Course Expectations
Textbook:
Required:
Travis, E.L., (1989). Primer of Medical Radiobiology (2nd ed.). Chicago: Mosby-Year Book. [ISBN 978-0-8151-8837-7]
Additional Resources (utilize as needed to supplement textbook and modules)
American Psychological Association (2011). Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. [IBSN13: 978-1-4338-0561-5]
Statkiewicz-Sherer, M.A., Visonti, P.J., Ritenour, E.R. (1998). Radiation Protection in Medical Radiography (3rd ed.). St. Louis Mosby.
Seeram, E., (1997). Radiation Protection . Philadelphia Lippincott.
Bushong, S.C. (1993). Radiologic Science for Technologists (7th ed.). St. Louis Mosby.
Teaching Strategies:
Independent reading assignments, Blackboard open book module quizzes, Annotated Bibliography, Discussion Board participation, and Blackboard CLOSED book Final Exam are used in this course
Communication with Instructor:
Contact information for the instructor is listed at the beginning of this syllabus. Email is the preferred mode of communication. Students must use their standardized MSU Student email for correspondence about this course.
Faculty members will not be responsible for keeping up with other email addresses for students. If you have not established this account, do so as soon as possible by going to: http://infosys.mwsu.edu/email.asp
The instructor will respond or at least acknowledge email messages from students within a maximum of five (5) business days when MSU is in session. Beyond standard university holidays and breaks, the instructor will notify students of any extended periods of time when email contact is not practical (professional meetings, etc)
When there is a need to contact students, the instructor will use the students’ “students.mwsu.edu” email account. The instructor is not responsible for sending emails to any other email account.
Submission Format Policy
CLASS ACTIVITIES AND ASSIGNMENTS
Students can proceed through the course content at their own pace within the boundaries set by the Course Schedule and the MSU Academic Calendar. See the Course Schedule for specific information about activities and due dates. Late work is not accepted and a zero (0) will be recorded after the due date. Assignments turned in are considered completed assignments and will be graded accordingly.
Unit Quizzes (30%)
When a student has reviewed a module and is ready for the quiz, he or she will log on to Blackboard and receive a customized timed module quiz consisting of randomized multiple choice questions. See the course schedule for the open and close dates for the quizzes.
Quiz scores will be available immediately after a student submits his or her quiz for grading.
All quizzes are open the day that classes begin, so you can work ahead. Quizzes must be completed and submitted by the completion date as indicated on the course schedule. Quizzes not completed by the indicated due dates will be graded as zero (0). Students should contact the instructor in extenuating circumstances; such cases will be dealt with on an individual basis.
If students have technical difficulties during a quiz, they should use the “Help” link at the top toolbar in Blackboard, contact the MSU Information Systems Support Staff, and send an email to the course instructor explaining what happened.
If a student finds a faulty quiz test item or believes that a quiz question has been scored incorrectly, he or she should send an email to
the course instructor that includes the following:
Module Quiz Number (I –VI)
Answer the Student Thinks Should be Correct
Rationale Supporting Why the Student’s Answer is Correct
Page numbers must be included when referencing the textbook in a rationale
After reviewing the case, if the course instructor thinks a revision is justified, the student’s quiz score will be revised to reflect the additional points and the test bank will be updated. It may take several weeks for the student to receive a response because the instructor works on batches of questions for a particular quiz at a time.
Annotated Bibliography (20%)
An annotated bibliography is a list of citations to books, articles, and documents. Each citation is followed by a brief (usually about 150 words) descriptive and evaluative paragraph, the annotation. The purpose of the annotation is to inform the reader of the relevance, accuracy, and quality of the sources cited. Creating an annotated bibliography calls for the application of a variety of intellectual skills: concise exposition, succinct analysis, and informed library research.
First, locate and record citations to 5 articles in peer-reviewed journals that contain information that is relevant to this course (Ionizing radiation, biological effects, dose control, etc.). Cite the book, article, or document using the APA style. The paper should include a concise annotation that summarizes the central theme and scope of the article. You must also discuss one of the following for each annotation (choose one):
a. evaluate the authority or background of the author
b. comment on the intended audience
c. compare or contrast this work with another you have cited,
d. explain how this work illuminates your bibliography topic.
The assignment is due on the date in the course calendar found at the end of the syllabus.
See the Assignments link in the Course Tools for more complete instructions (including format and examples) for this assignment
Note: All assignments received are considered complete and will be graded as such. Late assignment passed the due date in the Course Schedule will not be accepted and a grade of “0” will be recorded.Early submissions are appreciated; however, they will not be returned until the end of the semester after all reports have been graded.
Discussion Board Participation (10%)
A discussion board is established for the course. Students should visit the board at least once a week during the semester. Regular and continuous participation in this type of classroom discussion accounts for 10% of the course grade and students should designate a time each week to participate in this class activity. Fulfilling the requirements at the end of the semester does NOT constitute regular and continuous participation. Any student who chooses to participate in this manner will not receive full credit for this activity.
Each student must post one (1) discussion-type question* on the forum for class discussion during the semester. Each student must respond to at least ten (10) posted questions. The student posting the question will serve as the resource for the discussion by their classmates. Questions and responses must be completed by the dates published in the course calendar. No late postings will be used in calculating your grade.
The discussion board is designed to encourage interaction between course students. Have fun with this activity but take it seriously because it does contribute to your course grade. Please make sure questions are course related when posting them. Remember that posting a question will account for a significant portion of the course participation grade. This portion of the course grade will be based upon two things: posting a question & replying to any questions/comments from classmates; and responding to questions posted by classmates.
*What is a "discussion-type question"? A discussion-type question is one that does not necessarily have a right or wrong answer, unlike a "factual question". If I ask what the sum of 2 + 2 is, we know that (hopefully) that the answer is 4 -- That is a "fact" & there is no room for discussion. There is a right answer & an unlimited number of wrong answers.
Blackboard Closed Book Final Exam – (40%)
The final examination is a proctored, "closed book", comprehensive examination of multiple-choice format. The final exam is a timed, 2 hour (120 minute) test. Students must complete the final (and all course work) by the dates published in the course schedule.All final examinations will be administered during the designated date(s) and time(s) listed in the calendar and/or syllabus. There will be NO alteration of any type to this schedule.
Extenuating circumstances may be discussed and an alternative arrangement may be made at the discretion of the instructor.
Note: Any decision by the instructor is final and there will be no further changes made.
Please schedule the time for the final with your proctor when completing the required Proctor Application form and returning the application by the due date in the course schedule. You are encouraged to try accessing the course from the proctor's computer prior to showing up for your Final so that access issues (such as pop-up blockers & firewall) can be remedied prior to your scheduled test time.
The unit objectives, study guides, and examinations can be utilized to review for the final.
Typically acceptable proctor sites and candidates include:
College or University Testing Centers
http://www.ncta-testing.org/cctc/find.php
Officials at military base education offices
Commercial testing services such as Sylvan, Thomson-Prometric, or Pearson VUE Testing Centers are NOT accepted as testing centers.
The exam site must have reliable Internet connections and should have at least two Internet browsers available (Netscape Navigator and Microsoft Explorer). Sites with extensive firewalls and high security mechanisms may not work for testing. Please test to be sure you can connect to Blackboard before committing to a proctor site. High speed connections are more desirable than traditional phone line connections. The site must support an independent phone line in addition to the computer connection so that calls can be made while the student is connected online. The proctor must have moderate computer expertise including the ability and authorization to reboot the remote computer. The student is responsible for any fees proctors charge for their services.
Even if someone has served as a proctor in previous courses, he or she will not be accepted as a proctor for this course if he or she does not meet these criteria. Proctor emails will only be sent to commercial or educational email addresses. Proctor approval is at the discretion of the course instructor.
The proctor form is available in .pdf format from Blackboard. The proctor forms for this course have been redesigned so please use the appropriate proctor forms. Students should review the form and get the proctor information ahead of time. Students should then open the Adobe PDF file and type the required information in the boxes on the forms. Students should print the forms and have the proctor sign the forms. The students should then fax the forms to the course instructor (Fax Number 940-397-4845).
Each student can set his/her exam appointment anytime between 9am and 9pm. It is better to take the exam during normal working hours to be sure that MSU Technical Support will be available. The course instructor will provide the examination password to the proctor by email.
The instructor may be available by phone and email during the exam time in case there are technical difficulties with the electronic version of the exam. If there are any problems during the exam, the proctor should call the course instructor (Toll Free 866-575-4305, Direct 940-397-4083, Cell 940-249-0100) If the instructor is not available, contact MSU Technical Support through MSU Blackboard, and send an email to the instructor explaining what happened. The exam may have to be rescheduled.
Note: You may not submit a paper for a grade in this class that already has been (or will be) submitted for a grade in another course, unless you obtain the explicit written permission of me and the other instructor involved in advance.