What to Expect: Strategic Planning and Implementation
Our online courses are designed such that course participants
interact with the instructor, course materials, and each other
within a distance learning system called Desire2Learn. The course is
only accessible through the Desire2Learn web site once a participant
has registered through UWSP and is given a unique username and
password. Participants have weekly assignments that they may
complete at a time that's most convenient for them
("asynchronously"), but the assignments have specific due dates to
facilitate discussion and grading. There is no real-time chat
required and there are no text books to purchase or exams to take.
Past students have provided tremendous
evaluations of these courses. However the learning that occurs in
these courses does come at a cost. The SPI course requires a
sizeable time commitment for success.
We strongly suggest that you plan for at least 5-8 hours per
week to be set aside for the readings, assignments, and the
discussion board. This time
is required for credit or non-credit enrollees.
We have provided the non-credit/workshop option for those who
do not need the credit, not because there is less work involved.
The Graduate level does require an additional assignment.
Participants should possess basic computer and Internet skills,
such as knowing how to navigate the web using hypertext links and
sending and replying to email messages. A UWSP email address will be
created for all enrollees and they will be able to access this email
account through Desire2Learn and UWSP web sites.
In addition to having a computer and at least a 56K modem with
Internet access, our online courses will require that you have:
- Windows 98 or higher (PC) or OS 9 or OS X (MAC)
- Internet Explorer 5.0 and up or Netscape Navigator 4.7 and
up or Mozilla 1.0 and up
- Java Script and Cookies enabled
You may find it helpful to read these
Tips for being a successful online learner.