What to Expect from the Online Program

• Technology Requirements
• Online Essentials FAQ

  Technology Requirements

• Personal laptop or desktop computer: Dual Core Processor, Windows 7 Home or Professional or later.
• Reliable high-speed Internet access
• Office 365- provided by college (link to download)
• Webcam and microphone
• Up-to-date plug-ins (Adobe Reader, JavaScript, QuickTime Player, Macromedia Flash Player, etc.
• Supported Browsers:
  Windows Users
  1. Google Chrome 59 and 60
  2. Mozilla Firefox 54 and 55

  Mac OS Users

  1. Apple Safari 9 and 10
  2. Google Chrome 59 and 60
  3. Mozilla Firefox 54 and 55

  Internet Browsers not mentioned above are NOT currently supported and may not meet all requirements of your coursework.

  Online Essentials FAQ

• How to Access BrightSpace
• Brightspace Student Resources
• On-Demand Resources
• Academic Accommodations
• Academic Misconduct
• Technology Success Plan
• Communication Guidelines
• Privacy
• Time Zones

How to Access BrightSpace

BrightSpace is our web-based learning management system. It can be accessed through MyGSC or https://gsc.brightspace.com/d2l/home

Brightspace Student Resources

Navigate Brightspace For Learners

• Navigation
• Content
• Learner Profile
• Brightspace Pulse (Mobile App)

Brightspace Pulse is a mobile app that can help learners stay connected and on track with their courses in Brightspace Learning Environment. It provides one easy view of course calendars, readings, assignments, evaluations, grades, and announcement items. The app can help learners make better decisions about how to handle workload, when to submit assignments, and when to prepare for tests. Real-time alerts can let learners know when classes are canceled, rooms are moved, or new grades are available. The schedule view and weekly visualization enables learners to quickly at a glance view what is due today, this week, and upcoming across all their courses.

Brightspace Community

An additional D2L resource where you can get help from community members, Brightspace experts, access blogs, and peruse FAQs, 24/7.

To learn more the about the learning environment check out more tutorials on the Brightspace YouTube Channel or Learner FAQs.

On-Demand Resources

Library/Research
To get to the Library’s Homepage:
Go to the GSC homepage: https://www.gscollege.edu/
Choose the “My GSC” link
From this site you can:
1. View the catalog of materials available at the Bethesda & Good Samaritan libraries.
2. E-mail Library Services with questions, requests for materials & literature searches.
3. Access a number of databases including OVID [Medline, Nursing, Evidence Based Medicine], Clinical Key for
Nursing, AccessMedicine, AccessSurgery, Academic Search Premier, and CINAHL Complete.
4. Obtain APA formatting information online.
Choose databases by clicking on the links along the right side of the Homepage

Online Tutoring- smarthinking
smarthinking offers online tutoring in more than 150 subject areas, and we help students from middle school through college, graduate, and professional school.
In most subjects, you can get one-on-one homework help in minutes. Prefer to make an appointment, so you can plan questions and prepare for an assignment? Want to leave a question and come back later for your online tutor’s answer? No problem: we’re very flexible.
For some advanced subjects, you can drop off a question, or make an appointment for your expert online tutor to give you the undivided time and attention you need.

Good Samaritan College Policies

The GSC college policies are located in the consumer Info section of this website. There are other policies in the portal that are viewable once a student is enrolled

Official Academic Calendar

Academic Accommodations

GSC is respectful of students’ rights and responsibilities in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) as amended by the ADA Amendment Act of 2008 and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Any qualified student with a disability may request an accommodation to ensure that the academic program does not discriminate against or have the effect of discriminating against that student. The disability/disorder must not prohibit the student from meeting the course outcomes. To determine eligibility for academic accommodations, the College requires current and relevant documentation from a qualified professional with expertise in the area of the diagnosed disability/disorder that establishes a disability and its impact on the student and confirms the need for each accommodation requested. See more

Academic Misconduct

Academic Misconduct which is defined as any alteration of a test answer or utilization of unacceptable resources to complete a test item or assignment. All forms of cheating, plagiarism*, and other means of deception.
*Plagiarism is defined as the act of presenting as one’s own an idea or product derived from an existing source. Examples of student plagiarism are: submitting another student’s paper, copying from published papers without giving credit, and falsifying clinical records. This is a form of cheating.

Technology Success Plan

IT Support:
(513) 862-4194 GSC support team

(513)569-5100 Trihealth Information services team
itsupport@email.gscollege.edu

While enrolled at GSC, students will have access to Microsoft Office 365, a cloud-based office suite, as well as a downloadable copy of Office Professional Plus 2016. The Office365 account also includes OneDrive storage for school documents.
Accepted File Format All assignments must be submitted in Windows compatible file formats, which include: Word – .doc, .docx Excel – .xlsx, .xls PowerPoint – .ppt, .pptx

To ensure compatibility, it is strongly recommended that all students download Microsoft Office 2016 Professional Plus. If you have a question regarding file compatibility, please contact the IT Department at itsupport@email.gscollege.edu.

GSC Email

Every student will have a GSC Email account. Students are expected to check their email everyday as this is the primary method of communication for staff and faculty. If you have a cell phone or tablet and would like email delivered to the device automatically,

How to set up the Outlook account in the Outlook for iOS mobile app

How to set up the Outlook for Android phone.

Please refer to the College’s policy on Acceptable Use regarding appropriate use of the College’s IT and electronic communications infrastructure.

Technology Best Practices

To facilitate a positive online experience and avoid unnecessary stress throughout the course, the following processes are tried and true proactive steps to prevent the “unthinkable”. Working with time-consuming (at times) course activities; it is PARTICULARLY important to have and use a technology plan for success in the online learning environment.

Maintain a strategy (folders, subfolders, file naming procedure) for organizing all of the course-related documents and files to quickly locate and access materials for online coursework.

The online experience is impacted by your computer bandwidth. When accessing course materials that include images, video, or uploading/downloading course resources…this uses computer bandwidth and can decrease network speed. It is important when working with media-rich materials to ensure that you use a wired (Ethernet) vs. wireless connection to improve your overall experience and speed of accessing course materials and submitting assignments.

​Identify a second work location “computer” to be used in case your primary work location has a functionality issue such as software, hardware, Internet access, etc. Campus computer labs and local libraries are a great resource for free computer and Internet access. Please make sure to touch base with your local agencies to see what resources are available to you in case they are needed.

Install and maintain an antivirus software application and regular computer updates to protect the functionality of your workstation.
If your computer becomes infected with a virus, IT support recommends that a professional repair technician perform the necessary cleaning procedures.
Or you can attempt to do it yourself, by following the appropriate procedure:
Remove viruses and malware from a Mac OS computer
Remove viruses and malware from a Windows 10 computer
Remove viruses and malware from a Windows 7 computer
Remove viruses and malware from a Windows 8 computer

Identify and install any required course software (correct version) at the beginning of the term. This will give you time to ensure the software is running properly before you start to work on an assignment or activity.

Make a list of important course information such as the instructor’s contact information and technical support contact information that is stored outside of your computer. If you lose access to the computer or the Internet, you will still have important contact information.

Make sure to give yourself adequate time to complete assignments and tests. Allow extra time when submitting assignments for unexpected delays (academic, personal, technology related). It is important when working with time-sensitive online activities to set aside extra time to allow for upload, download, or submission prior to assignment deadlines.

Plan for saving your work frequently. If your computer locks up or an activity goes wrong, you will only lose a few minutes of work rather than a large chunk of time.

Make a plan to back up important activities and project files (version 1, 2, 3, etc.) in a secondary location in case a flash drive or hard drive fails. Until the final version is successfully submitted, maintain an area to safeguard your projects and activities.

Communication Guidelines

Network etiquette or “Netiquette” is a set of guidelines for online communication. Netiquette covers topics concerning what is proper to post or send, and how to present yourself in an online environment.
Please review the Netiquette Guidelines (Seibert, E. Mercy College. Netiquette. Source YouTube).

Privacy

All course activities are designed to be educational experiences. If you have concerns about your privacy with any activity, please contact your course instructor for guidance. In general, be careful to not reveal personal information, data, or schedules online, use a personal alias, and be mindful of items that are published for public viewing

Time Zones

Unless otherwise stated, all course activities (discussions, tests, assignments, etc.) are due by their stated due date and in Eastern Time (EST). Regardless of the time zone in which you are located, the classroom will record your submission in Eastern Time.

The Eastern Time zone is the same time zone in which Good Samaritan College of Nursing is located.