DL Course Pre-Registration Information
Pre-registration information (an online course syllabus and course notes) are key components to providing students with important information about a distance learning course. This information assists DL students in preparing to take a DL course and also informs them of all the requirements that are needed before a course starts. It helps them make informed decisions about DL courses and academic programs.
Such information allows students to make informed decisions on whether to register for a Distance Learning course. Informing students of course requirements and course information during pre-registration helps to reduce the risk of student withdrawal from a course.
Not only is it important to have an online syllabus and to provide detailed course notes, but it is also strongly recommended to add a student resource link to your DL course syllabus. A student resource link is available at:
http://dl.austincc.edu/students/.
Other information on what to include in an online DL course syllabus and course notes are included below to assist and support ACC DL instructors in the development and implementation of their DL courses.
Distance Learning Course Syllabus Introduction
One of the first things an instructor should do before creating a DL course syllabus is check with his or her department for the Master Syllabus for the overall design and structure for the course.
The course syllabus constitutes a contract between the instructor and the student. It should be clear and concise, and provide all necessary information for students to maximize their time and efforts and complete the course successfully.
For DL courses, the syllabus is especially important since faculty contact with students is not as frequent as a face to face course. DL course syllabi must include not only the standard ACC syllabus components, but also appropriate information to help DL students navigate the college "at a distance." In order to make course information readily available to all students, DL faculty are expected to post their course syllabi online, and make the link accessible via the course notes.
In accordance with ACC guidelines, a course syllabus must be available publicly, not only for ACC students but also for prospective students. Having a syllabus available online also provides important course information to various accrediting agencies.
ACC Syllabus Guidelines
The ACC Syllabus Information website provides information about syllabus components and guidelines for both Master (departmental) and Class Syllabi, including a design guide to help faculty and departments develop syllabi, and a checklist to insure that all syllabi meet ACC standards.
The Master Syllabus allows instructional departments to describe those elements common to all courses of the same name and number. Any department-specific policies will also be explicated here so that instructors and governing bodies can see them. The instructor may adapt the Class Syllabus within the parameters set by the discipline. As much latitude as possible is given to instructors in developing the content of their syllabus;, however, the college asks faculty to ensure that class syllabi include, at a minimum, the standard component areas.
Faculty will be required to complete and submit the Syllabus Review Checklist 
along with two copies of the syllabus to the Department Chair as part of the Faculty Evaluation Portfolio Process. After review, the form and one copy of the syllabus will be forwarded to the Dean.
Per college guidelines, an ACC course syllabus should contain the following information:
- Heading
- How to reach instructor
- Faculty contact information: instructor's name, ACC email address, ACC telephone numbers, on-campus and online office hours, campus location and/or mailing address
- Course description (Master Course Syllabus)
- Course name and number, section and synonym number
- SCANS Competencies (Master Course Syllabus)
- Course description and prerequisites
- Required Texts/Materials
- Detailed information about textbooks (including ISBN numbers) and other materials students will be required to purchase
- Instructional Methodologies (Master Course Syllabus)
- Course Rationale (common course objectives and outcomes) (Part of the Master Course Syllabus)
- Grading system (Master Course Syllabus)
- Grading policies, grade scale
- Calendar showing due dates for assignments and exams, and detailed instructions about how to submit assignments (If requiring students to submit assignments to your campus mailbox, specify how and where the papers should be turned in, including your campus location information.)
- Class-specific testing requirements; Academic Testing Center policies; Distance Testing procedures
- Course/Class Policies (Master Course Syllabus)
- Information about ACC course policies such as attendance and withdrawals
- Class Outline/Calendar (Master Course Syllabus)
- Course format: study units, reading/viewing assignments, special projects, etc.
- Testing Center Policy (Master Course Syllabus)
Except for number 1, 2, and 5 above, all of the items are part of the ACC Master Syllabus. The heading, how to reach an instructor as well as the required texts and materials are specific to a particular DL course.
Distance Learning Course Syllabus Components
In addition to ACC's academic course syllabus components, there are Distance Learning syllabus components as well. The intention of DL syllabus components is to provide students with information they will need to successfully complete an online or DL course.
Additional DL Course Syllabus components are:
- DL Academic Components. The requirements the student needs in order to successfully take and complete the DL course.
- Course Prerequisites. Courses that need to be completed before a student can register for the course in question.
- Department Contact Information.
- Department Chair name, phone number, and email address
- Other departmental contact information, such as support staff who can answer student questions about a course or a program.
- Technology Expectations. The level of technology proficiency the student is expected to have in order to successfully complete the course.
- Information about technical requirements or additional hardware/software needed for the course and technical support, if available
- Instructions for accessing Blackboard, if applicable
- Request for Student Contact Information. Statement that the instructor will need a student phone number and email address to contact students, as well as a note that the email address will be / could be shared with the entire class for student interaction and student work groups.
- Student Readiness. Prerequisite (TSI) skills, Reading/Writing/Math, etc.
- Orientation Information. If the orientation is online, the URL for the orientation needs to be provided along with access instructions. If the orientation is live or synchronous, then the location along with the date and time needs to be specified.
- DL Course Orientation policy; course-specific orientation procedures
- Instructor Expectations. Includes academic and technical expectations which the instructor believes are important in order for the student to successfully complete the course. These can include some of the following:
- Expectation of Confidential Information. The instructor must inform students their rights to privacy and about ACC's Policies regarding confidential information
- Netiquette expectations. By communicating what an instructor expects in terms of such things as create an environment of mutual respect and trust.
- Communication and Interaction Expectations.
- Faculty-student and student-student communication expectations; information about how interactions will be conducted (e.g.; discussion boards, chats, instant messaging, voice conferencing, other types of synchronous or asynchronous communication)
- Expected response times (e.g.; emails answered within 24 hours); timeline for when students can expect feedback or grades from assignments and tests
- ACC College and DL Support Services Links. This link will be available to DL instructors to post in the syllabus as well as in Bb. The page resides on the DL website and contains all the support links and reference information that students need to successfully complete a DL course.
For more information on ACC's syllabus components, see:
- http://irt.austincc.edu/ids/SyllabusACC/msIntro.html . Master Course Syllabus
- http://irt.austincc.edu/ids/SyllabusACC/csIntro.html. Class Syllabus Introduction
- http://irt.austincc.edu/ids/SyllabusACC/csComponents.html. Class Syllabus Components
- http://irt.austincc.edu/ids/SyllabusACC/Checklist.pdf. Instructor/Class Syllabus Review Checklist.
After you have developed your course syllabus, the next step is to design your Course Notes.