced by science and technology, but more than anything, it is already taking shape in the bodies and minds of our children."

- Kofi Annan, Secretary-General of the United Nations

"If a child is to keep his inborn sense of wonder,
he needs the companionship of at least one adult who can share it, rediscovering with him the joy, excitement, and mystery of the world we live in."
- Rachel Carson, Author

"To the children of the world… I would like to say this: you are my life's work."
-Graca Machel, specialist on children in armed conflict