Lesson 1: Introduction and Orientation


Attention

This first lesson is really like using a compass…you are getting your bearings in this Online class, finding out where things are, and getting the lay of the land!

It is vital that you read all the documents that have been provided in this course to get a feel for all the complexity of this Online class. And, I said "complexity", not "complex". It is not difficult to get around, there is just a lot here so you need to spend some time getting to know it. Sort of like exploring a city instead of a small town!

In each of these Lesson Plans you will see this same organization of material...an "Attention Getter" like this one...then a listing of the Learning Outcomes (what I expect you will be able to do when we are done with this lesson plan), the Teaching material for you to review, and finally the Assessment activities that are going to allow you to demonstrate that you got the Learning Outcomes.


Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this lesson's material, students will be able to:

  • Identify the goals and outcomes of the Mental Health Seminar Course
  • Demonstrate proficiency in KVCC supported technologies (Blackboard {Bb}, Email, KV Portal, etc.)

Teaching

The Mental Health Seminar

This course has been developed in order to provide all students with a basic introduction to the field of Mental Health, the Mental Health programs at KVCC, and to ensure that each of you understand what you are getting into, what you can expect, and what is expected of you.

As you can see in the Syllabus for the course, the content is divided into 7 Lessons. These Lessons are as follows:

Lesson 1: Introduction and Orientation
Lesson 2: Is the Mental Health field the right career for me?
Lesson 3: Is KVCC's Mental Health Program the right path for me?
Lesson 4: How to be a Successful College Student
Lesson 5: Boundaries, Self-care, and Professionalism
Lesson 6: Working in Groups
Lesson 7: Making Connections and Planning your Career

As you can see, the scope of this course is very specific to the field of Mental Health and is geared to help you have a positive experience in the program.

Learning the Blackboard Interface

Blackboard is the name of the software we use to deliver this course material to you. It is in a category of software known as Learning Management Systems (or LMS). You will be using this system for nearly every class that you take at KVCC. Some classes use it simply to give you access to documents from class (syllabus, handouts, slide shows, etc.) while others (like this class) use it to provide all the material of the course including ways to submit your work Online.

For the sake of this class we use THREE tools.

  • Quizzes (or tests)
  • Discussions
  • Messages

Quizzes

Quizzes (or tests) are exactly what they say they are, a way for your teachers to ask you questions. Some questions are multiple choice, some may be True/False, and other require that you write out your answers (essays/short answers). There are also all kinds of other types of questions that your teacher can put into a quiz, but these will be the ones you are most likely to encounter in the Mental Health program.

Watch this brief video on how to complete quizzes in Blackboard.

 

Discussions

Discussions are like "message boards" where you can post comments and read others' comments and reply to them. Usually graded discussions include a "prompt" or "instructions" and require you to post ONE comment in response to the prompt and to reply to at least two other students' posts. This is our way to replace the conversations that would occur in a face-to-face classroom. Your response to the weekly question (or questions) needs to show that you read the material provided for the week and have thought about it. Also, your replies to your classmates needs to be a thoughful response. Just saying: "Yes, I agree with you." or "That was an interesting point you made." will not be enough to get you full points for your posts. The discussion boards in this class (and in most Mental Health classes) begin on Mondays and you have until the following Sunday to post. You are encouraged to post early in the week and then go back later in the week to read your classmates comments. When everyone waits until Sunday afternoon to post it is hard to have time to read through them all and make thoughtful comments. Please post early. Each discussion does have a due date and you are expected to post you main post as well as your two responses to peers by the due date. You can find the due dates listed in the Course Navigator on the class' home page in Blackboard and also under the My Grades tab in Blackboard.

Here is a short video on how to post messages in a discussion board.

 

Messages

Finally, there is the Messages tool. If you are familiar with email you can use this tool. This is an "email" tool that is just for this class. You can only send messages to other members of this class, including your classmates and your instructor, using this tool. Please note that in order to see these messages your instructor and your classmates need to check this tool. This tool does not also send the email to your instructor's KVCC email. If you need an answer quickly it could benefit you to send an email to both the classroom messages email and the instructor's KVCC email. For all of the Mental Health classes, the Program Coordinator, Dr. Wendy St. Pierre is listed as one of the instructors. This does not mean she teaches all of the classes, it just means she has access to the classes to assist the instructors and students when questions and when issues arise. The best way to reach her is through her KVCC email: wstpierre@kvcc.me.edu.


Assessment

In this section you will find descriptions of your graded Assessments and Quizzes & Graded Online Discussions.

Lesson 1 Quiz

Please answer all of the questions in this quiz. They relate to the Lesson and any links within the Lesson.

Lesson 1 Assignment

Part 1) Send your instructor a message using the Messages tool.  Write something in subject line and include friendly comment in body of text. Place your name at bottom of message.

Part 2) Send your instructor an email using their regular KVCC email. The message should include the following components: Subject line reads MHT101 Lesson 1 Assignment; email starts with Dear <name of instructor>: ; text includes a message to your instructor that you have accessed your KV Portal on the KVCC website (you would have learned about these tools during your SOAR event); text can include any other questions you have for your instructor; write your name at bottom of email.

This is a pass/fail assignment. Once you send the two email messages your instructor will award you a 100 (50 pts. for each) for this assignment and most likely reply to your messages.

Lesson 1 Discussion

For full credit in the graded discussions you need to post at least ONE response to the prompt in the Lesson and reply to at least TWO other students' posts. Your reply posts must be substantive. Please see the grading rubric in the Syllabus for this course for more details. To start a post you go into the discussions tab on left, click on the question of the week then you "create a thread". This will open a window where you can write your post.

These instructions apply to all the graded discussions in this course and will not be repeated.

In this discussion I would like you to introduce yourself to your classmates. Discuss your interest in the field of Mental Health and post any questions you may have about this class, the program, or the field.

Discuss any barriers you experienced with the technology tasks listed above. Solve those problems this week if possible!