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Extended Education & Instructional Design
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What Continuing Education opportunities does PRCC offer?
Currently, the Office of Extended Education & Instructional Design does not offer any Continuing Education opportunities. Contact Gwen Smith at 601-403-1315 in the PRCC district Tech Prep office for possible professional development opportunities.
The Office of Extended Education & Instructional Design transcripts CEUs when a local school district or other approved organization requests approval to host a CEU professional development session. For more information on this process review the Continuing Education website or contact Lettia Sanders at lsanders@prcc.edu or 601-403-1374.
It is very important that the established procedure be followed in order to host a CEU course. 1- At least two weeks prior to the date of the course, request approval by completing the CEU Host Request form. 2- Upon approval of the course, use the provided CEU Transcript Request form to gather the information from each course participant. 3 - Submit the required informaiton at the completion of the course. For more information, review the Continuing Education website.
For each hour of the course, a participant is awarded .1 CEUs. A ten hour course would be worth 1 CEU credit.
Distance Education (Online Classes)
Pearl River Community College offers online classes through the Mississippi Virtual College (MSVCC). The MSVCC is a consortium of the 15 community colleges in the state of Mississippi. A student enrolled in an online class is expected to complete his or her work by using the Course Management Software Blackboard.
Online students are required to drive to either the Poplarville campus or the Forrest County Center at least twice (but no more than three times) for each online class to take proctored exams. Other visits to the campus may be recommended but are not required. These would be occasions such as advisement and orientation.
A proctored exam is test a student takes in the presence of a specific College employee at the designated testing sites. To take a proctored exam, the student must 1- contact the testing site to schedule an appointment and 2- show a picture ID prior to taking the exam. More information about test proctoring.
You should be familiar with the operating system of your computer and Microsoft Office. You should also be familiar with the basics of email and manuevering through the Internet. Prior to taking your first online class, you will be required to take the READI assessment. This assessment will give you a very good understanding of the skills needed to take an online class.
YES! It is very important that you have a computer of your own to take online classes. Do not rely on computers in a lab or library. These should only be used as backup if your computer breaks or there is a power outage.
Your computer should be equipped with at least the following:
- An IBN-compatible PC witha Pentium Processor and Windows 95, 98, 2000, XP, NT or a MAcintosh with Mac 7.5 or above
- 64 MB of RAM
- 100 MB of free HD space
- A CD-ROM with sound card
- a 3.5" High Density floppy disk drive
- a 28.8 kbs modem
- An Internt connection through an Internet service provide (ISP)
- A current version of Netscape (4.7X or later) or Internet Explorer (5.0 or later)
- AOL's broswer is incompatible with many of the Blackboard functions; therefore, the use of AOL's browser is not recommended for taking online course
To register for an online class, review the steps in Enrolling in an Online Course.
There are several reasons your online class would have been rejected. Here are a few of those reasons. Contact an advisor at 601-403-1250 for further assistance.
- You have never completed an application for PRCC. You must first be admitted to the College before you can take any classes. PRCC Application
- You do not have an ACT score that is high enough to allow you to take certain classes. You must either take remedial classes or receive an override from an advisor.
- There are pre-requisites you have not met for this course. For example, many BOT classes require you to take a level one before you can take a level two. See an advisor for assistance.
To verify your online classes, you will need to login to your Student Profile. In the upper right corner, it will either read "Verified" or "Non-Verified." After using the self-registration process, you have reserved the classes. At this point, the classes are "Non-Verified." The Office of Extended Education & Instructional Design has to officially enter your classes into PRCC's Banner and the state Enrollment Tool. If you do not have holds or restrictions on your PRCC account, then your classes will be entered and your profile will immediately read "Verified." If you have holds or restrictions (such as ACT or class pre-requisites), then you should expect to receive an email stating that you were not registered for the class(es). At this point, it is your responsibility to determine why you were denied the class(es). You are encouraged to not delay as classes have a tendency to fill and close.
To change your online class schedule, complete the Schedule Change Form. The form is automatically submitted to the Office of Extended Education & Instructional Design. **Be aware that each schedule change form submitted results in a $13 schedule change fee applied to your account.
The process for withdrawing from online classes depends on when you wish you withdraw.
- If you are planning to withdraw from a class before the beginning of a semester, complete the Schedule Change Form.
- If you are withdrawing after the semester has begun, then complete the Withdrawal Form. You are allowed to complete this form until the 75% point in the semester. This date is posted both in the PRCC Blackboard and on the Distance Learning website each semester.
- If you are attempting to withdraw from class after the 75% date, you will need to contact your instructor and ask permission to withdraw. At that point, it is up to the instructor to notify the Office of Extended Education & Instructional Design as to whether you are being granted a "W" or an "F" for the course.
The Student Profile is a list of the courses for which you registered for any particular semester. After completing the self-registration for online classes, your student profile will read Non-Verified which means you have reserved your seat in the classes, but you are not officially registered until the Office of Extended Education & Instructional Design reviews your classes. After reviewing the courses you requested, the courses will either be Verified or rejected (See Why was my online class rejected?) To confirm your registration, access your Student Profile. As stated in the Self Registration instructions, your course requests have been accepted when your profile status is "Verified."
There are several links throughout the PRCC Distance Learning website. Your Student Profile can be accessed at http://sbcjcweb.sbcjc.cc.ms.us/msvccvisitor/studentlogin.asp.
If you plan to use your financial aid to purchase your textbooks, then you will need to visit the PRCC Bookstore in person. The Poplarville Bookstore can be reached at 601-403-1370. The Forrest County Center Bookstore can be reached at 601-554-5501. You will need to take your Student Profile with you to the Bookstore.
You may also contact MBS Direct at http://www.mbsDirect.net or 1-800-325-3252. Identify yourself as a PRCC student and purchase your textbooks using your credit card information. Using the information on your Student Profile, you may also purchase your book from a place like Amazon.com.
To login to the PRCC Blackboard, go to this website: http://pearlrivercc.blackboard.com. On this website, left click on Login.
Your username is the first part of your PRCC email address. For example, if your email address is john.smith.4@student.prcc.edu, then your username for Blackboard is john.smith.4 only.
Your password is the six-digit PIN that you use to access the Wildcat Web and your student email. If you do not know your six-digit PIN, refer to these instructions.
Your Blackboard username is the first part of your PRCC email address. For example, if your email address is john.smith.4@student.prcc.edu, then your username for Blackboard is john.smith.4 only.
Your password is the six-digit PIN that you use to access the Wildcat Web and your student email.
If you do not know your six-digit PIN, you have a few options.
- If this is the first time you have tried to login to the Wildcat Web, then it is very likely that your PIN is your date of birth. For example, if you were born March 5, 1987, then your PIN is 030587.
- If you are a person who was a student at PRCC several years ago, you may need to contact Information Technology at 601-403-1219.
- If you have logged into Wildcat Web and do not remember your PIN, before contacting Information Technology, use the "Forgot PIN" feature to see if you have saved a hint to help you remember your PIN.
You can log into Blackboard within 24 hours after you register for courses and the courses have been verified in Wildcat Web by office personnel.
Even though you are able to login to Blackboard, your courses will not appear untl the first day of classes.
To contact your online instructor, look at the information in your course. The instructor information will be in the course syllabus and is often located in a separate link in the course called "Instructor Information." Unless your instructor has told you to call, it always best to try to contact the instructor through email first. All PRCC online instructors are in our Instrutor Listing.
The term dual enrollment can mean several things depending on the circumstances. Dual Enrollment can mean:
- a student enrolled at more than one college
- a student enrolled in academic as well as career/technical courses
- a high school student enrolled in college courses
For purposes of the Office of Extended Education & Instructional Design, dual enrollment references high school studnets. A high school student is dually enrolled if he or she takes day classes, night clases, weekend classes, online classes, or college classes taught by a high school instructor during the school day at the student's high school.
A high school student is eligible for dual enrollment at Pearl River Community College if the student has:
- Completed a minimum of 14 core high school units (exception: any student who has earned a minimum of 30 on the ACT and has the required GPA and recommendation as described below can participate even if 14 core credits have not been earned)
- Earned a 3.0 grade point average on a 4.0 scale, or better, on all high school courses, as documented on an official high school transcript
- Obtained an unconditional written recommendation from their high school principal and/or guidance counselor
- Scored the appropriate sub-test scores on the English, Reading, and Mathematics subtests of the ACT test: English (16 or above), Reading (16 or above), and Mathematics(18 or above
- Complete the Request for Dual Enrollment and submit this form to the PRCC Office of Extended Education and Instructional Design. It is very important that you submit the information regarding the instructor for the course. If that individual has never taught for PRCC, then his or her transcript will have to be approved before the course is approved.
- After the request has been approved, complete and submit the Articulation Agreement.
- Each student must submit a PRCC application, a Transcript & Grade Request form, a Student/Parent Dual Enrollment Agreement form, and submit an official high school transcript.
- A letter of reference for each student must be written by the high school principal or high school counselor.
- The student (or school if it chooses) is responsible for the cost of the textbook for the course. Textbook prices vary from course to course and from semester to semster. Please contact the Office of Extended Education and Instructional Design at 601-403-1374 to determine the current textbook cost. You may also email Lettia Sanders at lsanders@prcc.edu to request a textbook price.
Each of these items for each student must be submitted to the Office of Extended Education and Instructional Design.
- PRCC Application
- Transcript & Grade Request form
- Student/Parent Dual Enrollment Agreement form
- Letter of Reference from either school principal or school counselor
Students taking regular day, night, weekend, or online classes pay regular tuition for each class. Students taking a college class course taught by a high school instructor during the school day at the student's high school pay $25 per class plus the cost of the textbook. Textbook costs are subject to change. For current textbook prices, contact the Office of Extended Education & Instructional Design and ask for dual enrollment textbook prices.
Regular day classes, night classes, weekend classes, and online classes are taught by an instructor employed by the College. Dual Enrollment classes taught at the high school are taught by an instructor who is employed by the local K-12 district. This instructor must be qualified according to the SACS requirements to which PRCC adheres.
Once approved to teach a course, the instructor is the primary contact with the College. From time to time a principal or a counselor may assist in the initial establishment of the course, but the instructor is the person who completes the audit and submits grades.
- Review the End-of-Semester Instructor Responsibities for Dual-Enrollment Courses.
- Instruct the course following the objectives in the provided College syllabus.
- Submit mid-term grades in Wildcat Web.
- Complete the online audit in Wildcat Web.
- Submit final grades in Wildcat Web.
Instructors unsure of the process for accessing Wildcat Web can contact the Office of Extended Education and Instructional Design at 601-403-1374 or email Lettia Sanders at lsanders@prcc.edu.
The URL for the PRCC Blackboard is http://pearlrivercc.blackboard.com.
Username is the first part of the PRCC email address. For example, if the email is john.smith.4@student.prcc.edu, then the username is john.smith.4.
Password is the six-digit PIN used to access Wildcat Web.
Wildcat Web is the database system used by PRCC. All student data is maintained in this database. Students can login to Wildcat Web to register for classes, view grades, and review financial aid information.
To acess Wildcat Web, go to http://www.prcc.edu and select Wildcat Web. The URL directly to Wildcat Web is http://pr6.prcc.edu:8020/pls/prcc/twbkwbis.P_GenMenu?name=homepage.
Access Wildcat Web by visiting http://www.prcc.edu and selecting Wildcat Web. The URL directly to Wildcat Web is http://pr6.prcc.edu:8020/pls/prcc/twbkwbis.P_GenMenu?name=homepage.
On the login screen, use the following information to login to Wildcat Web.
Username is the new PRCC Student ID. If you do not know your Student ID, follow the My Unique PRCC ID Number directions.
PIN- The first login will be the user's date of birth. For example, if the user's date of birth is March 10, 1985, then the PIN will be 031085. After the initial login, follow the directions presented on the screen.
PRCC Student email addresses use the following format: student's first name.student' last name.student's day of birth. For example, student John Smith with a date of birth of March 10, 1985 would have an email address of john.smith.10@student.prcc.edu.
If more than one John Smith shares the number 10, as his date of birth, then the computer automatically ups the number.
To precisely determine your unique email address, login to Wildcat Web, select Personnel Information, and View Email Address.
The URL to access PRCC student email is http://student.prcc.edu. At this site, enter your PRCC student email address and your password.
Password for PRCC student email is the six-digit PIN used to access Wildcat Web.
Since the password for all three systems is the same, users are only allowed to chage the password in one location - Wildcat Web. Access Wildcat Web and change the PIN.
IT IS VERY IMPORTANT THAT YOU ALLOW 24 HOURS FOR THIS CHANGE TO FILTER THROUGH WILDCAT WEB AND INTO PRCC STUDENT EMAIL AND BLACKBOARD. DO NOT CONTINUE CHANGING THE PIN UNTIL YOU HAVE WAITING THE 24 HOUR PERIOD FOR THE CHANGE TO FILTER THROUGH THE OTHER SYSTEMS.
Each instructor is free to select the tools he or she uses to supplement instruction. If you are accustomed to instructors using technology or would like to see technology used as a supplemental tool in classes, then encourage your instructors to approach the Office of Extended Education & Instructional Design about instructional technology options.
Any Internet accesible computer can access Blackboard. At all locations, students are encouraged to visit the campus library. However, do NOT depend on any campus computer for access to Blackboard.
© 2007 by
Office of Extended
Education
Pearl River CommunityCollege
101 Highway 11 North, PO Box 5675, Poplarville, Mississippi 39470
http://pr10.prcc.edu/~mlbyrd/extendededucation/
distancelearning@prcc.edu
phone: 601-403-1374 fax: 601-403-1009