The 2017 Summer Session for MCB 150 will officially begin on Monday, June 12, and unofficially begin with some get-to-know-each-other activites on Monday, June 5. In the meantime, this is where we will post some general information about the course that students have asked about. We hope you’re looking forward to the course as much as we are! “See” you soon.
A more thorough description of our required texts, and your options for obtaining them, has been posted on a new page. You can either click on the link on the home page navigation bar, or click here to access that information.
Much of the administrative information for the course has been posted on a separate page called Syllabus for Summer 2017, available in the navigation bar immediately beneath the image of Foellinger Auditorium.
Each week, there will be a required Discussion section worth a maximum of 10 points. Discussion will be held on Friday, and students are free to choose from either the 12:30–2:30 PM time period or an identical session from 3:00–5:00, US Central Time. It is not necessary to attend both of these sections, and extra points cannot be earned by attending both.
Discussions are held in a virtual classroom with chat functionality and a community white board, using browser-based software called Blackboard Collaborate. Information on accessing this site and testing your technical requirements is available within our LON-CAPA course site. Your instructor will be using a web cam and microphone, so he will be seen and heard, and students are welcome to do the same, but not required to do so. Minimally, the technical requirements are a reliable high-speed Internet connection, Java with appropriate permissions and security settings, web browser, and speakers.
Both Discussion sessions each week will be recorded, and the recordings will be made available automatically after the sessions end for students who wish to review the sessions, want to see what was discussed in the “other” session, or missed both sessions that day for some reason.
There are two midterms and a final exam in the online version of MCB 150. Exam I will cover weeks 1-3, and be held on Monday, July 3 from 5:00–7:00 PM US Central Time. Exam II will cover weeks 4-6, and be held on Monday, July 24 from 5:00–7:00 PM US Central Time. The Final Exam will be approximately 50% on the last week and a half, and approximately 50% on the first 6 weeks, and be held on the campus Final Exam date of Friday, August 4. The time of the final exam will most likely be 5:00–7:00 PM US Central Time as well, but if the entire class can agree on an alternate time, the time (not the date) of the Final Exam is negotiable.
Exams in MCB 150 Online can be taken one of two ways:
If you choose ProctorU, you are able to take your exam from anywhere in the world, provided you have the following technical requirements:
These technical requirements allow the ProctorU representative to monitor you and your work environment during your exam. We have used this service the last three years, and it is convenient and reliable. The cost varies from year to year, but is generally less than $20 per exam.
Please note that the times provided for the exams are Champaign time. We will all be taking exams simultaneously. If a student is taking the exam in another time zone, the student is responsible for making the adjustments. Depending on location, this could mean early morning or late night exams.
Students are welcome to change their exam delivery choice for each exam. For example, a student who uses ProctorU for Exam I is welcome to take Exam II in person, and so forth.