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Help Desk
Index:
Help Desk | Public Safety Division
| Admissions Office | Counseling
Center | FAQs
To locate a specific word, phrase or section number
enter it here and click the find button. Once you have successfully
found what you wanted, you can click the "Return to Find Routine"
bar that travels at the bottom of each window display to return here. Then
you simply click the find button again and the system will go from the last
"found" to the next occurrence.
Note: Consecutive searches alway begin where it
left off. The search loops from top, or last "found," to bottom and
back again. So, if you want to start at the top, ask for XXX to reset the
beginning location.
Course
Assistance
If you have questions about this course, its contents, assignments,
grading, etc., contact the instructor.
NOTE: If you are not receiving replies to your
messages, it may be that you have set your e-mail service to filter or block
spam (unwanted messages), inadvertantly preventing
all in-coming messages. If this is the case, you must change the setting so
that the Instructor's e-mail messages can be received.
The Help Desk
If you need technical assistance, such as accessing the course web
pages, e-mail, using the search engines, Internet browsers, instructor contact,
etc., there is a help desk available anytime. Click here to send an
email. (Some online instructors do not have an office on campus.)
Public Safety Division
If you have questions about the Public Safety Division, online courses
in general, registration, and college credits or degrees pertaining to
Administration of Justice and Corrections contact the Online Courses
Coordinator, David E. Balch, Ph.D., at dbalch@RioHondo.edu, or by telephone at
562/908-3406, Ext. 4227.
For information on the Fire Services courses and academy, contact Tracy
Rickman at trickman@RioHondo.edu
The home page for the Public Safety Division is at Home page
Admissions Office
If you have questions about admissions, school calendar, enrollment,
dropping a class, college and course fees, transcripts, etc., contact the
Admissions Office at Internet address: http://www.RioHondo.edu/admissions/index.htm
Counseling Center
If you have questions about Rio
Hondo College,
career counseling, educational concerns and matriculation contact the College
Counseling staff at Internet address: http://www.riohondo.edu/students/counseling/
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I register for the course?
The registration form for the Public Safety Division is at http://www.RioHondo.edu../register.htm.
Prior to mailing in the form and fees, send an e-mail message to the course
instructor asking permission to enroll. Some classes quickly meet the
enrollment limit and the mail-in procedure does not
provide any immediate notification, as does contacting the Admissions Office
directly (refer to the following). You can contact the Admissions Office for
instructions to register by telephone, online or in person.
Are there class meetings to attend?
Most of the virtual college courses are strictly online. You will advised if campus meetings are required.
Is there hands-on training available for novice computer users?
An orientation session is usually held on each Friday of the first two months
of the semester in the Computer
Learning Center
at 10:00am. The staff can provide instructions for participating in online
courses, and assist you in setting up a user account if you intend to use a
College computer during the semester.
It is advisable that you contact the help desk (found on this page) to
determine if the session will run as scheduled.
Which Internet browser will I need?
The course pages can be viewed with most browsers. The exams and quizzes are
different matter. Only the latest versions of Microsoft Internet Explorer and
Netscape are recommended. The browser must be set to enable Java and Javascript.
How do I find a free version of Microsoft Internet Explorer?
There are several web sites offering a free download. One site is at: Microsoft Internet Explorer. You need 5.0
or newer. After you download and install MSIE, you should add your personal
e-mail service to the IE settings. You must also enable the use of Javascript.
The instructions are fairly simple, and this does not effect
any other browser settings on your computer.
- Activate MSIE (from
the programs list or the desktop icon).
- Click on the
"tools" option at the top of the page to call a drop-down
menu.
- Click on the
"Internet Options" menu selection.
- Click on the
"programs" tab.
- In the "E_mail" section, click the scroll arrow (at the
right of the section). This will show a list of the e-mail choices.
Select your service and if shown click the "apply" button.
- Click on the
"advanced" option.
- Click the checkbox for
Java enabled.
- Close MSIE and then
restart it. You are now ready for the course work.
How do I find a free version of Netscape.
One site is at: http://get.downloadalot.com/texis/open/downloads?eng=overture.
You need 6.0 or newer. After you download and install Netscape, you should
add your personal e-mail service to the IE settings. You must also enable the
use of Javascript.
The instructions are fairly simple, and this does not effect
any other browser settings on your computer.
- Activate Netscape
(from the programs list or the desktop icon).
- Click on the
"Internet Options" menu selection.
- Click on the
"programs" tab.
- Click on the
"advanced" option.
- Click the checkbox for
Java enabled.
- Close Netscape and
then restart it. You are now ready for the course work.
Where can I find the special readers for Word, PDF files and PowerPoint?
Here are some available sites.
Can I use the College computers for the courses?
Yes, with one caveat: You may not be able to send e-mail messages. If this is
the case, then print a copy of the web page, or quiz, to use as a work copy.
You can then work from a computer which does allow you to e-mail messages. As
a last resort you can hand carry your assignment to the instructor. Read the
next questions about submitting course work.
How do I submit the course assignments?
Unless told otherwise by the course instructor all correspondence is by
e-mail. The instructor's name and e-mail address are on the course desktop
page.
Most instructors prefer a posting every week, some have expanded the time
frame to every seven to ten days, preferably Tuesday thru Saturday. Each
instructor has certain preferences for submitting assignments, and usually
the instructions are located in the course welcome or syllabus page.
Postings via E-mail (The preferred method)
- Draft the answers on
paper before accessing your e-mail service (this will conserve online
time). Always begin the answer with a reference to the questioned issue
or subject. Example:
Question 1. What are Hate Crimes?
Hate crimes are those committed on the basis of...
- Review the answers and
when satisfied type them into the e-mail message.
Do not send the document as an attachment.
- Type in your name, the
course and unit number on the e-mail message subject line.
Example: John Doe, AJ999 Unit 1. The reason being that the e-mail
address is insufficient to distinguish one student from another.
- Send the message to
the instructor's e-mail address.
Further instructions:
- Students are to hand
in assignments, one at a time and await the professor's comments prior
to submitting subsequent assignments. This is important so that the
student may benefit from feedback that can impact on the quality of
future assignments.
- Students are to
check responses for grammar and spelling.
- Students should be
aware that there may be times when assignments and/or responses will
get lost in cyberspace or that servers may be down. Therefore, students
should check with the professor if more than one week goes by without a
response.
Postings via U.S. Mail
(Only if pre-approved by the instructor) If mailing to the College, address
the envelope in this format:
Rio Hondo College
Public Safety Division
Attn: [Instructor's name here]
3600 Workman Mill Road
Whittier CA 90601-1699
Should I save my e-mail messages?
Absolutely. You will be typing many messages for each of the course
assignments. It is possible for a message to be lost in transmission. Saving
the messages (sent and received) will give you a record of the transactions,
and may save you from having to redo your research. Check your e-mail service
manual for the procedures to save messages.
How do I drop the course?
Drop cards are available at the Admissions and Records Office. It is your
responsibility to submit the drop request. Note: There is a
"deadline to drop" date for the semester. If you submit the drop on
or before this date you may receive a refund of some college fees. Waiting
until after this date, or if administratively dropped by the instructor, may
preclude any refunds. The "deadline to drop" and the "deadline
for refunds" are posted at the Admissions Office
site.
What if I cannot locate a suitable proctor for the final examination?
If none of the persons indicated in the course syllabus page are available,
remember that the course instructor or any other faculty or college staff
member can act as proctor--if available, and time and place are convenient.
How do I challenge a course?
Challenging a course is no longer available.
How do I contact the Instructor?
The first attempt should be by e-mail. The introductory message by the
instructor may contain a telephone number or other means to contact them. If
this is not feasible, then contact the help desk staff and ask that
your message be forwarded to the instructor.
The 'back' option on my Internet Browser does not seem to work. The
display never changes, why?
If the "back" or "return" as it is sometimes referred to
does not work, then try the following: Move the mouse pointer to any place on
the display and click the "right side" button on the mouse. A small
window should appear and on it at the top will be the word "back."
Left click on that word. This should close the current display and return to
the previous one. Once this works, the Internet browser back button should be
functioning properly again--why, I don't know, it just does most of the time.
What if I cannot locate (or access) the course pages?
The reasons are many for this type of problem. They usually fall under one of
these conditions:
- The Internet address
entered is incorrect. This is common due to keystroke errors. The best
way to handle this is to refer to the instructor's initial message
which included the correct address. You can also contact the help
desk, or the instructor. Once you have the address you should
"benchmark" the address in the "favorites"
listing--a utility found in most Internet browsers.
- The Internet address has
been changed. Hopefully, this information will be conveyed to you. If
you suspect this is the cause, contact the instructor or the help
desk staff.
- The College may have
shutdown the computer for maintenance. In this case, the only option is
to wait a few hours and try again. Repeated failures should be reported
to the help desk staff.
- Your Internet connection
may have malfunctioned. If you use a modem, check to see if you have a
dial tone. If yes, try again. If not, restart your computer which may
re-initialize your settings. If you have an Internet service (DSL or
Cable) it may be that the service is off line. The easiest first check
is to see if you can access any other Internet site. If not, then
contact your Internet provider.
- Your firewall
(Internet program) may be set to prevent access to the college site or
your e-mail provider. You will need to refer to the manual, or call
that vendor's support service for instructions.
What if I cannot complete the course?
If the time is before the deadline to drop, then it is best to submit a drop
card to the Admissions Office. If the time is after the deadline, then you
will have to accept whatever grade earned to that point. Note: If the
grade is an F, you have one year to retake the course and hopefully improve
the grade. After one year the grade is permanent.
Can I request an "Incomplete" grade?
Incompletes can be issued at the instructor's discretion. Generally the
answer is no. The important issue is if the student has made a
diligent effort, and if the grades earned for work submitted were a C
or above.
If an incomplete is granted, you have one year to restart the course. If you
do not restart the course, the incomplete defaults to
whatever grade was specified by the instructor.
Is attendance recorded and can I work at my own pace?
Roll is not called the same as in a campus class for the simple reason that
students can "attend" class at any time day or night. Roll is taken
by checking the progress of each student to ensure that they are keeping pace
with the rest of the class, and that assignments are posted within the
required time period. The concern is that students who fall behind in the
course work will not complete all of the assignments by the end of the
semester or will rush through each assignment, resulting in fewer grade
points and a lower grade. An attendant goal is to promote self discipline and
improved work ethic on the part of the student.
The instructors will be tolerant of late postings as long as it doesn't
become excessive. However if a late posting pattern continues from the
beginning of the semester to the week of the "last date to drop,"
the student will be encouraged to improve. Some students may be asked to
voluntarily drop. Students who continue the pattern of not submitting
postings on a timely basis may be administratively dropped.
Can I apply credits from the police academy or other colleges towards my
degree here at Rio Hondo?
This question is best handled by the Online Courses Coordinator (see Public
Safety Division on this page).
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