Instructor Information
Jackie Allen
704-216-3759 Direct number
Office 127G
About Me
I
began my higher education at Mitchell Community College. Receiving a two
year degree in Accounting and Business Administration. While working at JC
Penny and Funder America, I continued as a full time student at Gardner-Webb
University in their 2 + 2 higher education program to receive a bachelor's
degree. After graduation and working in the private sector for four years
I pursued my MBA from Gardner-Webb University graduating in August of
1998. I continued my education by supplementing technology courses at
Gardner-Webb University, ECU and UNC-Greensboro. Most of my 17 years of
teaching has focused in the software application area.
Expectations of students:
Student success is related to attendance, preparedness for class, disciplined
behavior and attentiveness in class. There are several policies regarding this located in the
RCCC Handbook. You may need to refer to them. For example, the withdraw date
has one date for
a 8 week class and another
for a 16 week. I understand some of the classes
and subject matter may not be interesting to all students, however, respect in the classroom
is an attribute that is expected and which will allow each student to have an equal acceptance in the
classroom. I expect chapters to be read ahead of the discussion and
participation in class. I do realize not everyone likes to talk in front of
other students, but I try to have many "types" of activities which will
give you some areas to really shine. I want this to be opportunity to be as
bright as possible to enhance your educational opportunities that will arise
while you are here at RCCC. We have several avenues for help here at RCCC, or we can meet one on one. Each student will be held
accountable for their assigned work and in the growth of their soft skills as we
progress through the semester.
We have advising committees that meet at least once a year. These are
companies that had or are presently employing
RCCC students. The one request we constantly receive from these companies is
the need in the area of time management. Apparently when the "student"
is asked to turn in information by a certain day/time it is not received by that
time which causes "the company" to assume the "student"
doesn't have respect for the position. I am trying to help with this by
issuing a due date for homework/assignments/labs/test. I am not saying that
events will not occur, but being prepared and managing your time will help out
with the stress that this will cause you or your fellow students
(employees.
Yon. If you do not
have a computer or Internet access at home there are other places to visit. Like
the ICLC here on North and South campus, the public library or a friend who has
a computer or even Internet access to complete your work. Since you are
taking a computer class it is expected that you will be completing some
assignments outside of class so be prepared with computer access. Do
not wait until 11th hour to send work or to begin. If you do come to me and say you have had some type of an issue and
the work is not ready to turn in, I will give you some options to see how
prepared you are at that point. This will determine the extension on the
assignment (if any) you will receive.
A sense of belonging and value is expected in the classroom. I hope to make each
class fun and creative so the academic area is not mundane. I like to play games
in the course of the class and to keep the atmosphere light. Each student is an
individual and will be treated with the respect everyone deserves. I also will
expect that same respect in the classroom during lecture time. The use of
playing on the computer/texting/engaging in conversation that could prohibit your
neighbor from hearing any part of the lecture will not be tolerated during class
time. I do encourage you to find a "buddy" in class so if you are
absent, you can also contact them for information completed in class. If
you miss a test as stated in syllabus you have
one week from the day of the test to make it up.
Every
class will be different in the form of the delivery method and
expectations. This biggest point to take away is yes you will learn the
course content, but developing those soft skills will be an even bigger
accomplishment. An example that I would like to leave you with on this section
is think about a spaghetti noodle. How easily can it by itself be
broken? What if you put 5 spaghetti noodles together it is a little
tougher to break them. Think about this class and you could have 20-25
spaghetti noodles. Look at the strength we could have as a class if we joined
and shared information and helped out each other. How strong will
"you" be by the end of the semester.
I will be teaching the following subject matters:
1- How to work in groups
2- How to discipline yourself in multi-tasking
3- How to troubleshoot
4- Learning to find information for yourself
5-
The subject area of the course
Another expectation employers requested of the RCCC graduates was the ability to
find pertinent information. I or any instructor in any subject matter will
not always be available so teaching you this skill is my goal. One item
you can always count on in any computer area is change. Knowing how
to find out about the new printer or digital camera features will take
knowledge. You must learn how to pinpoint specific information from all
the data available. Learning to excel in gathering and disseminating
information in crucial.
My hope for the next few weeks is that we all will excel. No
one knows everything and we could all learn something from each other. My
wish is that you take this opportunity and learn as much as you can.
Instructor
Jackie Allen