Course Syllabus for Counseling 120
Dr. Marsha Fralick
Spring 2015Course Credit:
The course meets General Education requirements for the California State Universities, Area E and is UC transferable.
How to Contact the Instructor:
1. Before the class starts, you may contact me at: marsha.fralick@gcccd.edu or at mfralic1@san.rr.com
2. It is my goal to attempt to answer all e-mails within 24 hours. If I receive many e-mails on the same topic, I will send an e-mail to the entire class.
3. I can also contact you by phone. Send me an email with your phone number and best time to call if you would like to speak to me by phone.
Required Course Materials:
The interactive e-text, CollegeScope, by Dr. Marsha Fralick is required for this class. Students must complete 1 chapter per week in this textbook. There is an access fee of $50 if you purchase the text online. This fee takes the place of paying for a textbook. You can begin CollegeScope for free, but will have to pay the $50 fee or purchase an access code to begin Chapter 2. When you begin Chapter 2, you will see a pop up window where you can pay with your credit card or enter the access code purchased from the bookstore.
Save $15 by paying for CollegeScope online. You may also purchase an access code for this text from the Cuyamaca Bookstore at a cost of $65. Financial aid vouchers can be used at the Bookstore to purchase the access code for CollegeScope.
Do not purchase the printed edition of the text from the College Bookstore or purchase a used printed edition because they will not be used in this online course.
The first time you log in, click on the "Register Here" button. You will use your e-mail address as your login ID and will be asked to create a password for your account. Make sure to write down your e-mail address and password so that you can log in to your account in the future. Once you have registered, use your email address and password to log in. Note that you only use the access code one time during the registration process. You will also be asked for your student ID number. If you do not know your number, any random number will work.
Course Schedule
The Course Schedule contains a calendar with weekly work to be completed. It is recommended that you check this schedule on Monday to find out what is due each week. Divide the work into small parts and start at the beginning of the week.
The Course Blog
The blog is our virtual classroom where you will post your comments weekly. The blogs are counted in your grade and worth 20 points each week. The blog is located at: http://www.couns120sp15.blogspot.com/
Quizzes
The orientation quiz is located on Blackboard. Just click the button, "Orientation Quiz." All other quizzes are integrated into CollegeScope. Read CollegeScope carefully so that you make a good grade on the quizzes. The program allows you to go back and re-read the text if you don't know the quiz answers. Once you have marked an answer, you cannot change it. Quizzes are immediately scored and placed in your student portfolio which can be viewed by your professor. These quizzes are worth 10 points each week.
Assignments
There are written assignments that help you to apply material learned in class. For details, click on the Assignment button in Blackboard.
Please let me know if you have any extenuating circumstances that prevent you from getting your work in on time. Contact me by email if you have any problems or questions. The biggest reason for failure in an online class is procrastination. It is important to get started early and work steadily toward completing the assignments for each chapter.
Read My Comments on Your Assignments
For written assignments, click on the assignment in Blackboard to view my comments. In CollegeScope, I comment on your work inside the program. You will see my messages when you open your portfolio.
Assignment Deadlines
All reading, journal entries, blogs, quizzes and assignments are due on Sunday before 11:59 p.m. Don't wait until Sunday to get started since this may result in added stress and low quality work. Get started early!
Grading
Access your grades at any time by logging into Blackboard and clicking on the My Grades button. Grading is based on points received on assignments:
A 900-1000
B 800-899
C 700-799
D 600-699
F Below 600Grading Rubric
The Grading Rubric has a sample journal entry with points earned and rationale for grading. Please look at the grading rubric before beginning the journal entries. Generally each question requires a well-developed paragraph of at least 5 sentences. A phrase or a single sentence is not sufficient.Points
Item Points Percent of Grade CollegeScope Journal Entries/Activities 14 chapters X 25 points each = 350 points 35% CollegeScope Quizzes 14 chapters X 10 points each = 140 points 14% Orientation Quiz 10 points 1% Blogs 15 blogs X 20 points each = 300 points 30% Assignments 200 points 20% Total 1000 points 100%
Time Required
If you were signed up for this course as a traditional face-to-face course, you would be attending 3 hours per week plus your course preparation and travel time. Plan on spending a minimum of 4 hours per week on this course to complete the reading, journal entries, quizzes, blogs and assignments.Expected Behavior
We all learn best when there is a positive environment for learning. Treat everyone in the class with respect. If you disagree with a comment by the professor or other students in the class, just state your opinion without judging the value of other's ideas. I value a diversity of opinions as long as you are not personally attacking others. Civil and polite discussion is encouraged while expressing hostility toward others is not allowed. If you have concerns about the course or the opinions expressed by students, you may also email the professor at the contact information listed above.
Online Format:This class is taught completely online. No class meetings are required. My goal is to help all students to be successful.
Required Computer Skills and Equipment:
You will need access to a computer with an Internet connection and Microsoft Office software. You must be able to save your files in a .doc, .docx or .rtf format. It is more convenient to have your own computer with Internet connection at home, however open computer labs are available on campus. Required computer skills include: basic keyboarding, accessing the Internet, searching the Internet for information, uploading documents, sending e-mails with attachments, creating word documents, and using cut and paste. You must also be able to work independently, be self-motivated and ask questions if needed.
If you do not have Microsoft Word, you can download Open Office Writer for free at:
Using Open Office Writer, save your document as Microsoft Office with .doc or .docx as the format.
Tips for Success from Previous Students
At the end of the course I ask students what they suggest to help future students be successful in this course. They suggest that you log in weekly. Work steadily throughout the week to complete your assignments. It is easy to procrastinate in an online class, but this will cause stress and poor performance.How to be Successful in an Online Course
Enroll in the course and complete the online orientation. Please complete the orientation during the first week of class.
How to Log into Blackboard
The course is taught with Blackboard, a popular course management system used in many college courses. You will be added to Blackboard by the first day of class. You cannot log in until the first day of class. When you register in my section of Counseling 120 (0882), you are automatically downloaded into my course and a Blackboard account is created for you within 24 hours.
If you cannot log in, send me an e-mail at marsha.fralick@gcccd.edu. Include the phrase "online class" in your subject heading so that I do not confuse your e-mail with junk e-mail.After you have been added to Blackboard, you can find your account by following these steps:
· Go to: https://gcccd.blackboard.com/
· Click on User Login
· Bookmark this site by adding it to your favorite sites
· Your Username is your firstname.lastname in lowercase with no spaces
· For example, Joe Smith would have a Username of joe.smith
· Your password is your birth date in 6 digits.
· For example, if Joe Smith were born on January 1, 1990, his password would be 010190
. When you arrive at the Welcome page, look for the box that says "My Courses" and click on Counseling 120
If you have an older Blackboard account, your login and password have been changed to the above described format.Technical Support
For assistance with Blackboard, you may call the Student Help Desk at 619-660-4395. The Student Help Desk is open:
Monday 8-5
TTH 7 am-7:30 pm
WF 7 am-5 pm
Sat 7 am-3 pmCollege Success Web Site:
The College Success Web Site is used to supplement class materials and to do research on careers. It is located at http://www.collegesuccess1.com
Student Learning Outcomes
Students will:
- examine various motivational strategies and apply them to their success in college, in their career and in their life.
- explore their personality types and related careers to decide on an appropriate major and career.
- analyze their learning style and multiple intelligences and list learning strategies that will help them to be productive in school, on the job and in their personal life.
- explore their vocational interests and values and identify careers that match their interests and values.
- complete an educational plan to match their major and career goals and begin to develop job seeking skills.
- utilize time and money management strategies to accomplish their short and long-term goals.
- apply memory techniques to improve college reading.
- practice strategies for effective note taking, writing and speaking in college.
- practice strategies for test preparation, taking tests and coping with test anxiety.
- analyze their communication style based on their personality type and practice effective communication techniques which can be used to improve personal and professional relationships.
- identify fallacies in reasoning, levels of moral reasoning, and creative thinking techniques and apply these thinking techniques to practical situations.
- increase awareness of health habits that affect longevity.
- increase their appreciation of diversity in college, on the job and in their personal lives.
- increase awareness of their life stage and apply positive thinking strategies to their future college, career and lifelong success.