Course Information
Students are expected to have regular access to adequate technology resources to successfully participate in their courses and avoid problems accessing the course materials. It is the student’s responsibility to ensure all requirements are met prior to the start of the Trimester.
These documents are given to students electronically during the orientation seminars and are available through the Office of Academic Affairs. A specific training module with IRB application forms is available to anyone in the Sarasota University community planning to conduct research.
At the course level, the “45 hour” rule applies for measuring credit hours. This means that the student performs 15 hours of instruction and 30 hours of preparation for each credit hour. For a 3 credit hour course, a student will perform 135 hours of a combination of instruction and preparation. Instructional interaction includes posting and interacting with teachers and students in discussion boards, posting and interacting with classmates in Chat Rooms and other forms of social media, and interacting with teacher and classmates in teleconferences. Students are required to participate in learning activities each week, submitting assignments by the due date.
An additional six to twelve hours a week is necessary to prepare for instruction, for the study of course materials including readings, and completion of educational assignments. Many courses have a concluding activity, which may be a course-long project, an oral presentation, or a major report/paper. Each course has a designated learning activity for which student achievement is reported to the University for program monitoring and assessment purposes. Such data are collected either electronically or through paper reports.
The timeline for the completion of assignments is determined by the instructor and is posted on the course website and contained in the course syllabus. Students are expected to complete their assignments in a timely fashion. Response time to an assignment or class activity by the instructor is determined by the assignment. Generally, students can expect a response from their instructor within 48 hours of an assignment submission.
Many courses have similar online components as described below. Each weekly instructional module contains Questions for Discussion (Forum), Assignments, descriptions of scheduled Chats, and details related to the Course Project/Final assignment. Full participation and completion of all assignments is expected. Professors may weight (assign a point value to) each component (making the Chats equal in value to the Discussions, for example) to meet the needs of the students and the course content and activities. The weighting of the components is posted in the course website and described in the course syllabus.
- Discussions (Forums)
On a weekly basis, students post their answers to one or more discussion questions and comment on the postings of two other students (a paragraph of 5 to 7 sentences). This facilitates an exchange of ideas among all the class members. Professors may assign discussion teams to respond/reply to each other in addition to reading the postings of other class members.Initial responses to discussion questions are posted early in the assigned week to enable other class members time to read and post their comments.
Postings to the Discussion area are used for attendance purposes.
- Teleconference Chats
Students may be asked to participate in a mutually agreed upon schedule of one to two-hour toll-free teleconference chats during a course. The chat session takes on the nature of a traditional regular classroom session enabling the students to clarify assignments and course procedures, and to discuss key current issues. Courses often have at least two teleconference chats, one scheduled early in the term and one toward the end. The chats are scheduled during a week day evening, after normal business hours. Some programs have more frequently scheduled chats as noted in the course description, posted in the course website and contained in the course syllabus. Professors and students may develop a substitute assignment for a missed chat. - Course Assignments
Each course has assignments requiring a mix of research and thoughtful reflection. Specific to each course, these “real world” assignments may involve field work (recorded observations), interviews, or brief papers. Often students have options for the type of activity they choose to complete an assignment. - Course Project/Final Reflective Assignment
Some courses have a Course Project/Final Reflective assignment as a culminating activity in which students bring together and apply acquired knowledge from the course. Students have greater flexibility in identifying and developing this final activity which is intended to demonstrate the application of knowledge and achievement of course outcomes. For other courses, the final activity may be a final examination.
Letter Grade | Score Range | Grade Point Value |
A | 90 – 100% | 4.0 |
B | 80 – 89% | 3.0 |
C | 70 – 79% | 2.0 |
D | 60 – 69% | 1.0 |
F | 59% and below | 0.0 |
I | Incomplete | |
WFC | Withdrawn From Course |
The University recognizes that many instances of “plagiarism” are the result of incomplete or missing citations rather than the intentional misuse of the others’ material. The University provides a required, self-study module on accepted writing standards to help students understand proper citation techniques. In addition, these standards are reviewed as part of every course syllabus and reflect correctness as well as intellectual honesty. The Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, Sixth Edition, is the University’s standard for the development and publication of manuscripts.
Repeated violations of the standards of intellectual honesty will be reported to the appropriate college Academic Progress Committee. After 3 incidents, the Academic Progress Committee will refer the complaint to the University Council for further action, which could include a recommendation for dismissal from the University.
- Computer At a minimum, students must have regular access to a computer with Internet connection (preferably broadband) and a web browser. Students are expected to be knowledgeable in basic computer skills. Personal competence in word processing and using email programs is required.
- Hardware PC Users: Pentium II 300 or equivalent with 96 MB memory, CD ROM, Monitor, Sound Card and Printer. Operating System: Windows XP or higher Mac Users, please note: Coursework should be accessible via Mac software. Support is available for Mac users.
- Internet Connection Subscription to an Internet Service Provider (ISP) is required (broadband access is highly recommended). Broadband access can be cable modem, digital subscriber line (DSL), T1 Connection, or LAN connection or its equivalent. Students are responsible for clearing any firewall and/or security issues if access to the SU Portal is attempted through a workplace network.
- Web Browser Make sure you have the best online experience by upgrading your browser to the latest versions of Internet Explorer and/or Firefox.