How To Use The Writing Center

Did you know that California College San Diego has a writing center where students can submit written assignments that will be proofread, annotated with suggested corrections, and a summarized feedback?

To access the writing center:

1. From Canvas’ home page, Enter the Study Hall Academic Resource Center (SHARC)
2. Click on “Writing Center”
3. Enter your student credentials
   1. *If you have trouble with your student credentials contact the librarian (Patricia.Bermel@cc-sd.edu)
4. You can choose to Make an Appointment or Submit a Paper
   1. An Appointment provides you with one-on-one help with writing assignments, perfect for students who need help getting started.
   2. Submit a Paper is for students who have already written a paper and want feedback before the final submission to the instructor. Follow the instructions on how to submit a paper and agree to the terms of service,  then click “Submit Work.”
5. According to the terms of service, if students submit on Saturday after 9am MST, feedback may not be received with the 24-48 hour window.
   

   Update (06/01/2018): You must save your document using a unique name such as CourseCode_Assignmnt#_FirstLastname (example: CSS101_Assignment2_DruMacasieb). If you try and upload it using “Assignment 1” or a generic file name that others may use, you will get that it cannot be submitted.

6. After submitting a paper, students must come back to the writing center to see if their document has been completed. Students will not receive an email or notification that their paper has been worked on. Instead, students must re-visit the writing center to check on the status of their paper.

Update (06/01/2018): If you have any questions or concerns about using the Writing Center, please contact the Writing Center Supervisor: Angela Sweeney–angela.sweeney@independence.edu  and CC your instructor.

From personal experience, I have found that the writing center, no matter what reason for the feedback you chose,  does an awesome job of providing feedback on the entire paper (APA formatting, grammar, sentence structure, ideas, organization etc.).

I have also found that the earlier I submit papers during the week, the faster the turned around time is.  I submitted a paper on Tuesday around 6:00pm PST and got feedback on it 10:00am PST the next morning. I have also noticed that paper submitted toward the end of the week (Friday and Saturday) takes longer to get back, and the feedback is not as detailed as one turned in earlier (probably because they get a ton of submissions during the end of the week).

Another best practice is to submit both the Writing Center feedback and the final draft (with improvements) to your instructor. I’ve done this, and thus far have received full credit in all my written submissions.

When I was doing my Master’s, I advertised on Craigslist proofreading services. I basically would charge $5-$10 a page to proofread written papers. So having this service free to students just blows my mind.

The Writing Center is a valuable tool for all students. In my opinion, it is crucial to submit papers to the Writing Center before submitting final drafts as it almost guarantees full credit if the feedback is applied.

Advertisement

How to Survive Online Classes at Independence University

//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

By Dru Macasieb

This post is about how to survive online classes at Independence University, specifically focusing on daily checkpoints, Live/Recorded Lectures, discussions, assignments,  assessments, tutoring, and communicating with your instructor.

Daily Check Points

• Do them in the morning right when you get up or right before or after you check your email/Facebook on your computer or mobile device. Yes, you can log in to Canvas using your mobile device as long as it’s a smartphone.
• Friday, Saturday, and Sunday daily checkpoints are always extra credit, do them, you don’t have anything to lose.
• It is best to use your laptop to do daily checkpoints so you can hit “Control + F” to bring up your browser’s find tool. With it, you can search for terminology or phrases that may help you find the answer you’re looking for.

View the Live/Recorded Lectures

• Try you’re best to view the live lectures. Its only two hours out of your day and you can ask the instructor questions and get answers right away.
• If you can’t attend the live lecture, view the recording. If you can’t sit there and view the recording, at least listen to it. Take your phone let it play as you take a shower, drive, wash dishes, fold laundry, just get exposed to what is being taught, its better than nothing.
• From my experience, the instructor goes over everything you need to know to be successful in the course. Including how to do the assignments and how to pass the assessments.

Discussions

• Do your discussions on or before Wednesdays.
• Do it in Word, spell and grammar check it, and make sure you have the right amount of words needed as described in the directions.
• When writing the discussion, its best to get a reference from the book and use an in-text citation, as well as referencing it in APA format at the end of your initial post.
• Do not use quotes. As an instructor, I find it lazy as its merely a copy and paste and since it’s not in your own words, it doesn’t count towards the minimum word count. Instead, paraphrase. Another problem with quoting is that it seems that majority of students don’t know how to quote properly in APA format.
• If you can, do one reply the same day as your initial post. You’ll need to do another reply on a different day to get full credit. Its only 50 words, be creative.

Assignments

• Assignments are a bit trickier because it is going to depend on the class you are taking.
• For general education and management courses, they’re most likely APA papers. It best to download an APA template and submit your written work using the template.
• For technology students, it may be writing code or going through a virtualization.  Again, the best bet for completing assignments is by attending/viewing the live/recorded lectures.
• For programming students, the instructor usually goes over how to code in the live lectures. You can also use the textbook to copy and paste the code and then reverse engineer it by modifying certain elements.
• For papers, use the writing center (I can’t stress this enough). They’ll proofread your paper and provide you with feedback.

Assessments

• Before taking the assessment be sure you have viewed and read all the course material. I find the live lectures provide you with enough information to do well on the assessments.
• Use the “CNTRL + F” method to find specific keywords and phrases in any text document.
• Before hitting submit, go back an check your answers, some answers answer others.
• If you focus on the learning objectives each week, you should do fine on the assessments as they are based on the learning assessments.
• Read the textbook from back to front. Start with the chapter questions, then read the summary, then read each section from front to back to front, ending with the introduction.

Tutoring

• Did you know that we have online tutoring as well as on-ground tutoring?
• Check out our Study Hall and Resource Center (aka SHARC) and utilize the Student Success Center for free tutoring 6 days a week.*  Online tutoring can help you with:
  • Walk you through assignments
  • Explain directions
  • Answer questions about course information
  • Read and help edit essays for any subject
  • Chat online with you
  • Work with you on the phone
  • Use Screen Sharing –so you can see exactly what they are talking about on the computer screen, and you can show them what you see on your screen as well.
• The Writing Center- CCSD has an online writing center where you can make an appointment for one-on-one writing help, or simply submit a paper and the writing center will provide you with feedback.

*Please be aware there are specific hours for each subject. To find the schedule you can visit SHARC, select Student Success Center, then click Hours of Operation.

 

Communicate with your Instructor

Your instructor is there for one purpose only, to help you learn the material. Communicate with them if you are facing ANY obstacles that hinder you the goal of learning the course material, no matter how trivial or serious the situation is. Under instructor information in your syllabus, there should adequate contact information such as email and phone numbers. You can always use Canvas’ internal email function to email your instructor. Before you submit an assignment, there is a comment box where you can submit comments. You should comment on the assignment. Let them know if you enjoyed the assignment, hated it, obstacles you’ve faced, or best practices in completing the assignment. Remember, instructors are people too and communicating with them regularly creates rapport with them.

The Difference Between Online and On-ground Learning

The majority of the students who fail online classes give  me the excuse that “I don’t learn well online.” As an online student myself, I don’t quite understand that statement because to me learning is the act of acquiring knowledge, and to me, nobody teaches anything in college, except oneself. The faculty of a college isn’t called teachers, they’re called… faculty, instructors, or professors. They facilitate learning by providing the tools necessary to learn, like books, assignments,  and clarification of concepts.  The difference between taking an online course versus an on-ground course is the mode of delivery by which facilitation occurs. In an online class, it is delivered by electronic means, such as email and video chat. While on-ground uses face-to-face communication.  Nevertheless, the on-ground portion also uses online tools such as assignment rubrics and submission, and a hybrid portion which includes discussions and daily checkpoints.

Looking at the difference, it seems that the only real difference between online learning and on-ground learning is that amount of real-time communication one has with the instructor. Online gets you 2 hours of live communication, and if you miss it, you still get a recorded lecture. On-ground gets you 5-6 hours of live communication, however, if you miss it you’re out of luck because it does not get recorded.

Conclusion

So why do students fail online courses more than on-ground classes? I think it has to with the autonomy of learning, that is the self-governance of learning. In online education, you are pretty much learning autonomous meaning you are in control of how and what you learn. You’ll have to take the initiative to read the chapters, study, and do the work. In an on-ground class, the autonomy still exists, however, it is lessened because instructors give students up to 6 hours of force-fed learning through lectures,  assignments and in-class activities. By following the tips regarding daily checkpoints, live/recorded Lectures, discussions, assignments,  assessments, and tutoring outlined in this blog, students may have a better chance a passing an online course, or any course for that matter.

These are my tips for surviving an Independence University online course. Do you have any other tips worth mentioning? If so, comment below would love to hear your tips.

 

Changing Your Schedule

By Dru Macasieb

Originally Written: December 10th, 2016

Updated: February 19, 2019

Any kind of change to your schedule may put students off the track we’ve planned, and it may be challenging to guarantee full-time status,  4.0+ credits per mod, or the maximization of financial aid. The best rule of thumb: Do not fail a class or change your schedule. However, we understand that everyone’s situation is different.  Here are some useful guidelines regarding changing courses, dropping, online courses, and shift changes.

 

Changing Courses

• It is ill-advised that students change their scheduled courses. However, if you need to change a course please speak to the education department, student services, or the registrar. 
• Last Day to change an on-ground course is Day 3 of the first week of the mod (on the approval of the education department).
• Last day to be placed online or switch an online course is Day 2 of the first week (usually Tuesday). 
• Tip: Any schedule changes should be requested via email prior to the start of the mod. The email should include reasons for the requested changes, the more detailed the better. Please send this email to your dean or faculty program advisor, and the registrar, and CC student services so that all are informed.
• Tip: It is always better to request changes via email and physically go to campus to speak to the education department, student services, or the registrar to ensure any scheduled changes are made before the deadline. 

Dropping

• • If a student does not have a class, they will eventually become a drop after 14 days of non-attendance (if a student has no class, no attendance can be given). 
  • If you do not attend the first week of your current course, both online and on-ground, you will be dropped from that course. We do not want students being charged for courses, therefore we will automatically drop students who miss the first week (which is 25% of the course). 
  • If you do not post attendance a for 14 consecutive days (both online and on-ground), you will be dropped from that college. Again, we do not want to charge students who are not participating in the course.
  • If you drop a course during the first week, without posting attendance, on-ground or online, you will not be charged for that course or received a letter grade.
  • If you drop the first week, but attend any portion (on-ground or online), you will be charged (should be pro-rated) and will get a “W” Grade.
  • If you drop after the first week, will receive an automatic letter grade of “F”
  • Tip: After the first week, might as well finish the course and try as best as possible to get a D or better. A letter grade of “D” is passing, which is always better than an “F” grade. However, keep in mind that in order to receive a degree, students must graduate with a GPA of 2.0 or better. 
  • Tip: It is always better to drop at the end of your term, as dropping in the middle of a term may affect financial aid and any benefits associated with enrollment.

Online

• • Online courses at CCSD are provided by a consortium agreement with our affiliated school, Independence University. 
  • To be considered and on-ground student, you must take 51% of your courses on ground. Vice-versa for online students.

• • Students can take an online class only if they are at or above a 2.5 GPA or with special approval from their Associate Dean.

• • If you need to be put online for the mod, the last day to enroll for online classes is Tuesday of the first week (that’s if a class you need is available and there are seats open). No exceptions.

• • If students want to switch to completely online they will be dropped from CCSD and must apply to  Independence University (out sister school).
  • If you have an online class you must take it and pass so that you don’t go off track.
  • The last day to make changes (add or switch) to an online course is the second day of the mod (usually that’s Tuesday). 
  • Tip: How to Survive an Online Class at Independence University

Switching Shifts from Day to Evening or Vice-versa 

• In order to switch from day to evening and vice-versa, fill out a change of status form on or before Day 1 of the mod. Please see the education department, student services or the registrar to fill out a change of status form. 

• Tip: Switching shifts is much easier if the classes needed are available.
• Tip: Before switching shifts, discuss it with your instructor or the education department, especially if the switch is only temporary. They may be able to provide an alternative solution that works better in your situation. 

If you need further details regarding CCSD policies please refer to the college catalog. 

Dropping From School

By Dru Macasieb (March 2, 2017)

It is not recommended to disrupt your academic journey, however, we do understand that sometimes students need to for various reasons. Here is what you need to know before dropping from school.

NOTE: In order to remain an active student at CCSD you must have a class assigned. If you drop your one and only class, you will be may be dropped from the college.

Discuss Dropping with your Associate Dean First

Students should first discuss dropping with their associate dean so that he or she can advise you on possible ways to overcome challenges so that your academic journey does not get disrupted. Another good reason to discuss dropping with your associate dean is so that he or she can advise you on the best way to drop with minimal consequences. 

Consequences of Dropping A Class

Dropping a class is not as simple as it sounds. It comes with consequences.

1. If you have attended any classes, even logging in once, you will be charged.

Because CCSD is an accelerated environment, you will be charged for any portion of class you attend, either online or on-ground. Dropping during the first week, you can still get a “W” grade for withdrawn. It will charge your student account a prorated amount, credit units will be factored in your course completion percentage, however, the “W” grade not be factored in your grade point average calculation.

Dropping after the first week will garner you an automatic grade of “F.”

1. If you have a scholarship, you will lose it. Please read your scholarship documentation.

Scholarships from CCSD have very specific guidelines, one of them being that you complete your academic journey without breaks. Remember, scholarships get factored into your student account after you have finished your program. Kinda off topic, but there is a minimum of 3.0 GPA required for scholarships.

2. CCSD does not offer a “time off” or “leave of absence.”

If you take a “time off” from your academic journey, you will be dropped. When you decide to come back from your “time off” you must reapply to the college (again) and go through the enrollment process as well as the financial aid process (again).  Please note, students are not guaranteed to be accepted upon enrollment, which is why you must reapply for admissions.

3. You may not be able to come back to school right away due to the possibility of classes (that you need) not being available.

When students drop or fail a course it sends them off their scheduled track. We can no longer guarantee graduation date or course availability. However, we do our best to schedule you as effectively as possible. The sooner you finish, the better it is for both parties.

4. Similar to #3 above, if you drop during weeks 3 and 4, you may not be able to return to the mod after next.

Everything goes through a process. When students drop we have to process your drop paperwork. It goes through the associate deans, the registrar’s office, financial aid, and the business office (to name a few). Re-entering also goes through a process. We cannot re-enter a student if the student has not been completely processed through drop side. Because of these lengthy processes, students who drop in weeks 3 or 4 may not be able to re-enter until the mod after the next one (for instance you drop in week 3 in mod 1, you probably not be able to re-enter until mod 3).

5. If you drop, you will not maximize your financial aid (Title IV funding).

We want you to maximize your student loan. When students do not maximize their student loans, it causes them to refund unused amounts. Students end up reaching their borrow limits and have to borrow additional funds from a private lender to compensate for the missing federal funds. I know this may sound confusing, it best to speak with your financial aid adviser on this topic.

6. If you are receiving VA benefits, you may be required to pay them back.

The Veteran Affairs distributes education benefits depending on enrollment factors (i.e. full-time, part-time, on-ground, online etc.). Depending on the nature of your circumstances, the VA may decide to recoup any benefits distributed based on non-attendance or failures aka “F” that the student received because of non-participation.

7. Other charges involved with dropping.

Students that drop must return their laptop, any outstanding books, and any other school property in their possession. Failure to do so in a timely manner will create a charge in their student account.

When you drop there is a $150 admin for processing your drop.

8. Upon the last day of attendance, students will enter student loan repayment after six months for federal loans. 

As a reminder, be sure to speak with financial aid to find out who your student loan servicer is and communicate with them regarding repayment plans. Please note this grace period is for federal loans only, not private loans.

Conclusion

It is best not to drop and work with your instructor and associate dean to overcome obstacles. If you have to no better choice but to drop, you associate dean will provide you with guidance as to how to best approach dropping with minimal consequences.

Professional Development 2019

California College San Diego presents the 2019 professional development workshops that are designed to provide you with the skills and tools necessary to be a successful professional upon graduating from CCSD.  The faculty and staff at California College San Diego encourage continued personal and social growth, and these workshops will aid in your development.  Please join us at for each workshop at the San Diego main campus at 11:00 am in the auditorium.

Location:

San Diego Main Campus
6602 Convoy Court #100
San Diego,  CA 92111

Friday, January 25, 2019	Career Services
Friday,  February 22, 2019	APA format
Friday, March 22, 2019	Social Media/ Networking
Friday, April 19, 2019	Soft Skills/Work Environment
Friday, May 17, 2019	Basic Computer Skills
Friday, June 21, 2019	Microsoft Office
Friday, July 19 , 2019	Self-Reliance/ Attendance
Friday, August 16, 2019	Time Management
Friday, September 13, 2019	Writing Skills
Friday, October 11, 2019	Public Speaking
Friday, November 15, 2019	Professionalism
Friday, December 13, 2019	Conflict Resolution

Upon completion of all 12 workshops, each student will receive a blue cord at the time of graduation as recognition of professional development.

*If you have any questions, please see Student Services*