PHW 1110-Wilkerson Fall 2014 Syllabus Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences PHW 1110 Fall 2014 Feature Instructor & TA Information (for each Faculty and TA) Considerations J. Michael Wilkerson, PhD, MPH E-mail: Johnny.M.Wilkerson@uth.tmc.edu Office phone: (713) 500-9974 Office fax: (713) 500-3650 Address: University Center Tower, 7000 Fannin Street, Suite 2620, Houston, Texas 77030 Website: https://sph.uth.edu/jmwilkerson/ Skype: southaustinmike Google Hangout: jmikewilkerson TA: Andria Rusk E-mail: Andria.E.Rusk@uth.tmc.edu Skype: andriarusk Google Hangout: andriaerusk Course Description PHW1110 Social and Behavioral Aspects of Community Health 3 credits ONLINE As an online class, the materials for this course are accessed via Blackboard. Students are expected to use the materials offered on this site to meet course objectives. Blackboard can be accessed at https://bb.uth.tmc.edu This course focuses on health problems and public health methods that have a major social or behavioral component. It is intended for the student with little background in the behavioral sciences. The course will enable students to describe one or two core theoretical perspectives from each of the social science disciplines of psychology, sociology, and anthropology, and their application to public health. The course will cover the 1 PHW 1110-Wilkerson Fall 2014 Textbook and Materials Course Topics and Learning Objectives major social and behavioral science models used in health promotion and disease prevention. The course will also cover existing social inequalities in health status related to race, social class, and gender, and the critical intersection between social risk factors, behavioral risk factors, and the development and implementation of public health interventions. The problems considered in this course will vary from year to year, but include topics with social and behavioral risks. There are no prerequisites for this course. Glanz K, Rimer BK, Viswanath K. (Eds). (2008). Health Education and Health Behavior: Theory, Research, and Practice 4th edition). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. What are the Behavioral Sciences Describe various behavioral science theories and their application to public health practice. Discuss the ethical principles of public health practice and research Theories and Models of Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences Describe the ecological model. Describe several theories of individual behavior change including the Health Belief Model, the Theory of Reasoned Action and Planned Behavior and the Integrated Behavioral Model, the Transtheoretical Model, Social Cognitive Theory, and Diffusion of Innovation. Describe the constructs of each theory. Describe how the behavioral theories might be used in practice. Describe how the PRECEDE-PROCEED Model can be used to plan and evaluate programs. Describe the concepts of community development/organizing. Describe how a researcher would use the concepts of community development/organizing to practice Community Based Participatory Research. Explain how you would find stakeholders for community based interventions and evaluations. Describe the process for planning, implementing, and evaluating a community-based social marketing intervention Health Inequalities Evaluate the association between health inequalities and social capital, gender, socioeconomic status, culture, and race/ethnicity. 2 PHW 1110-Wilkerson Fall 2014 Learning Activities Apply PRECEDE-PROCEED to a health inequality and describe possible interventions that might influence health in our society. Group Work With a group of peers, develop an online module on one behavioral science topic for your peers. Use internet resources to enhance learning. Reading Responding to discussion questions Commenting on other students posts in the discussion board Writing learning summaries Completing a group project ASSIGNMENTS Location Due NOTE: W=Week Week 1 (August 25-30): Understanding theory and the ecological model Do “getting started” activities Online Participation at least 2 days in the Main Folder (Individual) – includes 3 original DQ responses and 3 substantive postings to other students’ responses (for a total of 6 discussion board posts). Readings: Chapters 1, 2, and 20 in your textbook Baral et al. (2013). Modified social ecological model: a tool to guide the assessment of the risks and risk contexts of HIV epidemics. BMC Public Health, 13: 482. Tarimo et al. (2012). The perceptions on male circumcision as a preventative measure against HIV infection and considerations in scaling up of the services: a qualitative study among police officers in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. BMC Public Health, 12: 59. Newmann et al. (2013). A social ecology of rectal microbicide acceptability among young men who have sex with men and transgender women in Thailand. Journal of the International AIDS Society, 16: 18476. 3 Discussions/Ready to Get Started Discussions/ Week 1 Forum W1, Wed & Sat Points Possible 4 PHW 1110-Wilkerson Fall 2014 ASSIGNMENTS Location Due NOTE: W=Week Week 2 (August 31-September 6): The Health Belief Model Online Participation at least 2 days in the Main Folder (Individual) – includes 3 original DQ responses and 3 substantive postings to other students’ responses (for a total of 6 discussion board posts). Points Possible Discussions/ Week 2 Forum W2, Wed & Sat 3 Week 2 Forum W2, Sat 1 Discussions/ Week 3 Forum W3, Wed & Sat 3 Readings: Chapter 3 in your textbook Byrd et al, (2004) Cervical cancer screening beliefs among young Hispanic women [pdf] Burak,LJ and Meyer, M. Using the health belief model to examine and predict college women's cervical cancer screening beliefs and behavior [pdf] Corcoran J & Crowley M (2014). Latinas’ attitudes about cervical cancer prevention: A meta-analysis. Journal of Cultural Diversity, 21(1): 15-21. Individual Learning Summary Week 3 (September 7-13): Theory of Reasoned Action, Theory of Planned Behavior, and the Integrated Behavioral Model Online Participation at least 2 days in the Main Folder (Individual) – includes 3 original DQ responses and 3 substantive postings to other students’ responses (for a total of 6 discussion board posts). Readings: Chapter 4 in your textbook Conner M, Sandberg T, & Norman P (2010). Using action planning to promote exercise behavior. Annals of Behavioral Medicine, 40: 65-76. Beville JM et al. (2014). Gender differences in college leisure time physical activity: Application of the theory of planned behavior and integrated behavioral model. Journal of American College Health 62(3): 173-184. Additional Suggested Readings: 4 PHW 1110-Wilkerson Fall 2014 ASSIGNMENTS Location Due NOTE: W=Week Points Possible Week 3 continued (September 7-13): Theory of Reasoned Action, Theory of Planned Behavior, and the Integrated Behavioral Model Readings continued: Kwan MYW, Bray SR, & Ginis KAM (2009). Predicting physical activity of first-year university students: An application of the theory of planned behavior. Journal of American College Health, 58 (1): 45-52. Optional reading: Trafimow D (2004). Problems with change in R 2 as applied to theory of reasoned action research. British Journal of Social Psychology, 43: 515-530. Explore Dr. Ajzen’s website: http://people.umass.edu/aizen/tpb.html Week 4 (September 14-20): Transtheoretical Model Online Participation at least 2 days in the Main Folder (Individual) – includes 3 original DQ responses and 3 substantive postings to other students’ responses (for a total of 6 discussion board posts). Discussions/ Week 4 Forum W4, Wed & Sat 3 W4, Sat 1 Readings: Chapter 5 in your textbook De BIaze Vilela et al. (2009). The transtheoretical model and substance dependence: Theoretical and practical aspects. Revista Brasileira de Psiquiatria, 31(4): 362-368. Callaghan, RC et al. (2005). Does stage-of-change predict dropout in a culturally diverse sample of adolescents admitted to inpatient substance-abuse treatment? A test of the Transtheoretical Model. Addictive Behaviors, 30: 1834-1847. Korcha et al. (2011). Substance use and motivation: A longitudinal perspective. The American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse, 37: 48-53. Individual Learning Summary 5 Week 4 Forum PHW 1110-Wilkerson Fall 2014 ASSIGNMENTS Location Due NOTE: W=Week Week 5 (September 21-27): Social Cognitive Theory Online Participation at least 2 days in the Main Folder (Individual) – includes 3 original DQ responses and 3 substantive postings to other students’ responses (for a total of 6 discussion board posts). Points Possible Discussions/ Week 5 Forum W5 Wed & Sat 3 Discussions/ Week 6 Forum W6, Wed & Sat 3 Week 6 Forum W6, Sat 1 Readings: Chapter 8 in your textbook Tortolero, SR et al. (2010). It’s Your Game: Keeping It Real: Delaying sexual behavior with an effective middle school program. Journal of Adolescent Health, 46: 169-179. Markham et al. (2012). Sexual risk avoidance and sexual risk reduction interventions for middle school youth: A randomized control trial. Journal of Adolescent Health, 50:279-288. Kirby et al. (2004). The “Safer Choices” intervention” Its impact on the sexual behaviors of different subgroups of high school students. Journal of Adolescent Health, 35: 442-452. Week 6 (September 28-October 4): Diffusion of Innovations Online Participation at least 2 days in the Main Folder (Individual) – includes 3 original DQ responses and 3 substantive postings to other students’ responses (for a total of 6 discussion board posts). Readings: Chapter 14 in your textbook Chapter 5:The Innovation-Decision Process. In Rogers EM (2003), Diffusion of Innovations (5th ed.). New York: Free Press. Chew et al. (2004). Doctors on-line: Diffusion of innovations theory to understand internet use. Family Medicine, 36(8): 645-650. Quanbeck et al. (2014). Integrating addiction treatment into primary care using mobile health technology: Protocol for an implementation research study. Integration Science, 9: 65. Individual Learning Summary 6 PHW 1110-Wilkerson Fall 2014 ASSIGNMENTS Location Due NOTE: W=Week Week 7 (October 5-11): PRECEDE-PROCEED Model Online Participation at least 2 days in the Main Folder (Individual) – includes 3 original DQ responses and 3 substantive postings to other students’ responses (for a total of 6 discussion board posts). Points Possible Discussions/ Week 7 Forum W7, Wed & Sat 3 Course Materials Folder W7, Sat 17 Discussions/ Week 8 Forum W8, Wed & Sat 3 Week 8 Forum W8, Sat 1 Readings: Chapter 18 in your textbook Li et al. (2009). Community health needs assessment with precede-proceed model: A mixed methods study. BMC Health Services Research, 9:181. Phillips et al. (2012). Developing targeted health service interventions using the PRECEDE-PROCEED Model: Two Australian Case Studies. Nursing Research and Practice, Article ID 279431, 8 pages. Midterm Exam (covers material from weeks 1-6) Week 8 (October 12-18): Community-Based Participatory Research and Community Organizing Online Participation at least 2 days in the Main Folder (Individual) – includes 3 original DQ responses and 3 substantive postings to other students’ responses (for a total of 6 discussion board posts). Readings: Chapter 13 in your textbook Mosavel et al. (2005) Community-based participatory research (CBPR) in South Africa: Engaging multiple constituents to shape the research question. Social Science in Medicine 61:2577-2587. [pdf] Byrd, (nd). Project Verdad: A Community Development Approach to Health Individual Learning Summary 7 PHW 1110-Wilkerson Fall 2014 ASSIGNMENTS Location Due NOTE: W=Week Week 9 (October 19-25): Social Marketing and Community-Based Prevention Marketing Online Participation at least 2 days in the Main Folder (Individual) – includes 3 original DQ responses and 3 substantive postings to other students’ responses (for a total of 6 discussion board posts). Points Possible Discussions/ Week 9 Forum W9, Wed & Sat 3 Learning Team Folder W8, Wed 20 per team member Readings: Chapter 19 in your textbook Chapter 12: Community-based prevention marketing: A new framework for health promotion interventions. In DeClemente RJ, Crosby RA, and Kegler MC. Emerging Theories in Health Promotion Practice and Research (2nd ed.). San Francisco: Jossey Bass. Dearing, et al. (2006). A convergent diffusion and social marketing approach for disseminating proven approaches to physical activity promotion. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 31(4 Suppl), S11-23. Tovar-Aguilar J. (2014). Improving eye safety in citrus harvest crews through the acceptance of personal protective equipment, community-based participatory research, social marketing, and community health workers. Journal of Agromedicine, 19(2): 107-116. (a) (b) (c) (d) (e) Group TBD1 (Social Capital) Initial Review: Schedule Skype or Google Hangout & submit the following: (a) PowerPoint Presentation (b) 5 recommended readings (c) 3 discussion questions (d) 5 potential exam questions 8 PHW 1110-Wilkerson Fall 2014 ASSIGNMENTS Location Due NOTE: W=Week Week 10 (October 26-November 1): Evaluation of Theory-Based Interventions Online Participation at least 2 days in the Main Folder (Individual) – includes 3 original DQ responses and 3 substantive postings to other students’ responses (for a total of 6 discussion board posts). Discussions/ Week 10 Forum Points Possible W10, Wed & Sat 3 Readings: Chapter 21 in your textbook Huye HF et al. (2013). Using the RE-AIM Framework in Formative Evaluation and Program Planning for a Nutrition Intervention in the Lower Mississippi Delta. Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, 46(1): 34-42. Gaglio B, Shoup JA, & Glascow RE. (Apr. 18, 2013). The RE-AIM Framewor: A Systematic Review of Use Over Time. American Journal of Public Health. e1-e9. Group TBD1 (Social Capital) Submit revised documents based on instructor feedback. (f) (g) (h) (i) Learning Team Folder W10, Wed 20 per team member W10, Sat 1 Group TBD2 (Social & Health Inequalities) Initial Review: Submit the following: (a) PowerPoint Presentation (b) 5 recommended readings (c) 3 discussion questions (d) 5 potential exam questions Individual Learning Summary 9 Week 10 Forum PHW 1110-Wilkerson Fall 2014 ASSIGNMENTS Location Due NOTE: W=Week Week 11 (November 2-8): Social Capital (Group TBD1) Online Participation at least 2 days in the Main Folder (Individual) – includes 3 original DQ responses and 3 substantive postings to other students’ responses (for a total of 6 discussion board posts). Discussions/ Week 11 Forum Points Possible W11, Wed & Sat 3 W11, Wed 20 per team member Readings: Kunitz SJ. (2004). Social capital and health. British Medical Bulletin, 69(1):61-73. Shortt SE. (2004). Making sense of social capital, health and policy. Health Policy,70(1):11-22. TBD: 3 readings will be selected from the recommended readings submitted by Group TBD1 Group TBD2 (Social & Health Inequalities) Submit revised documents based on instructor feedback. Learning Team Folder Group TBD3 (Culture & Health Inequalities) Initial Review: Schedule Skype & submit the following: (j) (a) PowerPoint Presentation (k) (b) 5 recommended readings (l) (c) 3 discussion questions (d) 5 potential exam questions Week 12 (November 9-15): Social and Health Inequalities (Group TBD2) Online Participation at least 2 days in the Main Folder (Individual) – includes 3 original DQ responses and 3 substantive postings to other students’ responses (for a total of 6 discussion board posts). Readings: Braveman (2006). Health disparities and health equity: concepts and measurement. Annu Rev Public Health, 27:167-194. Health inequalities and inequities, chapter 1. TBD: 3 readings will be selected from the recommended readings submitted by Group TBD1 10 Discussions/ Week 12 Forum W12, Wed & Sat 3 PHW 1110-Wilkerson Fall 2014 ASSIGNMENTS Location Due NOTE: W=Week Week 12 continued (November 9-15): Social and Health Inequalities (Group TBD2) Group TBD1 (Social Capital) Submit group member evaluation form Learning Team Folder W12, Wed 20 per team member Week 12 Forum W12, Sat 1 Discussions/ Week 13 Forum W13, Wed & Sat 3 Group TBD3 (Culture & Health Inequalities) Submit revised documents based on instructor feedback. Group TBD4 (Gender & Health Inequalities) Initial Review: Schedule Skype & submit the following: (a) PowerPoint Presentation (b) 5 recommended readings (c) 3 discussion questions (d) 5 potential exam questions Individual Learning Summary Week 13 (November 16-22): Culture & Health Inequalities (Group TBD3) Online Participation at least 2 days in the Main Folder (Individual) – includes 3 original DQ responses and 3 substantive postings to other students’ responses (for a total of 6 discussion board posts). Points Possible Readings: Cooper & Denner (1998). Theories linking culture and psychology: universal and community-specific processes. Annu Rev Psychol, 49:559-584. Resnicow et al. (2000). Cultural sensitivity in substance use prevention. Journal of Community Psychology, 28(3):271-290. TBD: 3 readings will be selected from the recommended readings submitted by Group TBD1 Group TBD2 (Social & Health Inequalities) Submit group member evaluation form Group TBD4 (Gender & Health Inequalities) Submit revised documents based on instructor feedback. Group TBD5 (Race, Ethnicity & Health Inequalities) Initial Review: Schedule Skype & submit the following: (a) PowerPoint Presentation (b) 5 recommended readings (c) 3 discussion questions (d) 5 potential exam questions 11 Learning Team Folder W13, Wed 20 per team member PHW 1110-Wilkerson Fall 2014 ASSIGNMENTS Location Due NOTE: W=Week Points Possible Thanksgiving Break (November 23-29) No class Have a great holiday! Week 14 (November 30-December 6): Gender & Health Inequalities (Group TBD4) Online Participation at least 2 days in the Main Folder (Individual) – includes 3 original DQ responses and 3 substantive postings to other students’ responses (for a total of 6 discussion board posts). Discussions/ Week 14 Forum W14, Wed & Sat 3 Readings: Krieger N. (2003). Genders, sexes, and health: what are the connections—and why does it matter? International Journal of Epidemiology. 32(4):652-657. Rieker &, Bird (2005). Rethinking gender differences in health: why we need to integrate social and biological perspectives. J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci.,2:40-47. TBD: 3 readings will be selected from the recommended readings submitted by Group TBD1 Group TBD3 (Culture & Health Inequalities) Submit group member evaluation form. Learning Team Folder W14, Wed 20 per team member W14, Sat 1 Group TBD5 (Race, Ethnicity & Health Inequalities) Submit revised documents based on instructor feedback. Individual Learning Summary 12 Week 14 Forum PHW 1110-Wilkerson Fall 2014 ASSIGNMENTS Location Due NOTE: W=Week Week 15 (December 7-13): Race, Ethnicity & Health Inequalities (Group TBD5) Online Participation at least 2 days in the Main Folder (Individual) – includes 3 original DQ responses and 3 substantive postings to other students’ responses (for a total of 6 discussion board posts). Discussions/ Week 15 Forum W15, Wed & Sat Points Possible 3 Readings: Dressler, Oths, & Gravlee (2005). Race and ethnicity in public health research: Models to explain health disparities. Annual Review of Anthropology, 34(1):231-252. Sue & Dhindsa. (2006). Ethnic and Racial Health Disparities Research: Issues and Problems. Health Education & Behavior, 33(4):459-469. TBD: 3 readings will be selected from the recommended readings submitted by Group TBD1 Group TBD4 (Gender & Health Inequalities) Submit group member evaluation form. Week 16 (December 14-19): Finals Week Final Exam Group TBD5 (Race, Ethnicity & Health Inequalities) Submit group member evaluation form. 13 Learning Team Folder W15, Wed Course Materials Folder Learning Team Folder W16, Sat W16, Wed 20 per team member 20 20 per team member PHW 1110-Wilkerson Fall 2014 Course Menu Tabs and Resources Below are some of the names of the Course Menu tabs on Blackboard and a short description of the contents. Course Menu Tabs and Discussion Folders Announcements Introductions Course Materials Discussion Board Groups Tools 14 Description On-going information about course activities, including weekly video with comments about course materials, exam preparation, etc. Please create a thread to introduce yourself to the class; include a picture! Weekly lectures, readings, and group project instructions; exams are posted here too Discussion threads include general discussion, weekly questions, and learning summaries; threads are organized by week due Each group has folder that can be used to facilitate communication between group members; items posted in this folder will not count for participation. Roster, grades, emailing function, etc. PHW 1110-Wilkerson Fall 2014 Grading Introduction Within the Introductions tab, create a thread, title it with your name, and introduce yourself to the class. Please include a pic! Complete this during Week 1 and receive 0.5 point. Discussion Board Participation To receive 100% of the total grade points allocated to participation, you must meet the following expectations: Online – For the purposes of this course, a week begins Sunday at 12:01am and ends at Saturday at midnight. During all online weeks, you must contribute to assigned Main Folder discussions in a substantive manner by midnight Wednesday and Saturday of each week in order to earn full participation points. Participation means making a significant contribution to a class discussion. Simply logging on and offering comments like “Good point” or “I agree” will not receive credit for participation. On the other hand, idle chatter that does not include relevant content will not receive credit either. We also look at the quality of one’s overall responses and the “direction” (as opposed to the accuracy) of the comments. The content of the posting should reveal a solid understanding of the topic, and you should react and critically analyze existing posted ideas or introduce a different interpretation to an existing idea with justification and explanations. Active participation enhances the learning of the class – sharing the experiences of others is the strength of this format. Please remember that your grade for class participation is entirely different than measuring the attendance. An online class, much like a traditional classroom, doesn’t have to be formal. However, you should be polite. It’s OK to disagree, and it often stimulates good discussion, but be careful! Recognize the difference between being collaborative and being combative. Remember, there is no body language and there are no facial expressions online. Others may not know when you are kidding and when you are serious – when you are expressing anger or when you are making a strong point. Emoticons can help ;-) Just beware of the risks of unintentional misunderstandings. To avoid miscommunication, proofread your responses carefully. There may be situations that limit your participation during a week. If that happens, let the instructors know as soon as you know. Please do not disappear for a couple of days, and then call or e-mail us after the 15 PHW 1110-Wilkerson Fall 2014 fact. Even if you are too ill to spend a lot of time on the computer, please either send us a quick note or call us to let us know you will be out of commission for a while. Remember that sending us a note stating you are gone for whatever reason does not mean you will automatically receive an extension for an assignment. To receive full participation points for the online discussions, you will need to answer the discussion questions in a timely manner and respond a minimum of three times to your classmates’ responses. You must post a response to each of the discussion questions by midnight Wednesday. When forming your response, include citations to support your position. For each discussion question, you must reply to a classmates post by midnight Saturday. You are not required to include citations when replying to a classmates post. Weekly Participation Points Per Question (3 total points per week) Initial response to each discussion question—due Wednesday and midnight .50 points Reply to classmates post to each discussion question— due Saturday at midnight 0.40 points Include at least 1 relevant citation to support statements made in your response 0.10 points --- Total points per discussion question 0.60 points 0.40 points Total points per week 1.80 points 1.20 points Substantive post demonstrates understanding of course material Individual Learning Summaries The Individual Learning Summaries are due on the last day of weeks 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, and 14. Individual Learning Summaries are an opportunity to reflect on the written work, class discussions and readings. Please reply to the appropriate thread when made available. You can earn up to 0.5 point per Individual Learning Summary. The 16 PHW 1110-Wilkerson Fall 2014 Summary should be from 200-300 words in length. Summaries that answer the question, but do not take the time to explain and justify answers, will not receive full credit. Within your summary, answer the question, What idea, concept, principle, or practice from the last two weeks learning could have practical applications at your place of work or in your personal life? How? NOTE: To earn full credit for the weekly summary, please be sure to indicate your understanding of all of the material through your answer to the above question. If your summary has fewer than 200 words, 0.25 point will be deducted. Microsoft Word has incorporated a tool to count words within the document. Simply select the words to be counted, choose Tools from the menu bar, and select Word Count. Group Projects Learning Teams are small, intact groups of students formed at the beginning of each course from the larger cohort. Teams meet to facilitate learning, to study together, and to complete a group project. These meetings can either be online (this is preferred), via phone, or oncampus, depending on where your group members are located. Students are required to participate in team meetings. Learning Teams are generally comprised of between 5-6 members. The instructors will determine the group size based on the number of students in the course and will form these groups before classes begin. The same number of points will normally be given to each group member for each learning team assignment. However, we reserve the right to award proportional points on learning team assignments based on feedback from the learning team members. In an attempt to foster a balance of participation in Learning Team assignments, we have assigned an ending learning team evaluation so that individuals can assess each member’s participation in the Learning Team. This is done through the Learning Team Evaluation Form (located in the “Course Materials” tab in the Course Menu), which you will submit individually (see the weekly assignments table; due dates vary by group). After submitting the materials for initial review, the teams will be expected to have a synchronous Skype call with the instructor to discuss feedback and preparing to facilitate the class. 17 PHW 1110-Wilkerson Fall 2014 If members of your team are not participating equally, first try to speak to the member. If you continue to have difficulties, please send Dr. Wilkerson a private e-mail. More details about the group project can be found in the group project folders. Midterm and Final Exams All students enrolled in an on-line course are required to take exams via ProctorU. To utilize this service, students pay the university a $50 fee, which is added to the semester’s bill. Detailed instructions for contacting the company and arranging proctoring are provided below. Students can arrange proctoring with the company for the exam time(s) specified by the faculty in the course. Proctoring is available from home or anywhere seven-days-a-week. Please check the course calendar for specific test schedule for this course. Students are connected to a live person during their exam. The proctor will guide the student through the proctoring process and answer questions related to the proctoring process or technical problems. If students have questions before or after an exam, they can always call the proctor line at 855-772-8678 or email help@proctoru.com 1. ProctorU will allow a student to take an exam on demand or by appointment, but we suggest making your schedule in advance because the on demand feature is subject to proctor availability. Please check the course calendar for details concerning the test schedule this semester. All appointments should be made at least three days in advance. To make an appointment, students simply create an account at http://go.proctoru.com or the web portal, http://www.proctoru.com/portal/uthouston by logging in, clicking on the “new exam” link and selecting the exam, date, and time they desire. Students will receive an email confirming their reservation at the email address they provided to ProctorU. Reservations made within 72 hours of an exam are subject to a $5 late registration fee. Students without an appointment can take their exam on demand within 15, 30 or 45 minutes by using ProctorU’s convenient Take it Now feature. This feature costs $8.75 in addition to the normal proctoring fee. IMPORTANT NOTE: Late registrations and Take it Now features are subject to availability. Missing an exam due to failure to set up a proctoring appointment will not be considered excused. 18 PHW 1110-Wilkerson Fall 2014 2. When students connect, their proctor ensures their computer and Internet connection are capable of taking an online exam. ProctorU provides technical support at no charge for any issues that may arise before or during the testing session. However, students should make sure in advance that their computers are able to accommodate an online exam. In the rare event that the proctor cannot get the computer working properly, they may require the students to correct the issue and reschedule their exam. IMPORTANT NOTE: Lack of an appropriately functioning computer in an online course exam may not be considered excused by the faculty. 3. The time a proctor spends getting the student prepared to take an exam does not take away from the exam time. For example, if the student has a two-hour exam appointment and it takes 20 minutes to troubleshoot a technical issue on the examinee’s computer, the student will still get the full two hours to take the exam. 4. ProctorU representatives will reschedule a student’s exam in the event of a technical issue or if the exam is not available. Students may reschedule by emailing help@proctoru.com, calling 855-7728678, or speaking with their proctor at the time of their appointment. If rescheduling is necessary, the faculty responsible for that course will be notified. Please encourage students to include identifying information in their emails such as their name, course, institution name and current appointment information. 5. 19 Student will need to read and agree to the terms of service prior to taking each exam. If a test taker exhibits unacceptable behavior, ProctorU reserves the right to deny service and report that testtakers actions back to the university. To assure that the denial of service decision is fair, ProctorU utilizes an escalation process. When a test-taker is engaged with ProctorU personnel online (via chat or video conference) or on the phone and exhibits behavior that is unacceptable, the ProctorU personnel will “escalate” the interaction to their manager. The manager will quickly assess the situation and will take action to end the interaction and issue a temporary denial of service. An immediate incident report will be filed with the President of ProctorU and university. A decision on the denial of service will be made after consultation with the university and ProctorU. PHW 1110-Wilkerson Fall 2014 Technical Requirements for Proctor U All students are responsible for meeting the following technical requirements: • A reliable computer running Windows XP (or higher) or Mac OS X 10 (or higher). • A web cam with 640x480 video pixel resolution or higher. • Headphones or working speakers connected to the computer. • A working microphone connected to the computer. We recommend a web cam that has a built in microphone. • A web browser with Adobe Flash Player installed. We recommend Flash Player 10. • A reliable, high-speed Internet connection. • The ability to allow video and screen-sharing connections to the computer used to take an exam. Students can test their computer and webcam at www.ProctorU.com/helpdesk List of Unacceptable Behaviors Students need to be aware that they are expected to behave in most professional and ethical way and deter from any behavior that may be considered dishonest (cheating). The behaviors to avoid include, but are not limited to the following: Fraudulent / expired / invalid identification 20 Inability to answer any questions in the authentication of identity quiz Confrontational / erratic behavior with proctoring staff. During the camera pan process, observing unauthorized materials on desks / walls / floors, sticky notes on computer monitors / keyboards, people in the room, audio or video devices powered on (radios, iPods, TV’s, etc.), cloned monitors. During the exam, if the proctor observes the test taker’s eyes looking off the screen, talking, leaving the test area (if prohibited in the exam instructions from the course), audible sounds of paper movement or others present in the room. PHW 1110-Wilkerson Fall 2014 Headwear of any kind is prohibited, unless approved by the institution or for religious accommodation. If the proctor observes any such occurrences or behavior, they will immediately begin a recording of the session, request additional camera pans of the room and notify a manager. They will also email a description of the occurrence to the ProctorU Quality Control team. From there, further investigation will take place and a report will be generated for the instructor, as well as to the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs. The report will include a description of the incident, chat logs from the session and any other evidence to help determine if cheating occurred. Late Assignments Please plan ahead and follow this syllabus for assignment deadlines. Late posts to the discussion board—including the responses and replies to the initial discussion questions and learning summaries—will not be accepted after midnight on the date due. If you post after midnight on the date due, you will receive no points for the assignment. For the group project, a 1 point per day penalty will be assessed to assignments that are late. Please talk with one of the instructors about any unusual circumstances that may affect the timely submission of your assignment. Under acceptable circumstances, students will be allowed to replace a week of discussion board postings or a learning summary with a 1000 word paper. The first 500 words should summarize the readings for the missed week and the second 500 words should consider how the readings apply to your own career interests. This replacement option can only be used once and must be approved prior to the due date of a posting. 21 PHW 1110-Wilkerson Fall 2014 Grading Formula The total number of points you can receive in this course is 100: Assignment Getting started activities and introduction Discussion questions Learning summaries Group project Mid-term exam Final exam Maximum points 0.5 45 (1 point per question; 3 questions per week) 3.5 (0.5 point per summary) 15 16 20 The letter grade you will receive will directly relate to the percentage as indicated below. 100-90 A 89-80 B 79-70 C <70 F A = Excellent performance. All assignments are complete and submitted on time. Work quality is exemplary and demonstrates conceptual understanding that allows concept application to situations outside of the examples discussed. The student is able to evaluate the results or expected outcomes. Written work contains no grammar issues, and the correct form and style are accurately presented. B = Above average performance. The student submits assignments that demonstrate understanding of the application of the concepts presented. Work exceeds the minimum expectations for the assignments as discussed in the curriculum. Written work is well organized and contains few grammar and style errors. C = Average performance. Accomplishes only the minimum requirements as outlined in the curriculum. Oral and written communication is at an acceptable level for the student's current position in the program. Assignments demonstrate basic knowledge and understanding of the concepts. The student may not consistently demonstrate application of the concepts. F = Failing. Student is unable to document or demonstrate evidence of meeting minimal expectations for the appropriate college level work. Work submitted is insufficient to justify a passing grade. Grade of Incomplete A student who fails to complete all course requirements prior to the course end date due to unanticipated circumstances may request an incomplete grade. A request for an Incomplete may be approved or denied, at the discretion of the faculty member. 22 PHW 1110-Wilkerson Fall 2014 Policies and Procedures Privacy and Confidentiality One of the highlights of the online academic experience is that you can draw on the wealth of examples from your organizations in class discussions and in your written work. I would like for each of us to agree to keep our communications among ourselves. I do not know if any of you work for the same company, but I sure would not want any of our comments and criticisms of our organizations to embarrass us in any way. So, in the interest of academic freedom, whatever we say to each other, whether in informal discussion or in a formal paper will stay within our group. I promise not to discuss any of your work outside the academic arena. It is imperative that you do not share information that is confidential, privileged, or proprietary in nature. Please be mindful of any contracts that you have agreed to with your organizations. Course Standards During the course itself, students achieve certain learning outcomes. All performance assessment depends upon the accomplishment of these outcomes. Students are graded on achievement rather than effort. It is the responsibility of each student to come to class prepared for each week. The University trusts that each student will maintain high standards of honesty and ethical behavior. All assignments submitted in fulfillment of course requirements must the student’s own work. All assignments except those designated as “learning team” are meant to be individual efforts. Team efforts are meant to represent the effort of each individual student. Team projects and assignments should represent equal efforts by all team members. Academic Honesty Please remember that you signed the academic integrity policy at orientation. No academic dishonesty of any kind (including copying/plagiarism) will be tolerated. All suspected academic dishonesty (actual or attempted) or other violations of the student code of conduct will be immediately reported to the UTSPH Associate Dean for Academic Affairs. 23 PHW 1110-Wilkerson Fall 2014 Dropping the Course If for any reason you decide to drop the class, please notify me by telephone or e-mail. Since you are also part of a learning group and there is a group project, we are counting on your input and it is vital to others’ learning experience. If you just disappear and fail to notify the class and me, you will receive a failing grade. This syllabus is to be followed for all assignments. It supersedes any other information. 24