Syllabus for CMPTR 182 Networking Concepts

Spring 2008 (Revised 9/21/08)

Instructor Information:

Kevin Blackwell                                    

Phone (360) 475-7379                           

E-Mail: kblackwell@oc.ctc.edu

MSMessenger – Kevin_Blackwell@msn.com (there is an “underscore” character between my first and last names)

Course Schedule:

Course Dates – September 22 – December 1, 2008

Introductions – September 22 – October 2

Unit One – September 26 – October 3

Unit Two – October 4 – October 10

Unit Three – October 11 – October 17

Unit Four – October 18 – October 24

Unit Five – October 25 – October 31

Unit Six – November 1 – November 7

Unit Seven – November 8 – November 14

Unit Eight – November 15 – November 21 (no late assignments will be reviewed or graded after this date)

Finals   - November 23 – November 30

Note: All Units begin on a Saturday and end on the following Friday after September 26, 2008.

Weekly Schedule:

Day 1 – Saturday     
Day 2 – Sunday
Day 3 – Monday
Day 4 – Tuesday
Day 5 – Wednesday
Day 6 – Thursday
Day 7 – Friday

Typical Weekly submissions:

At the end of this class the student will be able to:

A.         Use acquired skills and knowledge to describe, differentiate and evaluate various LAN and WAN technologies.

B.         Research and document applied LAN/WAN technologies for reference and review by technicians, administrators and users.

C.                  Collaborate with team members using a variety of network operating system tools to install, configure, manage and troubleshoot network resources.

D.                  Student will show readiness for the CompTIA Network+ Exam

TOPIC & ASSIGNMENT SHEET

Because your grade is dependent on participation and discussions, DO NOT submit all your weeks work on the final day. You will not receive credit for your participation if you do.

GRADED ITEMS

Introductory quiz                                                             

8 UNITS                                                                       

Weekly Participation/Attendance – 8 x 6.25                    

Final Participation Question                                           

Final Exam                                                       

8 EXTRA CREDIT QUIZZES – Quizzes will pop up from time to time. Please check your announcement page. They will be active for a limited time, and once they are gone, you will not have access to them again.

GRADE             Your Grade will be computed using the following point schedule for work completed:

Please conform to the expectations listed above.

Introductory quiz                                                              15

8 UNITS                                                                        800

Weekly Participation/Attendance – 8 x 6.25                       50

Final Participation Question                                              35

Final Exam                                                                    100

                                                TOTAL POINTS             1000  =  100%

Plus extra credit quizzes

Percentage grading scale:

96         -           100                               A          (4.0)

93         -           95                                 A-         (3.7)

90         -           92                                 B+        (3.3)

87         -           89                                 B          (3.0)

83         -           86                                 B-         (2.7)

80         -           82                                 C+        (2.3)

77         -           79                                 C          (2.0)

73         -           76                                 C-         (1.7)

70         -           72                                 D+        (1.3)

67         -           69                                 D          (1.0)

63         -           66                                 D-         (0.7)

62         -           LESS                            F          (0.0)

Attendance Policy:

Our Attendance Policy requires students to attend their on-line course at least five out of seven days during each Unit week (Hybrids and one or two credit classes only need post three out of seven days). Attendance is defined as discussion board posting. A student not attending the first week will be dropped from the course. If an instructor believes a student’s absences have been excessive and unjustified, the instructor may request that the student be withdrawn from the course.

Participation Requirement:

Participation Policy expects students to participate in the virtual classroom at least five out of seven days during each Unit week (Hybrids and one or two credit classes only need post three out of seven days). This standard is a MINIMUM REQUIREMENT. We suggest that students participate on a daily basis during the course.

Participation is measured by a student’s contribution to the virtual classroom discussion board. A student contribute must add value to the course. A posting is considered to be of substance by the standards laid out in the Participation Rubric located at the end of this syllabus. Postings such as “me too” or “I agree” or too many postings that are off of target with the ongoing discussions in the appropriate thread are not considered substantive for purposes of participation.

Important Note: Participation is the same as attendance, and attendance is only measured by participation. The Blackboard® system does allow students to read the postings of others without actually posting a reply. It is only when a student replies to the discussion on the discussion boards that attendance will be measured.

Our expectations for participation and attendance are very high. We have outlined them in total in the Participation Rubric at the end of this syllabus. We expect that you will make at least two comments or contributions to the discussion board per day at a level of quality we outline in the Participation Rubric. In order to get anything out of the class, you must participate in the classroom discussion and you must “think outside the box” in terms of bringing new information to the class. We expect that you will be involved and active in the construction of knowledge with the group. Bringing new ideas is as important of an element as assisting others in developing their knowledge.

You need to know that Blackboard® accurately records your every movement in your on-line course. Therefore, please spare me the stories of you having attended on particular days but not having posted. Blackboard® records will reflect what you have and have not done. To eliminate any confusion we only count attendance by what you actually post to the discussion board.

Grading Criteria:

We have posted sample rubrics at the end of this syllabus. They outline exactly what our criteria are for writing, participation and reflections.

If you wish to withdraw from this course, please inform us of your decision and file the appropriate paperwork with administration.

If you are having problems or feel you are lagging behind, please contact us, so that we may explore options to find a solution.

Academic Honesty:

Academic honesty is highly valued at Olympic College. A student must always submit work that represents his or her original words or idea. Any words or ideas that are not originally from the student must be cited, giving all relevant sources. The student should make it clear the extent to which such sources were used. Words or ideas that require citation include but are not limited to all hard copy or electronic publications, whether they are copyrighted or not, and all verbal or visual communication when the content of such communication clearly originates from an identifiable source. At the Online Campus, all submissions to any public forum or private mailbox fall within the scope of words or ideas that require citation if used by someone other than the original author.

Additional policies can be found at:  http://www.oc.ctc.edu/GetStart/Policies/ConductCode/violations.html

HOW TO HANDLE PICTURES

Screen shot your picture – alt+prtscn OR use a screen shot program

Open Paint

Edit

            Paste picture in

File

            Save As

                        Name file

                                    File type:  JPEG

In your Word document

Insert

            Picture

                        From File

                                    Import your saved JPEG

By completing this process, you will cut down on the number of files you submit, as well as the SIZE of the file you upload.

ALL IMAGES AND SCREEN SHOTS GO IN ONE DOCUMENT.  SAVE YOUR FILE BEFORE YOU UPLOAD – BE SURE TO INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING:

          Your Last Name CMPTR # Unit #.doc

PLEASE DO NOT SUBMIT SEPARATE FILES FOR EACH PART.

HOW TO USE THE DIGITAL DROPBOX

To submit assignments in Blackboard (Bb):

1.       Create the essay or outlines in a document using Word, Wordpad, Notepad or any text editor.

2.       Save the file to your PC (“Desktop” is the most convenient location).  You will name the file as you save it.

3.       Go to our class site in Blackboard (Bb) and click on "TOOLS."

4.       Click on "Digital Drop Box."

5.       Click "send file"

6.       Scroll down and click "Browse."

7.       Your computer's files will display on screen in a dialogue box.

8.       Locate the desired file within the dialogue box.

9.       Double click the file.  The path to that file on your PC will now be displayed in the text box to the left of the "Browse" button you clicked earlier within “Digital Drop Box.”

10.   Scroll to the bottom of the page and click “Submit.”

DONE!

Changing Personal Information

To change your e-mail address and other personal information, perform the following steps:

On the left side of the screen:

Click Personal Information

Select the first option, Edit Personal Information

Scroll until you see the option E-mail

Click the mouse in the box called E-mail

Type in your OLYMPIC COLLEGE E-mail address

Scroll to the bottom and click Submit

Click the Okay button

In order for me to be able to view the email addresses in the class roster, each student needs to perform the following steps:

Click Personal Information
Select the last option, Set Privacy Options.
Within the Privacy Options selection, make sure the E-mail box, in Part 1, has a checkmark in it.
All other boxes in Part 1 may be checked, if the student desires.
Click the box in Part 2.
Scroll to the bottom and click Submit.
Click the Okay button

To change your password perform the following steps:

Click Personal Information

Select the second option, Change Password

Type in your new password in each of the following boxes:

Password

Verify Password

Scroll to the bottom and click Submit

Click the Okay button

COURSE REQUIREMENTS

Unit Assignments (include TestOut Lab Sims, end of chapter case projects and critical thinking  questions – not all units have all items.)  Incomplete units will have deductions accordingly receiving partial credit

CASE PROJECTS

EXPECTATIONS FOR CASE PROJECT RESPONSES

Each week, there will be Case PROJECT (CP.) CP responses should be posted in your homework assignments. You may choose any one of the case studies to answer BUT you must answer one.

We do not require that your case project question responses adhere to specific formatting. However, please make sure to proofread carefully. Grammar and spelling errors may influence the grading. In addition, if at any time you use words or thoughts that are not original, you must cite the source of that information.

Your case project responses should reflect critical, higher level thinking, and integrate course content with your own experience. Case project responses should be at least 200-300 words. (You may go over the word count but you may not go under).

CRITICAL THINKING QUESTIONS

EXPECTATIONS FOR CRITICAL THINKING QUESTION RESPONSES

Each week, there will be Critical Thinking Questions (CTQs.) CTQ responses should be posted in your homework assignments.

We do not require that your critical thinking question responses adhere to specific formatting. However, please make sure to proofread carefully. Grammar and spelling errors may influence the grading. In addition, if at any time you use words or thoughts that are not original, you must cite the source of that information.

Your discussion question responses should reflect critical, higher level thinking, and integrate course content with your own experience. Critical thinking question responses should be at least 75-200 words (You may go over the word count but you may not go under).

TESTOUT LAB SIMS

EXPECTATIONS FOR LAB SIMULATION RESPONSES

Most weeks, there will be LAB SIMULATIONS. LAB responses should be posted in your homework assignments. You can take a screen shot of your completed lab (whether it is right or not) and post it with your homework. You just need to have the experience of working with the Lab Simulator.

FEEDBACK ON ASSIGNMENTS AND THE WEEK

We will send feedback on all graded assignments within 7 days (or less) after the assignment is submitted. If you submit an assignment late we will grade it together with the following weeks work. Please see sample grading rubric so you understand the grading process.

COMMUNICATING THROUGH WAOL

Please be aware that if you send an email through WAOL there is no reference to which class you are in or your name. Please be sure to add your name and class number to your email so we know who it is from. Use only your OC email address for online classes. If there is something specific to you and your grade please send me an email otherwise post to the “Questions for Kevin” Discussion Board.

LATE ASSIGNMENTS

We reserve the right to deduct 5 points from the total points possible for an assignment, for each week an assignment is late.

Similarly, we reserve the right to refuse to accept any late assignments after two weeks in which it is due, if we have not negotiated and mutually agreed upon an alternative submission plan -- in advance.

TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES

Everyone experiences technical difficulties including WAOL. You should have an alternate plan in the event of technical difficulties. Please notify me immediately if this is happening to you.  You may call me, send an email or use a school computer.

WANT REAL HANDS-ON?

If you are interested in having real hands-on experience, you are invited to T-213 to view and use the equipment in that lab. There are machines to network, open up and routers and switches to observe. Please let me know you are coming so one of the instructors or technicians is available to help you.