Frequently-Asked Questions
about Education to Go online courses:
1) How long are your courses?
2) What if I'm away on business or vacation during part of the course?
3) Do I need to be online at a certain time?
4) How will I receive my lessons, quizzes, and assignments?
5) What happens if I have a question about the course material?
6) Can I touch base with other students in the online classroom? How can I do this?
7) How is taking an internet course different from reading a book?
8) How is taking an internet course different from taking an in-class course?
9) What if I want to take a course that lists a different software version than the one I'm running?
10) I have a question that's not answered here
11) Who do I contact for more information or for technical help?
Unless otherwise specified, all courses run for six weeks. You will be granted access to two lessons each week for six weeks. Each lesson will be accompanied by a short, multiple-choice quiz, and some lessons may also include a hands-on assignment. You are expected to try and complete each quiz and assignment within two weeks from when the lesson is released. The course will conclude with a final exam. You will have two weeks from the day the final exam is released to complete your studies and submit the final exam for evaluation.
2) What if I'm away on business or vacation during part of the course?
No problem! There's a two-week grace period built right into each of our quizzes and final exams. As long as you can live with that two week time frame, you can read each lesson at your leisure, and complete each assignment when it is convenient for you. That's the beauty of taking an online course--they're designed to fit your schedule--not your instructor's! If you start to fall behind, we can grant you a ten day extension at the end of the course. You are not required to attach a reason to your extension request, but we can grant no more than one extension per course. You will be given instructions on how to request an extension when your course begins.
3) Do I need to be online at a certain time?
Not at all - although lessons are released two times per week, you can complete the lessons, quizzes, and assignments at your convenience, when it suits your schedule. That's the beauty of online!
4) How will I receive my lessons, quizzes, and assignments?
Each course comes complete with an online classroom. You will be able to use your web browser to access the online classroom and obtain your course material and communicate with your instructor.
5) What happens if I have a question?
Each of your lessons is accompanied by an interactive discussion area. When you need help with a lesson, all you have to do is post your question or inquiry in the appropriate course discussion area, where the instructor, his or her teaching assistant, or one of your fellow students will respond.
6) Can I touch base with other students in the online classroom? How do I do this?
We are firmly convinced that the best way to learn a new skill is to teach it to others. If you know the answer to a discussion area question, you are strongly encouraged to offer your assistance by posting to the discussion area. Posting to the discussion area is very similar to creating and sending an email, with the difference that all the students, plus the instructor, in your online classroom can read your post. If you wish to send a private post to your instructor, you can do that through the online classroom as well.
7) How is taking an internet course different from reading a book?
Like books, much of the information in our Internet courses will be conveyed to you in writing. But the similarities between books and our Internet workshops end there. In particular:
- We believe that computer skills are best acquired by coupling hands-on experience with information and expert advice. Each of our lessons comes complete with a quiz that has been carefully designed to reinforce the material covered in your lesson. Each quiz will be evaluated instantly and returned to you with meaningful feedback. In addition, many of your lessons will be accompanied with meaningful assignments that have been expertly crafted to give you practical hands-on experience with the material covered in your course. After you complete each assignment, you will be provided with all the information you need to self-evaluate your work and assess your own strengths and weaknesses.
- What's more, our courses are crafted to exploit the interactive nature of the Internet, virtually ensuring that all of your course-related questions are answered. During the course, you will remain in constant contact with your instructor and your fellow students. Although most computer books are great at feeding you expert advice, none can give you the practical experience and level of interaction delivered by just one of our courses.
- Since most books are written many months before they are published, much of the material you find in books is out-of-date by the time they hit the store shelves. The dynamic and interactive nature of our courses makes it easy for you to receive up-to-the-minute instructions and advice from your instructor and classmates whenever you want it. This makes our online courses as timely, topical, and relevant to your needs as today's newspaper.
8) How is taking an internet course different from taking an in-class course?
In today's fast-paced world, many of us find it difficult to take time away from work and family to attend school. One of the primary advantages of our Internet workshops is that you can "attend class" in the comfort and convenience of your own home and office. All you have to do is log into your online classroom when you are good and ready to read your lessons, complete your quizzes and assignments, or communicate with your instructor and fellow students. Our Internet courses fit into your schedule: you can take them before breakfast, during lunch, late at night, or at any other time you find convenient--the choice is yours!
9) What if I want to take a course that lists a different software version than the one I'm running?
Usually this is okay...depending on how different the software you are running is from the one listed in the online classroom. For instance, if you want to take a Microsoft Office 2007 class and you are running Microsoft Office 2003 at home, we wouldn't recommend it, since there was a huge change in the look and feel of Microsoft Office software between the 2003 and 2007 versions. If you want to take a Microsoft Office 2007 class and you are running Microsoft Office 2010, you should be fine, since the software look and feel did not change a lot between MS Office 2007 and MS Office 2010.
In general, if you are only one version behind or ahead of the version of the software listed in the course, you should be fine, with the exception of MS Office 2003 to 2007 listed above.
10) I have a question that's not answered here
You can try the Instant Answers area in the Education to Go classroom to find more information about Selecting a Course, Enrolling in a Course, Participating in a Course, finding answers to Technical Issues, and steps to take if you've forgotten your password. If this doesn't help you out, just contact us and we'll do our best to get you an answer as quickly as possible.
11) Who do I contact for more information or for technical help?
Vancouver Island University's Education to Go liaison team is located at the Powell River Campus (Wanda Erikson, Erin Johnson, Barb McKay, and Linda Morrissey: dl_pr_office_staff@viu.ca) Phone # (toll-free): 1-877-888-8890. Education to Go Coordinator is Alison Turley (alison.turley@viu.ca).
For more information about Education to Go online courses, go to: https://www.ed2go.com/viu/help.html