GEORGIA NORTHWESTERN TECHNICAL COLLEGE
DISTANCE EDUCATION HANDBOOK
A Resource for Instructors
Provided by the GNTC Online Learning Team
July 2012
Revised July 2013, September 2013, July 2014 (no-show)
GNTC Mission-The mission of Georgia Northwestern Technical College is to provide accessible, high quality
technical education and workforce development opportunities that lead to careers in technology, business, health,
and public services. Operating under the Technical College System of Georgia, both on-campus and distance
education programs are offered that lead to certificates, diplomas, and associate degrees. The educational programs
of the college focus on the development of technical competence and critical thinking skills as well as social,
personal, and intellectual values. In addition, Georgia Northwestern Technical College supports the communities of
the northwest Georgia service area by providing adult education and economic development services, customized
business and industry training, and personal enrichment programs that meet the workforce needs of area citizens,
communities, and companies.
This handbook is intended to serve as a resource for faculty by providing information about resources and support
available from the GNTC Online Learning Team as well as recommendations for developing and delivering
effective online courses. This handbook should be used in conjunction with the GNTC Quality Assurance of Online
Classes Manual.
It is important to note that online courses and instructors are subject to the standard practices, procedures, and
criteria which have been established for traditional courses at GNTC including, but not limited to, faculty
involvement in course development an approval, instructor compensation, selection of online instructors, appropriate
class size, and quality content and instruction.
A special thanks to the Online Learning Team, the Distance Education Leadership Team, and the entire faculty who
have contributed to online learning and enable students the best possible experience.
Table of Contents
Learning Team
2
Defining Distance Education at GNTC
2
Course Development and Training
Training and Resources
3
3
Policies and Procedures
Copyright Compliance
Course Load Compensation
Course Reviews
Drop/Add Procedures
Intellectual Property
Privacy for Students
Programs Offered Online
Withdrawal Procedure
Work Ethics
Written Student Complaint
Written Student Complaint-other
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6
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6
7
7
7
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9
Quality Assurance in Distance Classes
Course Content, Instructional Design, Learner Assessment, Technology
Quality Assurance Rationale and Process
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10
10
Course Ownership/Responsibility
Course Readiness
Proctored Exams/Work
Responding to Students
Schedule Requests
Student Engagement
Syllabus and Student Guide Template Course IDS
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12
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Student Resources
Angel Quickstart Guides
Demo
FAQs
Helpdesk
Library Services
Requirements for using Angel
Screencasts
Smarthinking Online Tutoring
Smartermeasure Readiness Assessment (formerly READI)
Turnitin
Tutoring on campus
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Resources for Distance Education Instructors
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GNTC Online Learning Team
Under the supervision of the Vice President of Academic Affairs, the GNTC Online Learning Team is committed to
expanding the college’s programs to provide students with increased access to high-quality education experiences
using online delivery. The team supports faculty in the design, development, and delivery of web-enhanced, hybrid,
and online courses and provide workshops and training materials to ensure faculty and students are successful in
their online endeavors.
Sharon Wilson Online Coordinator
swilson@gntc.edu (706) 764-3526
Dan Roebuck Helpdesk
onlinehelp@gntc.edu
Grace Beam Helpdesk
onlinehelp@gntc.edu
Brittney Grooms
onlinehelp@gntc.edu
Defining Distance Education at GNTC
The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges defines Distance Education as
…a formal educational process in which the majority of the instruction (interaction between students and
instructors and among students) in a course occurs when student and instructors are not in the same place.
Instruction may be synchronous or asynchronous.
We offer three types of distance education courses
•
•
•
Web-enhanced-meets the entire time and some information or work is online.
Hybrid-at least 50% of the work is done on campus.
Online-all work done online with some classes requiring proctored work.
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COURSE DEVELOPMENT AND TRAINING
Distance education courses are developed as a part of the approved curriculum within the related academic unit of
the college. It is the responsibility of the instructor to obtain permission from the dean of their division to develop a
new format for delivery. The dean will forward the course approval form found on the website and in the GNTC
Quality Assurance of Online Classes Manual as well as the course standards and syllabus with student guide for the
semester to be offered. These are sent to the Online Coordinator who sends electronically to the Online Review
Team for a vote. Any questions from the committee will be sent to the dean and when the team has voted, the
decision will be sent to the dean and faculty member. Courses are reviewed by the Online Review Team for quality
and standards using an established rubric the first semester offered and then on a rotating basis. Results of the
reviews are forwarded to the deans and faculty members involved. It is recommended a full-time faculty member
submit the appropriate forms to the dean for review.
TRAINING AND RESOURCES
All courses offered in the above formats are housed in the Learning Management System (currently Blackboard
Learn-ANGEL) approved by the Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG) and housed at the Georgia Virtual
Technical Connection (GVTC) whose mission is listed below.
The mission of the Georgia Virtual Technical Connection is to provide support, guidance, and assistance to
the state’s Technical Colleges in the design, development, and delivery of distance education and
technology based learning initiatives, manage the state level online student application portal, and serve as
a conduit for distance and technology enhanced education.
Courses offered web-enhanced, hybrid, and online in the TCSG system are subject to the best practices as set forth
by GVTC and the individual college.
The Georgia Virtual Technical Connection provides support, guidance, and assistance to the state’s
Technical Colleges in the design, development, and delivery of distance education and technology based
learning initiatives, manages the state level online student application portal, and serves as a conduit for
distance and technology enhanced education.
GVTC is comprised of qualified staff and a GVTC Coordinator on each campus in TCSG which posts best practices
and guidelines for distance education offered in the above formats.
Blackboard Learn-ANGEL LMS (Quickstart Guides found at www.gntc.edu)
Currently, all web-enhanced, hybrid, and online courses are offered through the ANGEL Learning Management
System through GVTC. Angel is accessible with a secure username and password and can be accessed through the
GNTC website as well as through GVTC or using http://gntc.angellearning.com. Using the ANGEL LMS and
secure login students can only see their own grades and not that of the entire class.
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In order to teach web-enhanced, hybrid, or online courses instructors must complete the Online Angel Training or be
trained by a GVTC approved trainer previous to the semester teaching the course in the above formats. This training
is offered every semester and full or part-time faculty members can request training from the dean of their division
who forwards the request to the Online Coordinator. The training generally takes about ten hours to complete as it
also includes material necessary to offer quality classes as expected by GNTC. Once the instructor is approved to
teach web-enhanced, hybrid, or online courses the dean will assure that the faculty credentials match the course
being taught.
Instructors are asked to keep updated course masters in ANGEL for the purposes of copying each semester the
course is taught. Copies should not be made from courses which have had students enrolled. New course shells for
the semester are created the week after pre-registration to ensure time for instructors to copy and manipulate their
course content. This is done through a script which pulls from the Banner system and run by the Online Coordinator.
Copying should be done before the end of the semester whenever possible as the strain on the system is greater
because most of our TCSG schools use approximately the same calendar. If you made changes to your course and
not your master, please use the export (from course) and import (to master) functions to avoid student data being
transferred.
Training opportunities for faculty are available on campus annually as well as online opportunities through GVTC
and opportunities posted in the resources available to all who teach web-enhanced, hybrid, or online classes. Topics
vary based on issues with technology and faculty/student evaluations. Screencasts are created on an individual basis
or for changes in technology. Training is the first step in our five step process.
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POLICIES AND PROCEDURES
ADA Compliance-ANGEL LMS is ADA Compliant. Services/accommodations may be made available to those
students who self-identify and provide appropriate documentation of disabilities from the coordinator of American
with Disabilities Act (ADA). Georgia Northwestern Technical College strives to provide reasonable, quality
services/accommodations based upon the nature of the disability. The type of service/accommodation provided
should not fundamentally alter the nature of the program. Services available may include but are not limited to the
following: priority registration, campus orientation, career exploration, test modification, recording/enlarging
reading materials, accessible parking, counseling, interpreting services, adaptive equipment, and others.
Faculty must adhere to the documentation provided by and refer any questions or concerns to the coordinator of
ADA. Faculty must not authorize accommodations not approved by the coordinator of ADA. If a student refuses
his/her approved accommodations, student must be referred to the coordinator of ADA and the coordinator will
notify faculty if accommodations will be refused.
If a student has self-disclosed as a student with a disability and may be eligible to receive classroom
accommodations, the following personnel can be contacted:
•
Shelia Parker, ADA Coordinator, Disability Services Coordinator-Floyd County, Gordon County & Polk
County Campuses– (706) 295-6517
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Michael Walters, Disability Services Coordinator, Walker County Campus – (706) 764-3799
•
Kevan Watkins, Disability Services Coordinator, Whitfield Murray Campus – (706) 272-2966
Copyright Compliance- The Copyright Act of 1976 grants to copyright owners the exclusive right to reproduce
their works, prepare derivative works based upon them, distribute copies of them, perform them, and display them.
Anyone who undertakes one of these acts without permission of the copyright holder has infringed upon the
copyright.
Course Load and Compensation- Online classes are given the same consideration as traditional sections in
calculation of instructional load. A full-time faculty member may teach online courses up to half of his or her
regular teaching load without permission from the Office of Academic Affairs. Requests to teach more than half of a
regular teaching load online must be approved by the dean and the Vice President of Academic Affairs or designee.
Instruction of online courses is compensated the same for a full class size but is pro-rated for classes low enrollment.
Full-time faculty may teach online as part of their load or an overload at the applicable pay rate if approved by the
dean and Vice President of Academic Affairs. Faculty members must have approval from the vice president of
Academic Affairs or designee to teach more than 6 contact hours or two classes per semester on an adjunct basis.
Course Evaluations and Reviews-Faculty members teaching online courses will be evaluated with the current
practice and in addition the deans will use the rubrics from the GNTC Quality in Online Classes Manual to ensure
quality in these classes as they can’t be observed in the same manner. (See GNTC Faculty Manual for details.)
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Drop/Add Procedure-First week assignment-A student may drop one or more courses without penalty within the
first three consecutive instructional days of any semester, as long as the student remains in at least one course. The
student may add one or more courses without penalty within the first seven consecutive instructional days of any
semester.
No-show assignments-to ensure accuracy in reporting all online courses must incorporate a designated
assignment to be completed in the first seven days to stay in the course (i.e. introductory discussion post, syllabus
quiz, etc.). This assignment should not be a test which would require students to have a textbook or an assignment
attached to any ‘extraneous’ courseware. The No Show assignment must be easily identified by the student and
housed in ANGEL LMS for tracking and review. If a student completes this assignment, the student must not be
marked as a No Show. If the student does not complete this assignment, regardless of whether or not he/she
completes other assignments or has logged into the course, the student must be marked as a No Show. If the
instructor wants to reinstate the student to the course after marking the student as a No Show, the instructor has that
prerogative and will notify the registrar.
The Online Coordinator will batch enroll students twice a day for the first seven days of the semester and
then the instructor can notify the helpdesk if assistance is needed to add a student. Students will not be dropped or
withdrawn in Angel automatically. The instructor will need to reconcile the official roster in Banner and disable
student accounts in Angel.
Intellectual Property-In accordance with TCSG policy, II.E.1: Intellectual Property, to further its goal of making
education accessible to as many people as possible, the college and TCSG owns the intellectual property rights in
any and all works produced by or for the college.
In order that the college or TCSG be able to utilize to the best and fullest extent all works produced for it, and all
works provided for its use, anyone producing work for the college and TCSG and anyone providing work for the
college or TCSG’s use, represents and warrants that such works:
•
Do not violate any law;
•
Do not violate or infringe any intellectual property right (including but not limited to copyright, trademark,
patent, or right of publicity) of any person or firm; and
•
Do not libel, defame, or invade the privacy of any person or firm.
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974
The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA), with which Georgia Northwestern Technical
College complies fully, was designated to protect the privacy of educational records.
FERPA Privacy Information for Online Course Options
The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act is a federal law that requires colleges to (1) give students access to
their education records, and (2) keep personally identifiable education records confidential with respect to third
parties.
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Because an online environment creates a record of student activity, it is subject to FERPA privacy rights, unlike
verbal exchanges in a physical classroom. The following are items for consideration.
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The academic deans and GNTC Learning Management System (LMS) point of contact staff have access to all
online courses and the archived course documents to carry out their job duties.
•
When students submit information electronically (via LMS), the information is accessible to the faculty
teaching the section. If the work is submitted via GNTC email, the information is accessible to the faculty and
computer system administrators.
•
•
In online courses, discussions, postings, and some student work are accessible to students in class.
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Public postings and student work do not contain grades.
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Students are required to post an assignment, which may be an introduction, when the term begins.
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Discussion requirements are listed in the distance courses.
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The posted work is available to members of the class.
Third Party (online labs, textbook specific online course content)
•
•
Students are instructed to buy/access the online resources when purchasing textbooks.
In case of students posting a message or blog on any social media site (GNTC Twitter, Facebook), students may
not be protected by FERPA if the student submission is not assigned as a part of academic endeavor.
Programs Offered Online-Deans notify the Online Coordinator if a program is offered entirely online or if 50% or
more of the program is offered online. This information is then posted on the website for ease in student registration.
Withdrawal Procedure
•
Beginning Summer Semester 2013, students will have through 60% of the term to receive a grade of W.
Due to this change, students will no longer have the option of receiving a grade of WP or WF and faculty
will no longer award a WP or WF.
•
The deadline for a student to withdraw with a grade of W will also be the deadline for faculty to enter a W
in BannerWeb. The deadline will be published on the Academic Calendar and frequent emails will be sent
from the Registrar’s Office with the deadline and instructions.
•
Faculty will be required to issue an administrative withdrawal grade of W in BannerWeb if a student stops
attending during this withdrawal period. Faculty will be prompted to withdraw students on a bi-weekly
basis during Fall and Spring semesters, and on a weekly basis during Summer semester by the Registrar. It
is important that faculty not wait until the very end of the withdrawal period to withdraw their students who
have stopped attending during this time period.
•
Faculty will no longer be required to issue a last date of attendance for an administrative withdrawal
grade of W.
•
Faculty who miss the deadline (published on the academic calendar) to enter a W for a student who stopped
attending during the withdrawal period, will need to complete an administrative withdrawal form and
submit it to their Dean who will sign and submit the form to the Registrar.
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•
After 60% of the term is complete and the student stops attending after that date, the faculty member will
assign a letter grade at the end of the term.
Work Ethics- Georgia Northwestern Technical College agrees with industry that an important area of student
development should be Work Ethics. Work Ethics pertains to those personal characteristics often referred to as good
work habits—attendance, character, teamwork, appearance, attitude, productivity, organizational skills,
communication, cooperation, and respect. Therefore, the college designed a system for evaluation of Work Ethics in
which a student is assigned a grade reflecting Work Ethics.
The instructor will input a final work ethics grade into Banner Web. Students will receive an academic grade and a
work ethics grades in all program area classes. In general education classes, students are not assigned work ethics
grades. Work Ethics grades are included on the student official transcript so should be given the same serious
consideration of award as the academic grade.
The work ethics form for online classes can be found at www.gntc.edu under online learning>faculty resources.
Many instructors create a drop box and after emailing the student the individual evaluation at mid-term and at the
end of the course, the student can just reply through the drop box that they have seen the form. There must be an
explanation of how instructor can be contacted if the student disagrees with the evaluation.
Work Ethics Grades
3 = Exceeds Expectations
2 = Meets Expectations
1 = Needs Improvement
0 = Unacceptable
Faculty who teach General Education courses, diploma Basic Skills courses, and any other non-occupational courses
(ex. BIOL 2113) are exempt from teaching and assessing Work Ethics competencies in those courses beginning
spring 2013 semester.
Written Student Complaint-Any student at Georgia Northwestern Technical College who feels he/she has an
academic complaint should first seek resolution of the complaint with the instructor of the class in which the
situation has occurred. The complaint should be presented to the instructor in written form, and dated, in order to
better establish a timeline for resolution of the complaint.
The complaint should be brought to the instructor’s attention before the end of the semester in which the
situation occurred. In any case the complaint must be brought to the attention of GNTC faculty before the beginning
of the next academic session* Failure to lodge a complaint in a timely fashion may preclude the student from filing
said complaint at a later date. Once a student has notified the instructor of the complaint the instructor has five (5)
business days to reply in writing. This reply should list the student’s original complaint and the solution offered by
the instructor. A copy of the original complaint and a copy of the instructor’s response will be forwarded to the
instructor’s dean of Academic Affairs.
If the student does not get a satisfactory resolution to his/her complaint resolution may be sought by
appealing to the appropriate dean of Academic Affairs. A written description of the incident, including all pertinent
details and the solution offered by the instructor, must be given to the dean. The appeal must be received within ten
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(10) business days after the failure to receive satisfaction from the instructor. Once the dean receives the formal
complaint, he/she has seven (7) business days to reply in writing to the student.
If the student is still not satisfied with the results of the complaint he/she has ten (10) business days from
the time of the receipt of the decision in which to file a written appeal with the vice president of Academic Affairs at
GNTC.
Once the student has filed a written appeal with the vice president of Academic Affairs, he/she should
expect to receive a reply within seven (7) business days. Once the vice president of Academic Affairs makes a
decision on the appeal, that decision is final. No further appeal is heard.
*NOTE: If the student’s complaint is regarding the final grade awarded for a particular course then the student
has ten (10) business days from the time they could reasonably be aware of the final grade. This “reasonable
time” is defined as starting once grades are posted and made available to students on the institution’s electronic
records web page.
Written Student Complaint-Other
Faculty and staff receiving written and signed student complaints, other than those complaints that would be
considered an academic complaint, should forward the complaint and any clarifying information to the appropriate
vice president. The appropriate vice president should investigate the complaint to determine its validity.
This investigation would include, but may not be limited to:
a. A meeting with the student (online students can request a phone conference or other electronic
communication)
b. A meeting with faculty or staff member against whom the complaint was lodged. In case of a complaint
regarding procedures, the meeting would be with the individual responsible for the particular program or
service in question.
c. Meetings or discussion with other appropriate faculty, staff, or students
The vice president, upon clarifying the nature of the complaint, should respond in writing to the student
lodging the complaint within seven (7) days. The response should include:
a. Acknowledgment of receipt of the complaint
b. A statement regarding action taken
Copies of the response should be forwarded to:
a. The faculty or staff member involved
b. The student’s file
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QUALITY ASSURANCE IN DISTANCE CLASSES
Getting Started-Faculty who are new to teaching online or who wish to explore the LMS used by GNTC are
encouraged to use the student demo at the college website and meet with other online instructors for feedback.
Based on extensive research and work done by GVTC, The Distance Education Leadership Team, and the Online
Learning Team in conjunction with the President of GNTC, a Quality Assurance of Online Classes Manual was
published and must be read and understood by anyone wishing to teach distance education courses. While
recognizing the academic freedom of teaching your course as you wish, we have developed a rubric to ensure
quality and engagement for students. The manual can be found at the college website under online learning>faculty
resources. GNTC has established an Online Review Team comprised of faculty who have taught online for more
than five years and one person from IT who is responsible for assisting with technology but does not review classes.
Course Content, Instructional Design, Learner Assessment, Technology (see QA manual for details) - Peer
Review- The subcommittee of the leadership team is comprised of faculty who will conduct an audit of courses at
GNTC which have a non-traditional distance format. A sampling of at least twenty five (25) percent of these courses
will be reviewed annually to ensure that the standards and competencies have been met and that all proper
documentation is maintained in the Course Instructional Delivery System (CIDS). Courses will be checked by the
review team using the rubrics available in the Quality Assurance of Online Classes Manual. Any instructional duties
performed online are considered the intellectual property of GNTC and Blackboard’s ANGEL LMS is the standard
courseware used for online courses. Any duties performed in courseware outside of ANGEL are subject to review
and some form of login information or administrator account will need to be provided to a designated member of
Academic Affairs to ensure that GNTC quality assurance standards are being followed. Instructors can change
passwords for reviews so as not to compromise login information. The rubrics are summarized by the Online
Coordinator and sent to the deans and faculty member. Below is a brief description of the rationale and process used
to assure quality in distance education classes and is achieved using the five step process outlined.
Quality Assurance Rationale
Quality assurance of distance learning courses is essential on three (3) levels:
Institutional Level. To advance and protect the reputation of the educational institution in attracting students,
qualified faculty members, and collaborations with business and industry.
Student Level. To assure the student that his/her credential is recognized by prospective employers and is
relevant in today’s workforce.
Faculty Level. To provide training, resources, and technical support for the development of new distance
education courses and the maintenance for these courses.
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Five Step Process
1.
INSTRUCTOR TRAINING – The instructor is trained in online learning methodology to include the
learning management system and related software either by the GVTC certified trainer or a certified
trainer in the instructor’s consortium area.
2.
COURSE DEVELOPMENT– Initial submission for approval is requested with the Course
Development Request form. After the course is approved for development, an Online Course
Institutional Review Process is started and the course is developed based on the Best Practices Course
Development Guide.
3.
PEER REVIEW – The course is then submitted for approval for delivery. The course is reviewed
utilizing the Best Practices Course Development Guide by peers. The Online Course Institutional
Review Process is completed. The course is not approved for online delivery unless the Online Course
Institutional Review Process has the Online Coordinator or Associate Vice President for Academic
Affairs signature.
4.
COURSE EVALUATION – During initial delivery of the course, the following items are used for
evaluation: Dean’s evaluation, review of online learning classes by peers, student evaluations.
5.
PERIODIC REVIEW – Periodic reviews are scheduled utilizing the rubrics found in the QA Manual.
If a course was marked approved with changes, the course will be checked about week three to see if
changes were made. Upon receipt of three students’ valid complaints a review will be conducted on
any course or instructor. The review committee will review for quality assurance and note any
improvement needed and send to the appropriate Dean for follow up with the faculty member.
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COURSE OWNERSHIP/RESPONSIBILTY
Assistance-Enrolling any account other than a student who appears on the Banner roll in a web-enhanced, hybrid, or
online class must be approved by the Online Coordinator.
Course Ready First Day- All online, web-enhanced, and hybrid courses must have at least the syllabus, student
guide, and grade book set up by the first day of class. Online classes should have instructions for engagement that
can be found on the syllabus and student guide. Please check the Quality Assurance Manual for details.
Proctored Exams/Work-Proctors are available on each campus if a GNTC instructor or an instructor from any
TCSG would like to use for testing/work in an online class. There is no charge to the student if they are attending a
college in Georgia.
FCC – Dana Walker
WCC – LaJuana Alexander
WMC – Jan Webb
PCC – Donna Hopper
GCC – Johna Jenkins
Responding to Students- Instructors should initiate contact with students daily during the drop/add period and at
least weekly thereafter. Communication expectations should be listed on the syllabus or in the distance course so
that students are aware when they can expect instructor responses. For instance, if you teach distance classes as part
of your full-time load, perhaps you respond to students during the day. If you are an adjunct and can only respond in
the evenings, please let students know. Instructors are required to respond to students within 24 business hours or 3
business days. The operational hours of GNTC are 7:45AM-4:15PM Monday-Friday.
Instructors should indicate to online students how many hours are expected of them in order to fulfill all of the
assignments. An educational rule of thumb is to double the contact hours listed for the course. Please show not less
than one hour of classroom or direct faculty instruction and a minimum of two hours of class student work each
week, for fifteen weeks, for each semester hour of credit.
Schedule-requesting Delivery Mode Change after Schedule is Published-This should be in exceptional cases as
courses should be approved for delivery format the semester before they are placed on the schedule. The last
deadline for approval in format is before the schedule is printed for early registration.
Please check with the dean of the division in which class is being taught. Deans will forward permission for change
to the Online Coordinator after all registered students have been notified of the change in scheduling.
Student Engagement- the Quality Assurance of Online Classes Manual will help to clarify the importance of
communication, interaction, engagement, and teacher presence. It is recognized most of the engagement for students
takes place in the classroom for web-enhanced and hybrid classes. Web-enhanced courses must consist of at least
three of the components listed on the course development form in the manual.
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The course design for all online classes must include engagement through Angel as well as any extraneous websites
an instructor may choose. This will allow for easy review by the Quality Review Committee and any other
monitoring as set forth by the President of GNTC (i.e. login activity is monitored to be sure instructors never go
more than three business days without logging in to classes). Higher Education in general is demanding that we
engage our students on a regular basis with as many tools as possible. Angel has tools for activity that include
wikis, blogs, live office hours, live chats, WAV files, etc. This allows teaching to many learning styles and engaging
in many different ways with the emphasis currently being placed on the teacher's presence in the discussions.
Syllabus and Student Guide Template- Contact information, course requirements, classroom policies and
procedures must be stated clearly in a course syllabus available to each student on the first day of class. The
syllabus, including the grading system, should not be altered during the semester. It is an agreement by which the
students and instructor follow. If the syllabus must be changed, the change must be given in writing to students and
an explanation of why the change had to occur. The syllabus should also indicate that the instructor will be available
for consultation if a student has questions about his or her progress in the course. All syllabi and student guides are
to be filed as part of the Course ID system on the intranet (GNET). The print function will produce a document in
.pdf format to be used in distance education courses.
GNET is a valuable source of information for Georgia Northwestern Technical College’s faculty and staff.
GNTC has two web sites for information delivery - one is www.gntc.edu, referred to as the "public" website, which
delivers announcements, class schedules, current and prospective student information and GNTC news articles to
the general public. The other is the GNET, which is a secure internal web site that is accessible only to faculty and
staff who have been provided with individual login credentials. Various forms and applications can be found to
assist faculty. Information on accessing GNET can be found on the Faculty/Staff page of the GNTC website.
Suggestions for enhancements to the GNET are always welcomed.
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STUDENT RESOURCES
Secure login-The ANGEL LMS platform supports the delivery of online content by providing students and
instructors a secure logon environment into their virtual classroom. Instructors design, develop, and deliver their
course content and materials in and through the LMS. Students interact with the content, the instructor, and other
students while attending their virtual course. Students should never share their username and password.
ARE YOU READY TO START CLASS? Log into your class at http://gntc.angellearning.com (SAVE
THIS AS A FAVORITE IN CASE OUR WEBSITE IS EVER DOWN) and use 29_GNTCstudentID as
your username and password. Your student ID number can be found on your schedule in the BannerWeb
system. For example, 29_900XXXXXX. This can’t be given on the telephone or in an email.
Resources
ANGEL Quickstart Guides are available for students at www.gntc.edu under online learning>Quickstart
Guides.
Demo-available at www.gntc.edu under online learning>Angel
DO YOU WANT TO PRACTICE? Demo: for a preview of how online classes generally appear,
click here for a demo. Please use 29_demo as the username and password for the demo
FAQs-Frequently Asked Questions by students available at www.gntc.edu under online learning>FAQs
Helpdesk-contact information is onlinehelp@gntc.edu. Staffed during operational hours and in the evening
during peak times.
DO YOU NEED ASSISTANCE? Problems logging in? Please review Angel Quickstart Guide
under online learning>quickstart guide.. For login problems please email onlinehelp@gntc.edu
(staffed 7:45-4:15). Please include your name, ID number, and GNTC email address. For
assistance after login (i.e. don’t see class, tests are not opening, etc.) contact instructor.
Library Services-link to library orientation for online students posted at ANGEL login page and available
at www.gntc.edu under library services.
Requirements for using ANGEL-download assistance can be found at www.gntc.edu under online
learning>ANGEL.
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Internet Explorer OR
Firefox
Adobe Acrobat
Flash Player
QuickTime
Java
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Screencasts-available for logging in to ANGEL, sending email, posting discussions, sending homework at
www.gntc.edu under online learning>FAQs and ANGEL. Screencasts are also created when necessary to
assist a student with any other issues that might arise.
Click here for a screencast with audio on how to log in to Angel LMS.
How do I send email and assignments in Angel classes?
Sending Email in Angel
Sending Assignments
How do I use the discussion board in Angel classes?
Using the discussion boards in Angel
How do I check my grades in Angel classes?
Checking grades in Angel
Smarthinking Online Tutoring-available to online students only through GVTC. The nugget must be
made available to students in ANGEL on the course page for them to take advantage of the services.
Smartermeasure Readiness Assessment (READI)-Available at www.gntc.edu under online
learning>ANGEL for students. Faculty can request login information from the Online Coordinator to see
student activity.
ARE YOU READY FOR ONLINE CLASSES? To determine if you are ready to take online
courses please take the SmarterMeasure Assessment Test (formerly READI). Username: student
Password: gntc. The test takes approximately 30 minutes to complete.
Turnitin-Some instructors use this source as a way to ensure students have paraphrased their work
correctly. Instructions are found at www.gntc.edu under online learning>FAQs
How do I use Turnitin in my General Core classes? Turnitin Training
Tutoring on Campus-Information for tutoring can be found at www.gntc.edu under students. Tutoring
services are provided on a semester basis. These services are offered for day and/or evening students on all
campuses. For students taking online courses, online tutoring is available through the Georgia Virtual
Technical Connection. View the schedules below for availability.
Computers are available for use on all four campuses. At the Floyd, Gordon, and Polk county campuses,
there are computers for student use in the tutoring labs and the libraries. On the Walker campus, there are
computers for student use in Lab 6106 and in the library. Help Labs are also available. Hours vary by term.
FLOYD COUNTY CAMPUS Tutoring Schedule
GORDON COUNTY CAMPUS Tutoring Schedule
POLK COUNTY CAMPUS Tutoring Schedule
WALKER COUNTY CAMPUS Computer Lab (6106) Gen Ed Computer Lab (125) MathLab
Writing Lab
WHITFIELD MURRAY COUNTY COMING SOON
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Resources for Distance Education Instructors
Angel Tutorials from Georgia Virtual Technical Connection http://www2.gvtc.org/gvtctraining/Home.aspx
WHAT IS ENGAGEMENT
http://www.onlinecollege.org/2011/09/19/student-engagement-and-online-learning/
A Useful "Cognitive Pattern" or "Collection of Discrete Thought Threads?
http://www.designingforlearning.info/services/writing/ecoach/tips/tip25.html
Collaboration in the online classroom
http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/online-education/fostering-collaboration-in-the-online-classroom/
E-Coaching http://www.designingforlearning.info/services/writing/ecoach/inventory.htm
Five Common Pitfalls of Online Course Design
http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/online-education/five-common-pitfalls-of-online-course-design/
Managing and Evaluating Discussion Postings
http://www.designingforlearning.info/services/writing/ecoach/tips/tip4.html
Merlot http://www.merlot.org/merlot/index.htm
Preparing Discussion Posts that Invite Reflection and Response
http://www.designingforlearning.info/services/writing/ecoach/tips/tip26.html
Promoting Peer Interaction and Discussion
http://www.designingforlearning.info/services/writing/ecoach/tips/tip7.html
Social Presence, Simple Rules about Feedback in Online Learning
http://www.designingforlearning.info/services/writing/ecoach/tips/tip59.html
Teaching Presence and Cognitive Presence
http://www.designingforlearning.info/services/writing/ecoach/tips/tip51.html
Ten Best Practices for Teaching Online http://www.designingforlearning.info/services/writing/ecoach/tenbest.html
The Importance of Interaction and "Virtual Presence" -- Being There for Your Students
http://www.designingforlearning.info/services/writing/ecoach/tips/tip1.html
The Role of Faculty in Discussion Boards
http://www.designingforlearning.info/services/writing/ecoach/tips/tip5.html
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Three Ways to Increase Engagement http://www.vcu.edu/cte/resources/newsletters_archive/OC0903.pdf
Virtual Presence-Again and Branching out to Audio
http://www.designingforlearning.info/services/writing/ecoach/tips/tip11.html
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