To respond to the remote but real possibility of a major disruption of University activities, such as might be caused by an avian flu pandemic or other disaster, an action plan has been developed for CSC 101 which will allow students to complete the course even if there is a prolonged closure of the University.
CSC 101 is normally taught in a lecture format (three one-hour meetings per week), with course notes posted on the course Web site after class in the form of PowerPoint files. Students are assessed based on a number of in-class exams, a short research paper, and a cumulative final exam. (In addition, approx. 20% of the student’s grade in CSC 101 is based on his/her performance in the co-requisite lab course CSC 101L; because CSC 101L is separately administered, this document concerns only CSC 101, the lecture part of the course.)
In anticipation of a possible future need, during Fall 2006 and Spring 2007 we videotaped the course as it was presented to students (generally from the MWF 11-11:50 section). The videotaped sessions were converted to digital files and are stored on the CS departmental servers. Since course content and presentation has been relatively consistent over recent semesters, we expect that these videotaped classes will still be relevant should a need arise within the next few semesters.
Near the beginning of the semester, each student (and teaching assistant) will be requested to provide a variety of contact information, providing for multiple means of communication should there be disruptions in normal methods. The contact information solicited may include:
Student and TA contact information will be stored locally so as to be available to the instructor(s) even in the event of disruption of campus computing services such as WIN/Banner. Due to the potentially sensitive nature of this personal information, it will be treated as confidential and stored in a secure location in the sole possession of the instructor(s) for use only in exceptional situations directly related to the course, and will be destroyed after the end of the semester.
In addition, contact information for instructors and TAs will be provided to the students. This information will include:
In the event of a disruption of University activities, the following actions are planned:
Should a disruption occur, videotaped copies of lectures will be made available to the students via Web links to the digitized files. Links will be provided both on the Web site hosted at www.wfu.edu, as well as on the mirrored Web site hosted on an alternative, non-WFU server.
In the event that the Internet becomes an unreliable distribution medium, Web site links may prove to be inadequate. In this case the video files will be burned onto DVDs and distributed to students by postal mail. This will, however, be a ‘last-resort’ option, as the manpower and postage requirements for creating, packaging and shipping DVDs would be quite large (enrollment in CSC 101 regularly exceeds 120 students). To help alleviate this, DVD creation may be initiated in advance of a potential campus-closing event, should any advance warning be available.
In order to help reinforce the course material, specific problems from the textbook or other sources may be assigned to the students as self-study homework. The text provides answers to selected problems so that students can self-assess their understanding of the material.
The co-requisite lab course (101L) is separately administered. The 101 instructors will maintain contact with the 101L instructors to obtain information about the students’ performance in the labs (in whatever manner the lab work will have been accomplished). Accordingly, the instructors for both 101 and 101L will exchange personal contact information with each other as described above.
Quizzes and exams are currently handled in class, on paper. In the event of a disruption, quizzes and exams may be converted to an on-line form using Blackboard. Should the campus computing environment become unstable or ineffective, preventing access to Blackboard, paper versions of quizzes and exams may be distributed to students via postal mail, email, or downloadable files posted on the alternative (non-WFU) course Web server. In this case students will return completed quizzes via postal mail or email.
The research paper assignment will remain essentially unchanged. Much of the research facilities necessary are available online, from both WFU and non-WFU sources. Should the Internet become unreliable, an alternative paper assignment may be offered, with a choice of topics that can be addressed based on material presented in class or in the textbook.