Welcome Letter

This message was sent earlier in the week.  I am resending it for anyone who recently added the class.

I would like everyone to log into the social network site by Monday.

Welcome back from break, and to Spring 2012 here at GSU.

I’m writing to help get you prepped for BIOL 2107, Principles of Biology I. This semester, I am teaching this as a hybrid on-line face-to-face course. After the first week, we will be meeting once a week throughout the semester, and the rest of the time we will be working online. I have great expectations for you, and I hope that you will use the opportunity of this semester to really nail down some fundamentals.

To get you ready for the course, I need you to do the following:

1. Go to the syllabus website https://sites.google.com/site/hybridbiol2107/
• Bookmark this page for quick reference.
2. Watch the What is a MOOC? Video
3. Join our biology social network Biology MOOC.
• To protect your privacy while you are a student, you are encouraged to come up with a non-offensive pseudonym for your User ID.
• In uLearn, you will be given an opportunity to log your User ID with me (there is an assignment on the main page for this).
• Once you have logged on, I want you to start your blog.
• In your blog, tell the community what you hope to achieve (not grades) this semester in taking BIOL 2107 (btw…you will get points for doing this).
4. If you are on Facebook, then join our facebook group http://www.facebook.com/pages/GSU-Biology-MOOC/268219026574421
5. My twitter ID is bioramaxwell.
• If a problem occurs during the semester, or if a class is canceled, I will send out a tweet and then announcements on as many systems as I can.
• There are also opportunities for students who use twitter.
6. Install Zotero on your computer.
• Go to the library zotero page: http://research.library.gsu.edu/zotero
• Install the software.
• We will talk about this software during the first week.
7. Log onto uLearn, and then go to the course page.
• Take a quick tour to get familiar with what is on uLearn.
• Over the next few days, materials will appear.
8. Log onto OrgSync and start building an ePortfolio.
• Instructions on how to access OrgSync are in the course uLearn page.
• Information about ePortfolios can be found in the syllabus.

As a reminder, labs begin during the first week of the semester. Make sure that you attend your scheduled lab!

Looking forward to seeing everyone on Tuesday!