Getting Started

If you have not taken an online course before or if it has been over a year since you took an online course, complete the Dodge Family College of Arts and Sciences Student Orientation. LINK:  ONLINE STUDENT ORIENTATION.

FIRST, Keep Organized: The nature of an online course provides students with greater flexibility. This has many advantages, but keep in mind that this flexibility will also require you to be more organized, more self-motivated, and to maintain a greater amount of self-regulation than an on campus course.

SECOND, Read the Assigned Material: Your performance in the course will directly reflect whether or not you read and understand the assigned material. Feel free to ask questions via email or in a discussion if you don’t understand what you have read or if you need to discuss content issues.

THIRD, Participate Fully in this Course and Stay on Track: Take the time to carefully read the syllabus, complete course activities and assignments, and fully integrate this course into your semester schedule as you would any on-campus course. Not attending to course requirements will lead to the same negative consequences as can occur in a traditional class. WARNING: It is even easier to fall behind in an online course.

FOURTH, Communicate Well: Online learning has many ways for students and instructors to keep in contact with one another and to interact. Communication is often done through discussion boards, email, and other online tools. While there are many advantages to communicating through these means, it should be remembered written communication does not contain non-verbal cues to help the listener understand the intent and meaning of the message. Keep this in mind when communicating with others in your online course. 

Make sure you have everything you need to be successful including:

• Course Material as stated in the Syllabus
• Access to a computer (click here for Canvas browser and computer requirements Links to an external site.)
• Access to the internet daily
• Webcam/microphone if required in the Syllabus

Students are expected to check their OU email accounts and the course site on Canvas daily for updates from the instructor. You will need to be sure to do the following:

• Set up your default email address so you can reply to email directly from Canvas when using Outlook for OU email.
• Set your profile photo and make sure to set up your Canvas notifications to ensure you are receiving updates from the course.
• It is also recommended that you download and install the Canvas Mobile app for your device for on-the-go access to course materials, schedule, and communications. The content in this course is best viewed on a computer or tablet (NOT a phone) using a web browser (preferably Chrome or Firefox). (i)

If you need technical support for your online course review the "Get Help" page in the Student Orientation or click the "Help" button on the bottom left in your Canvas global navigation.

Review the Course Syllabus and Schedule.

Post to the Introduction Discussion, answering all parts of the topic during the first week of the course.

The course content is found in Modules. Please begin in Topic 1.