Q: What is distance education?

According to the Glossary of HLC Terminology , the term “distance education” refers to “education that uses one or more […] technologies […] to deliver instruction to students who are separated from the instructor[s] and to support regular and substantive interaction between the students and the instructor[s], either synchronously or asynchronously.” This can happen in a few different types of courses, such as online , hybrid , live remote and flex courses. These types of courses are designed to offer added flexibility to help you make progress towards your degree in a way that best fits your learning style and schedule. At Mountwest, we define our course modalities as follows: Face-to-face : Courses meet in designated locations at specific days and times. Live remote : Courses meet virtually during scheduled times using video conferencing tools. Online : All course activity is completed online utilizing Blackboard. Courses do not meet face-to-face or at specific times. Hybrid : Courses meet face-to-face and use Blackboard for online instruction. Flex : Students choose face-to-face or live remote options to attend class, except when in-person activities are required.

Q: How to I access my distance education course(s)?

All online and hybrid courses at Mountwest are delivered through Blackboard. To access your courses in Blackboard, login to myMCTC , click on Online Learning , and then click Login to Blackboard . Once in Blackboard, click on your course within the My Courses module in the center of your screen. To navigate within your course, you will need to use the course menu on the left side of the screen to click between content areas. If you are experiencing difficulties finding the course menu, refer to the troubleshooting information for how to navigate your course . For live remote and flex courses, your instructor will provide you with a link to the video conferencing software via your Mountwest email and/or by posting the link within that course in Blackboard. Current students who need assistance logging into myMCTC or their Mountwest email should contact the IT HelpDesk .

Question 1

What is distance education?

Accepted Answer

According to the Glossary of HLC Terminology, the term “distance education” refers to “education that uses one or more […] technologies […] to deliver instruction to students who are separated from the instructor[s] and to support regular and substantive interaction between the students and the instructor[s], either synchronously or asynchronously.”

This can happen in a few different types of courses, such as online, hybrid, live remote and flex courses. These types of courses are designed to offer added flexibility to help you make progress towards your degree in a way that best fits your learning style and schedule.

At Mountwest, we define our course modalities as follows:

Face-to-face: Courses meet in designated locations at specific days and times.
Live remote: Courses meet virtually during scheduled times using video conferencing tools.
Online: All course activity is completed online utilizing Blackboard. Courses do not meet face-to-face or at specific times.
Hybrid: Courses meet face-to-face and use Blackboard for online instruction.
Flex: Students choose face-to-face or live remote options to attend class, except when in-person activities are required.

Question 2

How do distance education courses compare to face-to-face courses?

Accepted Answer

Distance education courses have the same curriculum, course description, learning outcomes, and credit hours as a traditional, face-to-face version of the course. As a result, students are expected to spend a similar amount of time on the instruction and coursework.

The main difference is that the instructional materials and assignments are created to fit the virtual environment for added flexibility. For instance, (1) instructors may record videos for you to watch before completing assignments based on that material; (2) class discussions may take place through a discussion board rather than face-to-face in a classroom setting; and (3) assignments may be submitted through Blackboard rather than being turned in during class.

Question 3

Should I take online, hybrid, live remote, or flex classes? Are they right for me?

Accepted Answer

The answer to this question will vary from person-to-person. If you are looking for additional flexibility in your schedule, then distance education courses might be right for you.

Consider exploring one of our distance education courses if:

You are self-motivated, self-disciplined, and typically work ahead to complete assignments ahead of time — i.e., have good time-management skills.
You have easy access to a computer with reliable, high-speed internet.
You are comfortable with technology and are familiar with word processing, web browsers, and other basic computer applications. (If you are not familiar with the technology, consider taking IT 101 as a traditional, face-to-face course first before signing up for a distance education course.)
You are comfortable with following written instructions and are comfortable reaching out to the instructor when you have questions and/or need clarification for assignments.
You have strong written communication skills.
Your personal schedule allows for extra time to spend online to complete coursework and/or attend class meetings virtually.

Taking courses fully online isn’t for everyone. If you are not sure whether online courses are right for you, you may want to start by taking either (1) a hybrid course where some of the course is online and some of the course is in-person in a classroom, (2) a live remote class where you virtually attend the class at specified days and times each week with your instructor and complete the assignments online, or (3) a flex course where you choose how often you are attending class virtually or in-person.

Refer to How do distance education courses work? (below) for more information about whether these courses might be right for you.

Question 4

How do distance education courses work?

Accepted Answer

All courses, even face-to-face courses, have some form of instruction to help you learn the material as well as assignments to determine your understanding of that material. With distance education courses, the instruction and assignments are created to specifically fit the virtual environment. How this happens depends on the type of distance education course you take.

Online courses: Instead of attending lectures on campus, online students attend a “virtual” classroom. Using the internet and our learning management system, Blackboard, you can read course materials and participate in the class on your own time. When you login to class, you will be able to read course materials, watch lectures, and/or participate in discussions. You’ll also be able to submit assignments, email the instructor, and take exams through Blackboard. Learning activities may include writing papers, posting responses to online discussions, completing individual or group projects, and taking quizzes. While students can choose when and where they work, there are usually deadlines for homework and exams. Online classes are not self-paced, and all work can be completed off-campus — anywhere with a reliable internet connection. There are no on-campus requirements for fully online courses.

Hybrid courses: Hybrid courses blend face-to-face learning with online learning. Instead of attending all class meetings on campus, students in hybrid courses attend some classes in-person (on campus) and “attend” some classes online, similar to an online course. (See description above.) How much of the course is in-person versus online is specified by a percentage for that specific class, and this percentage may differ between hybrid courses. For instance, if the hybrid class is specified to be 50% online, then students would meet half of the time in-person for class meetings on campus — as determined by the course schedule — while completing the remaining half of the course online as they would in a fully online course. Hybrid courses are not self-paced, and they have some on-campus requirements.

Live remote courses: Students in live remote classes will experience and participate in a live, virtual classroom through a video-conferencing software, such as Zoom or Teams. Class meetings will be held “virtually” at specified days and times. To join the class, you will simply click on the link provided by your instructor. You may be required to turn on your webcam and/or microphone to participate in class discussions, so classmates can see and hear you as they would in a traditional face-to-face class. “In-class” learning activities may include group work in “breakout rooms” and participating in polls to facilitate discussions and/or gauge prior knowledge. Homework and other class assignments will be completed outside of this class time. Live remote courses are not self-paced, and even though they have no on-campus requirements, they do have synchronous requirements where you are required to login and participate at specific days and times.

Flex courses: Students in flex courses will have the option to attend class virtually (using video conferencing software) or attend in-person, except when in-person activities are required by the instructor. These course are not self-paced, and each student’s decision regarding whether to attend virtually or in-person will determine their experience for any given class:

If they choose to attend virtually, they will experience a live remote class (as described above) where some of their classmates may be attending in-person.
If students choose to attend in-person, they will experience a face-to-face class where some of their classmates may be attending virtually.

Question 5

Are there benefits or advantages to taking distance education courses?

Accepted Answer

Absolutely! Distance education courses allows for added flexibility so you can complete your degree when it fits into your schedule without always needing to traveling to campus for classes at specific days and times.

Instructional materials are also posted and made available in Blackboard, which may not happen for face-to-face classes. If the instructional materials include videos, you can watch and re-watch videos as often as needed. You can even pause these videos while taking notes any time the material is being explained too quickly.

Question 6

How to I access my distance education course(s)?

Accepted Answer

All online and hybrid courses at Mountwest are delivered through Blackboard. To access your courses in Blackboard, login to myMCTC, click on Online Learning, and then click Login to Blackboard. Once in Blackboard, click on your course within the My Courses module in the center of your screen.

To navigate within your course, you will need to use the course menu on the left side of the screen to click between content areas. If you are experiencing difficulties finding the course menu, refer to the troubleshooting information for how to navigate your course.

For live remote and flex courses, your instructor will provide you with a link to the video conferencing software via your Mountwest email and/or by posting the link within that course in Blackboard.

Current students who need assistance logging into myMCTC or their Mountwest email should contact the IT HelpDesk.

Question 7

I found my course(s), but I am getting a "404" error. How do I access my coursework?

Accepted Answer

This error is a result of using Edge to access Blackboard rather than using one of the recommended browsers. To fix this error, you can either (1) switch browsers to Firefox or Chrome, or (2) adjust the download settings within Edge.

I have created a short video explaining these options to fix the “404: File or directory not found” error. To view it, click on the link for fixing this error and then login using your MCTC email credentials.

If you have any difficulties, please contact the Director of Distance Education.

Question 8

How often should I login to my online, hybrid, live remote, and/or flex courses?

Accepted Answer

This depends on the course and the instructor. To start, you should login to Blackboard on the first day of class to access your online, hybrid, live remote, and/or flex class(es), view the syllabus, and complete any assignments due during the first week.

During the first week, carefully read the information available within Blackboard and check the class syllabus to determine how often your instructor expects you to login and work on the coursework. In most classes, students should expect to login once per day or several times per week to check for class announcements and make progress in the course.

Question 9

Is attendance recorded for distance education courses?

Accepted Answer

Yes! Attendance is recorded for all classes at Mountwest and submitted to Financial Aid. Since students are not physically present for distance education classes, attendance is determined differently than in a traditional, face-to-face class.

Below is a summary of how attendance may be taken for each of the distance education courses. Always check with your instructor and refer to the instructor’s attendance policy in their syllabus for details.

Online courses: Since there are no class meetings, attendance is based on completing the assigned coursework each week to make satisfactory progress in the class.
Hybrid courses: Attendance for these courses is taken in-person for the face-to-face class meetings and taken based on progress in the coursework for the online portion of the class.
Live remote: Attendance for these courses is taken based on being present and participating in the virtual class sessions using the video conferencing software.
Flex: Attendance will be taken based on how a student chooses to attend that specific class. If they attend virtually, attendance will be taken similar to live remote clases (as described above). If students attend in-person, then attendance will be taken similar to a traditional, face-to-face course.

Each instructor will specify in the syllabus how they will record attendance for that course, which will work in tandem with the College-Wide Attendance Policy. Instructors may record attendance using a variety of methods, including but not limited to: assignments completed by specific deadlines, participation in discussion boards, completed modules or exams, etc.

Caution! Simply logging into Blackboard or the video conferencing software is not sufficient for being counted as present in these courses. Your participation must be regular and substantive in order to be marked as attending these classes.

Since attendance is submitted to Financial Aid, not “attending” class — as outlined in the instructor’s attendance policy within the syllabus — may have Financial Aid implications.

Question 10

Is tutoring available for distance education courses?

Accepted Answer

Yes! Academic support — including tutoring, writing help, and library services — is available free of charge to all of our students.

These services are available in-person as well as remotely. For more information, including hours of operation, visit the Tutoring Center, Writing Center, and Library Services webpages.

For help outside of these operating hours, Brainfuse offers 24/7 live, online tutoring. This service is free and is linked within your Blackboard course(s). Simply login to Blackboard, click into one of your courses, click on the Resources, Support, & Policies content area in the course menu, and click the Brainfuse HelpNow link. Then enter the desired topic and subject area from their drop-down menus. You will then be connected to a live tutor!

For additional resources and learning tips to help you be successful in your distance education course(s), refer to the Learning Tips and Support & Resources tabs.

Question 11

What are the requirements for taking a distance education course? Do I need a computer?

Accepted Answer

Anyone who has been accepted to the college may take these courses. Depending on availability of courses, you can choose to either take all distance education courses or take them in combination with on-campus courses. Even if you live outside of Huntington or outside of the state, you may take distance education courses.

Once you determine that distance education courses are right for you, you can discuss this with your advisor and enroll. There are no requirements for enrolling in a distance education course other than having frequent access to a computer — with a webcam and microphone for live remote and flex courses — and a reliable internet connection.

You are not required to own a computer, but it is strongly recommended.

If you need access to a computer and/or a reliable internet connection, open computer work stations are located in the Library/Resource Center and by checking the open computer lab schedule each semester. Many public libraries have public computers, but their use may be limited to short periods of time.

If you need a laptop to complete your coursework, Mountwest has a laptop lending program. All laptops come equipped with a webcam and microphone, which are needed for live remote and flex courses.

For more information about this program, contact your advisor or the IT HelpDesk.

Question 12

What should I do if I am taking distance education courses and there is a power or internet outage?

Accepted Answer

If the power or internet outage was caused by a storm, the first priority is safety. If it is not safe, never travel to find power or internet to complete your coursework!

When you are able to contact your instructor (safely), let them know about your outage and how long the outage may last. Ask if your instructor can postpone due dates and/or give you an extension due to the outage.

Any power or internet outage may impact multiple students in the class, and possibly the instructor as well. If this is the case, the instructor may postpone due dates or give extensions to the entire class.

Question 13

How do I find distance education course offerings?

Accepted Answer

Our distance education courses are listed on our website (mctc.edu). Click on Our Courses in the upper right, select the desired term (semester), and click Submit. You can then select the desired subject(s), and you can further search by Campus, Session, and/or Attribute Type if desired. Then click Class Search.

The course list that appears will specify whether it is an online, hybrid, live remote, flex, or face-to-face course directly below the name of the course.

You can also reach out to one of our advisors for assistance.

Question 14

Can I take both face-to-face and distance education courses?

Accepted Answer

Absolutely! Many Mountwest students take a mixture of online, hybrid, live remote, flex and face-to-face classes depending on availability of classes and their schedules. Discuss your options with your advisor to see what works best for you!

Question 15

If I have questions, how long will it take for my instructors to reply?

Accepted Answer

The answer to this depends on the type of class you are taking and when you ask your question.

If you are taking a hybrid, live remote, or flex class, you can ask your instructor during a class session to get an immediate answer.
If you are taking an online class or if you email your instructor outside of scheduled class meetings, the general guideline is 24-48 hours, but many faculty respond sooner than this.

Note: Instructors are not available 24/7, so if you ask a question late at night or over the weekend, you may not get a response until the next business day.

If you have a question and would like a more immediate response, consider attending your instructor’s office hours or setting up an appointment with them (in-person or virtually) to discuss your questions and get clarification.

Refer to your syllabus for your instructor’s contact information and office hours.

Question 16

How long will it take for my instructors to grade my assignments and provide feedback?

Accepted Answer

The timeframe varies from class-to-class and assignment-to-assignment. Responses to submitted assignments, including comments and grades, are at the discretion of the instructor.

The general guideline is within 7-10 days from submission, but this may vary depending on the circumstances. You can always reach out to your instructor if you have questions or concerns about this.

Question 17

If I have technical difficultes, who do I contact?

Accepted Answer

The answer to this depends on what technical difficulty you are experiencing.

If you are having difficulties logging into your Mountwest email, myMCTC, and/or WiFi, please contact the IT HelpDesk. They can also help with computer logins, password resets, and/or getting your student ID.
If you are having difficulties with Blackboard or the Blackboard App, contact the Director of Distance Education.

For more information, visit our Student IT Help webpage.

Question 18

Table Summary:  Side-by-side comparison of live remote, hybrid, and online courses

Accepted Answer

The table below shows a side-by-side comparison of each type of distance education course and how they differ.

Course Attributes	Online	Hybrid	Live Remote	Flex
Scheduled class meetings:	None	Some in-person (on campus) classes are held at specific days and times. Refer to the Course Schedule within the syllabus for these dates.	Yes! All classes are held (virtually) at specified days and times.	Yes! All classes are held at specified days and times. Students can attend virtually or in-person, except when in-person activities are required.
Location of instruction:	All instruction is online in Blackboard (during the days and times fit your schedule best).	Some instruction is in-person (on campus), and some is online through Blackboard. Refer to the percentage for the amount of in-person versus online instruction.	All instruction is online using video conferencing software (at specified days and times each week).	All instruction is offered both in-person and online using video conferencing software (at specified days and times each week), except for required in-person activities.
Location of coursework:	All coursework is online in Blackboard, which can be completed anywhere with a reliable internet connection.	Some is in-person (on campus), and some is online through Blackboard. The online portion can be completed anywhere with a reliable internet connection.	Coursework may be online in Blackboard, which can be completed anywhere with a reliable internet connection.	Coursework may be online in Blackboard, which can be completed anywhere with a reliable internet connection.
On-campus requirements:	None	Some in-person (on campus) class meetings are required.	None	Some in-person (on campus) class meetings may be required.
Added flexibility:	Coursework can be completed during the days and times that fit your schedule best.	Students attend a specified portion of the class in-person and complete the rest of the course online, so there are fewer class meetings than a traditional, face-to-face course.	Students can attend classes virtually without needing to travel to campus for class meetings. No class meetings are on-campus.	Students can attend classes virtually (without needing to travel to campus) or choose to attend in-person. Some class meetings on-campus may be required.
Attendance requirements:	Since there are no class meetings, attendance is based on completing the assigned coursework each week.	Attendance for these courses is taken in-person for the face-to-face class meetings and taken based on progress in the coursework for the online portion of the class.	Attendance for these courses is taken based on being present and participating in the virtual class sessions using the video conferencing software.	Attendance will be taken similar to face-to-face or live remote classes, depending on how the student chooses to attend that class.
Expectations:	Students are expected to (1) have a reliable internet connection and (2) be able to work ahead to meet specified due dates each week.	There will be at least one face-to-face class meeting where students are physically required to be on campus. Students are expected to (1) be present during those specified in-person class meetings, (2) have a reliable internet connection to complete the online portion of the class, and (3) be able to work ahead to meet specified due dates each week.	Students are expected to (1) have a reliable internet connection, (2) have access to a webcam and microphone, (3) be able to login to the video conferencing software during the specified class meetings, and (4) participate during the classes as they would for traditional, face-to-face classes.	If attending virtually, students are expected to (1) have a reliable internet connection, (2) have access to a webcam and microphone, (3) be able to login to the video conferencing software during the specified class meetings, and (4) participate during the classes as they would for traditional, face-to-face classes. If attending in-person, students are expected to be physically present for class, come prepared, and participate. Some in-person activities may be required.
Self-paced:	No	No	No	No
Academic support:	Available!*	Available!*	Available!*	Available!*

*The Tutoring Center, Writing Center, Library Services, and Brainfuse (within Blackboard) are available to all students, free of charge, regardless of class modality. All of these resources are also available virtually for students learning at a distance.

For additional resources and learning tips to help you be successful in your distance education course(s), refer to the Learning Tips and Support & Resources tabs.

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