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Distance Education: English 201A

Pre-Enrollment Information for CRNs 30050, 30051, 30052, 30053

Spring 2025

Welcome to English 201A. My name is Stacy Kimmey, and I look forward to interacting with you.

Please read on to determine whether this DE course is right for you. For some of you, you may want to consider taking this course along with our English 101 support, which offers one extra unit/hour; if your high school GPA was or is below 2.6, then I strongly urge you to speak with a counselor about taking 101 with 201A.

If you would like to learn more about online learning and Canvas or you need to know how to log into Canvas, please see the Canvas Quick Reference Guide.

You will also want to click on the “FAQs: Technical” info to find out what kind of system requirements you’ll need (for your computer) to succeed in a distance education course. Please note: the mobile app for Canvas will not allow you to submit assignments or do quizzes—and, more importantly, I have found that it is more confusing than helpful. DO NOT USE THE MOBILE APP FOR CANVAS!

First Order of Business:

This 18-week distance education course begins on Tuesday, Jan. 21st, 2025. Registered students must log in no later than Friday of the first week of instruction; if you do not log in by Friday, Jan. 24th, then I will presume you are not in the course and will drop you (to allow for additional adds). *Please note: there are no scheduled Zoom sessions that are required, but if I request a Zoom meeting with you, you are expected to meet with me using a laptop or computer so that we can best communicate one-on-one.

Since I take a full break between semesters, I will not be responding to emails until the Friday before the start of the semester. However, I will “open” the course in Canvas the Sunday night before the semester begins.

Required Texts

50 Essays. 7th edition by Samuel Cohen (only this new edition is acceptable.) The ISBN is 9781319331658; a digital option is available, but you must use one associated with a website and not downloaded on your computer. The website will need to be accessible when you take exams.
The Tattooed Soldier by Hector Tobar. The ISBN is 9781250055859, and the Publisher is Mac Higher(MPS). Same requirements about Ebooks as the textbook; make sure you can access the books through a website. I strongly recommend that you buy or rent hard copies of the books!
**Please purchase/rent your books right away! Responses to the novel begin in week 2!

Computer Requirements

THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT

For success in this course, you must have access to a reliable computer, an email account, and a functioning Internet connection (sorry, but a mobile device will not be enough to complete and/or submit assignments!); have a backup plan should your system or your Internet provider fail. You should also know how to activate your myCuesta email account and/or route all Cuesta email you receive to your personal email account, and you will need a webcam for the proctored exams; see the syllabus the first of the semester for more information about webcams and taking proctored exams.

You also must know how to attach files and save file types. If you do not understand how to perform these basic tasks, it is best that you do not take an online course.

For more information about computer requirements, please see the FAQs above. Also, do not bookmark/favorite the Canvas site after you login, or you will get an error message the next time you try to log in. Finally, if you’re having an issue while you’re in Canvas (something will not submit, etc), please log out and log back in on a different browser (i.e., if you regularly use Chrome to navigate the Internet, please switch to something like DuckDuckGo).

Cuesta students are encouraged to direct all technical support inquiries to support@my.cuesta.edu. If you are having issues with Canvas, you should contact the Canvas Support Hotline at (877) 921-7680 or click on the help button on the Canvas Navigation to report a problem. If you are having difficulty viewing the course or logging in, it may be because you are not using the correct url: https://cuesta.instructure.com/ or you are using your phone or using an unsupported browser.

Course Description:

You will do a lot of reading and writing, so be prepared to spend the required “2 hours of study time for every 1 hour of class time.” And please note that this requirement only applies to “study time,” not the extra time required in a distance education course to navigate the technology, to respond to online discussions and/or to contribute to our online assignments. Please note: failure to log in each week to Canvas and participate in the weekly lessons and/or respond to my emails if I'm trying to reach you means you will not pass the class, and I may drop you if you go more than two weeks without logging into the course. This is NOT a self-paced course where you can scramble in the last two weeks and make up all of your work.

Your success in the course means you will want to read and follow the weekly checklists and stay connected to me and the course content; I will open the weekly content/module on Sundays nights at 8:00 p.m. For the most part, your assignments, discussion posts, and quizzes will be due every Sunday night at midnight. There will be an occasional exception to this rule—which is why the checklists are so important. Please make sure to read and review the syllabus (posted in the home page) for more information about deadlines.

More information about course policies will be available the first day of the semester.

Accommodation for Students with Disabilities

If you are a student with a verified disability—or you need information about our DSPS program, please contact the DSPS program at 546-3148 (SLO campus) or 591-6215 (North County campus). Please email me the first week of the semester if you have a verified disability and need accommodations.

I look forward to getting to know you during the semester, and I am here to help--please stay in touch!

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[{:section_type=>"rich_text", :content=>"<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\">Distance Education: English 201A</h2>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\">Pre-Enrollment Information for CRNs 30050, 30051, 30052, 30053</h2>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\">Spring 2025</h2>\n&nbsp;\nWelcome to English 201A. My name is Stacy Kimmey, and I look forward to interacting with you.\nPlease read on to determine whether this DE course is right for you. For some of you, you may want to consider taking this course along with our English 101 support, which offers one extra unit/hour; if your high school GPA was or is below 2.6, then I strongly urge you to speak with a counselor about taking 101 with 201A.\nIf you would like to learn more about online learning and Canvas or you need to know how to log into Canvas, please see the <a class=\"inline_disabled external\" href=\"https://www.cuesta.edu/academics/documents/distance-docs/CanvasQuickReference.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">Canvas Quick Reference Guide.</a>\nYou will also want to click on the&nbsp;<a class=\"external\" href=\"http://www.cuesta.edu/academics/distance/faqs_technical.html\" target=\"_blank\">“FAQs: Technical” info</a> &nbsp;to find out what kind of system requirements you’ll need (for your computer) to succeed in a distance education course. Please note: the mobile app for Canvas will not allow you to submit assignments or do quizzes—and, more importantly, I have found that it is more confusing than helpful. DO NOT USE THE MOBILE APP FOR CANVAS!&nbsp;\n&nbsp;\n<h2>First Order of Business:</h2>\nThis 18-week distance education course begins on Tuesday, Jan. 21st, 2025. Registered students must log in no later than Friday of the first week of instruction; if you do not log in by Friday, Jan. 24th, then I will presume you are not in the course and will drop you (to allow for additional adds). *Please note: there are no scheduled Zoom sessions that are required, but if I request a Zoom meeting with you, you are expected to meet with me using a laptop or computer so that we can best communicate one-on-one.\n&nbsp;Since I take a full break between semesters, I will not be responding to emails until the Friday before the start of the semester. However, I will “open” the course in Canvas the Sunday night before the semester begins.\n<h2>&nbsp;Required Texts</h2>\n<ul>\n<li>50 Essays. 7th edition by Samuel Cohen (only this new edition is acceptable.) The ISBN is 9781319331658; a digital option is available, but you must use one associated with a website and not downloaded on your computer. The website will need to be accessible when you take exams.</li>\n<li>\n<div>The Tattooed Soldier by Hector Tobar. The ISBN is 9781250055859, and the Publisher is Mac Higher(MPS). Same requirements about Ebooks as the textbook; make sure you can access the books through a website. I strongly recommend that you buy or rent hard copies of the books!</div>\n**Please purchase/rent your books right away! Responses to the novel begin in week 2!</li>\n</ul>\n<h2>Computer Requirements</h2>\n&nbsp;THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT\nFor success in this course, you must have access to a&nbsp;reliable computer, an email account, and a&nbsp;functioning Internet connection (sorry, but a mobile device will not be enough to complete and/or submit assignments!); have a backup plan should your system or your Internet provider fail. You should also know how to activate your myCuesta email account and/or route all Cuesta email you receive to your personal email account, and you will need a webcam for the proctored exams; see the syllabus the first of the semester for more information about webcams and taking proctored exams.\nYou also must know how to attach files and save file types. If you do not understand how to perform these basic tasks, it is best that you do not take an online course.\nFor more information about computer requirements, please&nbsp;see the FAQs&nbsp;above. Also, do not bookmark/favorite the Canvas site after you login, or you will get an error message the next time you try to log in. Finally, if you’re having an issue while you’re in Canvas (something will not submit, etc), please log out and log back in on a different browser (i.e., if you regularly use Chrome to navigate the Internet, please switch to something like DuckDuckGo). \nCuesta students are encouraged to direct all technical support inquiries to support@my.cuesta.edu. If you are having issues with Canvas, you should contact the Canvas Support Hotline at (877) 921-7680 or click on the help button on the Canvas Navigation to report a problem. If you are having difficulty viewing the course or logging in, it may be because you are not using the correct url: https://cuesta.instructure.com/ or you are using your phone or using an unsupported browser.&nbsp;\n<h2>&nbsp;Course Description:</h2>\n&nbsp;You will do a lot of reading and writing, so be prepared to spend the required “2 hours of study time for every 1 hour of class time.” And please note that this requirement only applies to “study time,” not the extra time required in a distance education course to navigate the technology, to respond to online discussions and/or to contribute to our online assignments.&nbsp;Please note: failure to log in each week to Canvas and participate in the weekly lessons and/or respond to my emails if I'm trying to reach you means you will not pass the class, and I may drop you if you go more than two weeks without logging into the course. This is NOT a self-paced course where you can scramble in the last two weeks and make up all of your work.&nbsp;\n&nbsp;\nYour success in the course&nbsp;means you will want to read and follow the weekly checklists and stay connected to me and the course content; I will open the weekly content/module on Sundays nights at 8:00 p.m. For the most part, your assignments, discussion posts, and quizzes&nbsp;will be due every Sunday night at midnight. There will be an occasional exception to this rule—which is why the checklists are so important.&nbsp;Please make sure to read and review the syllabus (posted in the home page) for more information about deadlines.\nMore information about course policies will be available the first day of the semester.\n<h2>Accommodation for Students with Disabilities</h2>\nIf you are a student with a verified disability—or you need information about our DSPS program, please contact the DSPS program at 546-3148 (SLO campus) or 591-6215 (North County campus). Please email me the first week of the semester if you have a verified disability and need accommodations.\nI look forward to getting to know you during the semester, and I am here to help--please stay in touch!\n&nbsp;"}]