Welcome, and about this class ...

Hey, the first formal communication to students in GEOG 413/513 in Fall 2009.

Many of you responded to my previous email a couple of weeks ago--that was to make sure you had information about the textbook we will use for this course. 

A few things first:

• About me: I am starting my eighth year here at WOU.  Prior to this I was at CSU-Bakersfield.  More about my education and work background here.
• My last name is pronounced like the letter "K"--as simple as that.  The "Sri" in the first name is like the "Sri" in the country, Sri Lanka.  And "Ram" is pronounced as if there are two "a"s--as if it is written as "Raam"
  Feel free to address me by my first name.  If you prefer the last name, that is ok, too.
• You don't have to go to any place for this course--everything will come to you as emails.  This course will NOT be in the Moodle environment. There are a few issues I have with Moodle and other course management systems and, hence, I avoid them :-)  Further, because we are more used to regularly checking our emails, I am convinced that this is a better system than requiring students to go to a new cyber-place.
  And, because all the class-related emails will have the [GEOG 413-online] prefix in the subject line, we can easily keep track of them.
• The syllabus and other course-related information is at: http://www.wou.edu/~khes/geog413online/
  Please click over to that site after reading this email and make sure you have read through the requirements for this class.
• We have to make adjustments to be successful in the online teaching and learning environment.  I am hoping I am getting better at this, and thus far I do not have significant negative feedback for me to worry :-)  And, I am constantly on the lookout for discussions related to online teaching.  Towards the end of this term, I will ask you for your feedback too.
  On your part, spend some time understanding how to be the best online student you can be.
• In the online mode, it is way easier to fall behind.  Easier than it is in the regular classroom.  The parallel I can think of is how I fail to keep up with my "going to the gym" schedule, because there is no enforcer.  And then it shows :-)  So, develop your own routines, and stick to that as much as you can.
  

Will connect with you again tomorrow.  Email me with tour questions or comments.  Remember that you can always email the entire class with one single email address: geog418@wou.edu

Once again, a big welcome to you.  I look forward to a fantastic fall term with you folks.