These FAQs address questions and concerns about online courses in general and WOST J111 particularly. 

This course is a humanistic perspective of the images, roles and contributions of women in historical, literary, religious, social, political, philosophical, and artistic contexts, including contemporary issues.  The mission of the Women's Studies program in teaching is to help students learn to think critically, to communicate effectively orally and in writing, to solve problems, and to interpret human experience.  Specifically we will study the societal effects of gender on our lives and in our communities in order to better understand the expectations that our culture has for women and men--what does it mean to be a woman? a man? 

WOST J111 is a web based course; such courses may meet in part or totally online, in discussion 
forums or chat rooms. This course has only one face-to-face meeting at the beginning of the semester, with the remainder of our work completed online. For the most part, the course is asynchronous, which means you can log in to the class to do your work at whatever time is convenient for you.  You will, however, have weekly deadlines, and work must be submitted regularly.  You may not save up your assignments to complete in the last weeks or days of the semester. 

Indeed, WOST J111 is not an independent study course, but instead a course with a regular schedule of due dates and with regular interaction with other members of the class and with your instructor.  To participate fully in the course, you will have to make some schedule accommodations that will allow you to meet online with your instructor for conferences and with your classmates for group projects.  In most cases, however, you can complete your work for any given week on your own schedule.  While thinking about your work schedule for this semester, you should plan to spend the same amount of time "in class" and out of class that you would in a traditional class--about three hours each week online interacting with classmates and reading course materials, and about nine outside of class preparing assignments, reading, and researching.  To succeed in this course, then, it is most important that you keep up with all deadlines on discussions, daily reading and writing assignments, and major projects. 

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If this class meets online, how and when do I attend?

Students will use any email system, an internet browser, and a word processor.  Your computer chair at home, or work, or the library, is your desk in this classroom.  And class is anytime, and no time in particular. 

When you're ready to work, you'll log into the class web site, where you'll find announcements and assignments that will give you instructions on what you need to do, and a date and time by which the assignments need to be completed. We'll be using Blackboard CourseInfo, which offers an easy interface for the student and faculty member to communicate and exchange papers and assignments.

To complete assignments, you will submit papers through Blackboard and participate in online discussions. You may post a response to a question, and then check back a few days later to see what response has been added since then. These kind of asynchronous discussions--a discussion which takes place over time--are an ideal way of building a classroom community and allowing students a truly participatory learning environment, while still providing flexibility for students with families or full work schedules.

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What computer capabilities do I need to take this course?  Do I need to know a lot about technical stuff?

All the USC campuses provide computer access to students that will enable you to take this class using the labs. To work from your home or office, at a minimum, you will need a computer with Windows 3.1 or higher, a java-enabled Internet browser, a modem, and an ISP (Internet Service Provider); often you can get Internet service through your local phone company.  For more information on your technical needs, see System Requirements. 

Essentially, though, the course makes use of the most basic computer applications--email, the internet, and a word processing program--and once you've got the hang of it, you'll find it simple. 

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The class only has 10 students enrolled, but the registration pages say it's full.  Can I get an override?

WOST J111 actually has six sections, and you're looking at just one, the USC Columbia section.  The other five sections have slots allotted to students on the USC regional campuses--actually the target audience for this class, since most of these campuses aren't able to offer women's studies courses regularly.  In addition, because this course requires a great deal of interaction between the students and professor--you're not just taking a test three times a semester and watching lectures on VHS--enrollment is limited.

While I do want to meet the needs of Columbia students, I can accommodate only a limited number of those students and still offer the course on the regional campuses.  If you're interested but the course is full, email me with your request, but be aware that I will only open any empty seats to Columbia students in the week just prior to start of classes.  At that time, if I have any openings, I will contact those students about the open seats.

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