*Click on the title of this entry to open the full text.*

Welcome to English 421Y: Technical Writing (Online distance learning). My name is Melody Gee, and I will be your instructor this summer. As you might have guessed, this course will be conducted entirely online, through email and via this course website. We will not be meeting in a traditional classroom; rather we will use this website as a place for you to get the class information you need, and participate in discussion threads with your classmates and myself.

You'll need to familiarize yourself with the site information, as well learn how to use the site features to participate in this class. Start by reading the rest of this entry, then clicking on the tabs above to get information on this course's structure, grades, assignments, and schedule of readings.

Course Website Tour

This website will be our virtual meeting place, and it will provide us with everything for this course. A quick tour of the main page:

Links

The gray links running across the top of the page navigate you to more site information and writing forums.

The Home link returns you to the main page from wherever you are in the site.

Course Info takes you to pages that explain how to register yourself as a member on this site; if this online course is right for you; course policies; grading information; and some general information on taking an online course.

Help takes you to a series of pages that will help you troubleshoot any problems you might experience with the website. If you don't find the answer to your question there, feel free to email me.

Assignments takes you to a list of all our course assignments for the summer. You'll find each assignment's description, requirements, goals, deliverables, point value, and grading rubric on these pages.

Syllabus takes you to our schedule of readings, assignment deadlines, and discussion topics. This is our course calendar.

Lecture Forum takes you to a page that I will update daily with short written lectures on our current topic. Each day, a new lecture (approx. 250 words) will be posted that you'll be required to read and respond to in writing. You'll learn how to add comments in the Course Info section.

Discussion Forum takes you to a page where you will post your written responses to specific discussion questions. Each week, I will post three discussion topics that you will reply to. Each reply will be posted to the website so that your classmates can see your work and respond directly to you. More information about your word count requirement and posting rules can be found under the Course Info tab.

FAQs is where I will post your questions and my answers to them. If you have a specific question about the course, check this page before you email me.

Main Page

Rolling Updates: The homepage is where I will post course updates and announcements. Check this page for new posts (seen in Preview mode that you have to expand by clicking on the title) that will direct you on whatto do for the day's activity, inform you of any syllabus changes, and often give you notes for the week.

Instructor Contact: My contact information is in the left column at the top of the page. Contact me through email if you have questions or concerns.

Log-In Box: Once you have registered for an account, you'll log into the website with your Username and Password in the box on the left. After everyone gets an account, I will password-protect the site so that only students enrolled in the class can see our contents.

Navigation Box: When you're logged in, you will see a box in the left column with your Username at the top. This navigation box will contain a menu of links that allow you to update your account and further navigate the site's features.

What Now?

As this is an 8-week course, we will move quickly through a semester's worth of material, and you will have to learn how to use this website by the end of the second day. Here's what you now need to do for today, June 9, by Midnight:

1. Begin at the Course Info tab at the top and read ALL the Getting Started and How To pages;
2. Next, read all the assignments and the syllabus to get a sense of the workload and deadline schedule;
3. Follow the directions and sign up for a website account;
4. Finally, go get the textbook. It's available at Borders on Wabash Landing.

That's plenty of work for the first day of class. Tomorrow, I will leave another post on the main page of the site with further instructions, and some information to get us into our first assignment.

If you run into any site trouble, email me. Otherwise, I will leave you to browse the website and textbook for now.