Eligibility
New Online Student Orientation to Blackboard
Blackboard
The Digital Dropbox
Due Dates
Technology Comptetency Requirements
Technology Requirements
Technical Problems
Valdosta Technical College Online Lab
Instructor/Student Interaction

Eligibility
As required by the Technical College System of Georgia, all credit courses, whether face-to-face or in online format, must cover prescribed competencies and objectives. Online courses have the same requirements as face-to-face classes. TCSG’s course requirements for credit courses can be found at http://www.dtae.org.

As a result of the TCSG requirements for credit courses, a student must meet pre-requisite course requirements and be properly admitted to Valdosta Technical College in order to take online courses.

New Online Student Orientation to Blackboard
Valdosta Tech uses Blackboard 6.1 for online courses. Blackboard is the software platform used for student-instructor communication. It is highly recommended that online students attend an orientation session on Blackboard.

This orientation is not the same as the VTC New Student Orientation. This orientation does not replace the VTC New Student Orientation.

If you are new to Blackboard, choose one of the Blackboard orientation sessions shown on the Notice to Online Students for the upcoming quarter. This notice can be found at http://www.valdostatech.edu/online/schedule.asp. Click on the link for the quarter’s schedule that you would like to view. This orientation lasts about 1 ½ hours.

If you have any questions, please call at 229.245.2462 or email at

Blackboard
Blackboard is a web platform that is used for student and instructor communication. This is a program that is created for distance courses. The address for the Blackboard site for GVTC and Valdosta Technical College students is http://gvtc6.blackboard.com.

After you have enrolled in a course, you will receive a user name and password for your course from your instructor. Each instructor customizes his/her course to meet the objectives of the class and enhance the learning environment for a particular course. As a result, although the basics of Blackboard are the same, each course will vary in appearance.

For more information on navigating in Blackboard, to see a sample of the Blackboard environment, and to get more information on Valdosta Tech Online, go to http://gvtc6.blackboard.com and use the following to log in:

• Username: VTC
• Password: pw

The Digital Dropbox
The digital dropbox in Blackboard is used to pass assignments between instructors and students. Complete instructions for the digital dropbox can be found by going to http://gvtc6.blackboard.com and logging in as follows:

• Username: VTC
• Password: pw

Brief instructions follow:

1. Enter your course.
2. Select the Student Tools navigation button.
3. Select the Digital Drop Box link.
4. Select the Send File button.
5. In the File dialog box, you must insert the name of the file to be submitted (including the path name).
   1. The easiest way to do this is to use the Browse button.
      1. When using Browse, select the drive and subdirectory where your file is located (example, A: or C:).
      2. Then, click on the name of the file to submit (the file name will be transferred to the File name dialog box.
      3. Click the Open button. (At this point, you will see your file name including the path in the File dialog box.
6. You may add a note to your instructor by keying in the Comments dialog box (this step is not mandatory).
7. Click the Submit button. You should get a Blackboard receipt of this action. Click Ok.
8. You will see that your file has been submitted.

Due Dates
Instructors will post due dates and deadlines for homework assignments, exams and quizzes. You must meet these due dates. Your instructors may not accept late work or may deduct points for late work.

Technical Problems
Technical problems with your computer or your connection are not relevant. If you have problems with the computer/connection that you had planned to use, please find an alternate method for completing your work.

Valdosta Technical College Online Lab
Valdosta Technical College resources are available to online students. VTC Online students may use computers in the Valdosta Technical College Library, which is located on the Main Campus in Building 300.

In addition, there is an open computer lab for online students. It is held in Room 334, 12 noon to 1 pm, Monday through Friday, and in Room 334, 3 pm to 5:30 pm, Monday through Thursday, during the quarter.

For more information on the open lab, please contact the VTC Online office at 229.245.2462.

Instructor/Student Interaction
Good electronic communication is a must for online courses. Your online instructor is very interested in you and your success. However, your online instructor can best be reached through an e-mail. Does this fit your best learning style and communication patterns?

Communication with your instructor in this environment is seldom face-to-face or even by telephone. If your learning style requires one-on-one attention, guided supervision, and constant reinforcement, online classes may not be your best choice. Depending on your strengths, you might choose online classes in some areas and choose face-to-face classes for other, more challenging subject areas.

You must be very specific when you email an instructor. Include your course identification and your name in the subject line. Explain the problem you are having very clearly and concisely.

This is an example of what not to do: "I am having problems with the class.". It would be better stated this way: "I have tried to submit an exam and I keep getting the message that it was not sent." Be very specific without being wordy.