How is this "Hybrid" course structured?
At CGCC, our "traditional" 16-week classes meet in person twice per week (75 minutes for each class session). While the structure of hybrid classes varies, THIS class is a "50/50" hybrid - we will meet once per week (75 minutes), and then the other half of the course will take place online. This mixed format is intended to offer you, the student, additional flexibility in your schedule. It is important to be aware that this course will cover the same materials and content as a traditional course, so you should plan to spend just as much time – although with more time at your own discretion – as you would on a regular face-to-face course.
- The MOST successful students in my classes have good time management skills, so they can handle the online work on their own time.
- The LEAST successful students are those who aren't as good at structuring their time outside the classroom; they let the online component of the course slip, attempting the online work just before the deadline, or missing deadlines altogether.
What will we be doing in the online portion of the class?
The primary work done online consists of weekly "Video Homework" - students watch videos that I have assigned, take notes on them, then answering review questions to master the basic content (you can see the video content that we will be using on http://youtube.com/mjmfoodie). Because we will be conducting discussions and collaborative work in person, there are no discussion boards or group projects in the online portion of the course.
What will we be doing during our in-person sessions?
Each week when we meet, you will have already completed your Video Homework, so you will have the basics of that week's concepts. During our in-person sessions, I will have students working together on short concept-application assignments (these vary, but can be articles, graphing activities, in-class experiments, etc.). The only days when we will not be engaging in collaborative application of the concepts are scheduled Quiz days.
Will I be spending a lot of time on this class?
We will, of course, have our 75-minute in-person session each week, and you can expect watching the videos and taking notes to replace "traditional" lecture - minimally, you can expect the 75 minutes that we are NOT meeting in person, PLUS additional time to go back through the video content to be sure your notes are complete, and time to complete the review questions. All told, you will probably be spending a few hours each week in the Canvas course site.
The primary work done online consists of weekly "Video Homework" - students watch videos that I have assigned, take notes on them, then answering review questions to master the basic content (you can see the video content that we will be using on http://youtube.com/mjmfoodie). Because we will be conducting discussions and collaborative work in person, there are no discussion boards or group projects in the online portion of the course.
What will we be doing during our in-person sessions?
Each week when we meet, you will have already completed your Video Homework, so you will have the basics of that week's concepts. During our in-person sessions, I will have students working together on short concept-application assignments (these vary, but can be articles, graphing activities, in-class experiments, etc.). The only days when we will not be engaging in collaborative application of the concepts are scheduled Quiz days.
Will I be spending a lot of time on this class?
We will, of course, have our 75-minute in-person session each week, and you can expect watching the videos and taking notes to replace "traditional" lecture - minimally, you can expect the 75 minutes that we are NOT meeting in person, PLUS additional time to go back through the video content to be sure your notes are complete, and time to complete the review questions. All told, you will probably be spending a few hours each week in the Canvas course site.
GradingYour grade for the semester is determined by:
500 points at the end of the semester. |
Will I need to go to the Testing Center?
Students in this course will not be required to go to the Testing Center for any scheduled quiz or exam. On rare occasions, a student may make arrangements for a make-up exam that can be taken in the Testing Center, but I typically encourage students to complete make-ups by coming to my office, so that I am available to answer any questions that may arise, or by attending an alternate class section to take the quiz with another class.
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Do I have to buy the textbook new?
THE TEXTBOOK FOR THIS CLASS IS FREE! If you own an iPad, iPhone, or a Mac with OS Mavericks or newer (older operating systems will not support iBooks), I have created iBooks that will be available to you at no charge during the first week of class. On the first day of class, I will provide instructions on how to access FREE iBooks that contain the video lecture content for the course, along with slideshows, interactive images, and additional practice questions.
If you do not have an Apple device to access the iBooks, don’t worry; all of the same video content is available to you as a free web-based eBook if you go to http://mjmfoodie.atavist.com. The course material is divided into 7 sections, and there is a book for each section (so, for example, the text for Section#1 of the course will be found at https://mjmfoodie.atavist.com/macroeconomics-section1).
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Some students may want to purchase a used principles textbook, but this is not required.
If you are a student who is more comfortable with a physical textbook when studying, feel free to find an inexpensive copy of just about any macroeconomic principles textbook. There are many other principles texts that you may like which can be found on http://cheapesttextbooks.com, and are quite inexpensive. An outside textbook can be a good supplement for the course because it will provide another perspective and another way of explaining the concepts we are covering.
If you are a student who is more comfortable with a physical textbook when studying, feel free to find an inexpensive copy of just about any macroeconomic principles textbook. There are many other principles texts that you may like which can be found on http://cheapesttextbooks.com, and are quite inexpensive. An outside textbook can be a good supplement for the course because it will provide another perspective and another way of explaining the concepts we are covering.