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Support
Students in Using WebTycho |
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Here are some resources that may help you help your students use the classroom assignment feature most effectively, both in preparation for beginning assignments and in trouble-shooting problems. |
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Seeing what the student sees in the assignment areaFaculty members can see and use a student view of a WebTycho classroom (specifically the assignment menu) by going into WEBT101: While in a WebTycho classroom, simply select Options/Orientation (http://tychousa.umuc.edu/wtdocs/html/orientations.html) |
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Assignment Help from WebTycho Support ServicesHelp and Support Site links that
help students with the assignment areas: WebTycho Support Services:
Students having technical difficulties with the assignment feature
may always contact WebTycho Support Services, 24/7, by calling 800-807-4862,
via email at webtychosupport@umuc.edu,
or via the |
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Formatting optionsIn the assignment area, students have the options to type or paste plain text or HTML or, using the Text Formatting Editor (TFE), to format plain text they've typed or pasted. OR they can attach documents such as Word, Excel, or HTML files. Using the TFE is usually the best option for submitting nicely formatted assignments without worrying about transmitting viruses or knowing HTML code. Program-type attachments can only be read with compatible software types and version numbers. You should specify in advance what format types and versions you will accept for attached documents. And since almost all attachment types other than HTML can carry computer viruses, please remind students to use up-to-date virus protection software before up loading program-type attachments. See information about virus protection at http://tychousa.umuc.edu/wtdocs/html/virus.html. |
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Troubleshooting problems students may experience in the assignment areaSubmission problems: Students sometimes inadvertently neglect to submit an assignment once they've completed it. If they "Saved" (as Draft), they can continue to edit and the teacher cannot see the document. Once they "Submit" (for Grading),they can no longer edit the document and the teacher CAN see it. If a student thinks s/he has submitted but you don't see the assignment, ask the student to take a look at his/her own Assignments Folder: in the Status column, there are four choices: Saved, Unread, Read, and Graded. If the status is "Saved," s/he has not yet submitted the assignment to you. S/he will have to return to the assignment in Edit mode (by clicking on its title) in order to see the Submit button that allows submission for grading.
Timeout problems: New students in particular may need to be warned about staying too long in any given text area without saving. This is especially pertinent for those who compose right in the text box (typing plain text or using the text formatting editor). If they compose for a long time or leave the composition on-screen while they are away from their computers, they may end up getting timed out and lose work. WebTycho has a 60-minute timeout, but some ISPs (AOL and others) may have as little as a 20-minute timeout at some times of day. After Saving as Draft, students can reenter a document in Edit mode to continue composing. The best way to avoid timeout problems is to compose text offline and open the assignment document only to paste or attach the document composed offline. Formatting problems: If pasting anything but HTML code into the assignment text box, only the most basic paragraph formatting will be retained. Students MAY opt to use the WebTycho Text Formatting Editor (TFE) to format plain text they have pasted into the text box. The only way to copy and paste into the TFE box is to use the keyboard functions: Ctrl - c to copy and Ctrl - v to paste (Ctrl - x to cut).
If students choose to save their
offline documents as HTML and then paste the HTML code into the
WebTycho text box, they must remember to select HTML as the text
box input type, and be sure to copy only the parts of the HTML
document between but not including the opening <BODY> and
the closing </BODY> tags. Otherwise the student and/or you
as the teacher may lose the Edit functions in that assignment. If
this happens, contact WebTycho Support Services. In general,
to avoid these kinds of problems, it is preferable for students
to upload the HTML document as an attachment rather than copy
and paste the code into the assignment text area. If students are frustrated by the appearance of question marks in place of apostrophes, quotation marks, or other characters in pasted assignments, see our Faculty FAQ at http://info.umuc.edu/de/ezine/faqs/formatfaq_questionmarks.htm or http://tychousa.umuc.edu/wtdocs/html/smart_quotes.html Attachment problems: The attachment process takes several steps; some students, especially those who have slow computers, may have difficulties completing the attachment process successfully. When they click the "Add Attachments" button in the Assignment window, a 3-step attachment instruction window opens. After Browsing to find the file (step 1) and then clicking the Attach File button (step 2), students must wait until the name of the attached file shows up in the bottom part of the attachment instruction box before clicking "Done" (step 3). If the file name does not appear before they click "Done," the file will NOT attach when they click "Submit for Grading." If a student thus submits the assignment form without the attachment, s/he will have to open a new assignment form in order to attach the document. When the teacher sees that a new assignment successfully includes the attachment, s/he can delete the student's first attempt. (The student cannot delete an assignment once it has been submitted.) The WebTycho Help and Support site includes a tutorial on attaching files, as shown in the WebTycho Help list above. |
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button
options in the WebTycho classroom. The support technicians can walk
a student through the process and check immediately to see if it
is successful. 
