POLICIES OF ONLINE LEARNING OPERATIONS

A. Enrolment

All learners need to accomplish an online enrollment form and submit their requirements online. This form will be accessible through the school’s website at https://www.nwu.edu.ph.

Student Identification Number (SIN)

All officially enrolled students will be provided with their official SIN to access their Students Portal, Canvas LMS and for communication.

New students (Freshmen/Transferees/Cross-Enrollees) will be provided with a SIN upon enrollment. The student checks his/her account by logging onto the system to ensure his/her username and password work.

Students can access and use their SIN if they are actively enrolled. Students’ account will be deactivated and eventually deleted when a student discontinues to register after 7 days from start of classes, stopped, or filed a leave of absence.

Resetting of password is encouraged to avoid the following threats:
1. Confidentiality Violation – gaining unauthorized access to the files present in the online learning system
2. Integrity Violation – tampering with files used in the online learning system
3. Illegitimate use – exploitation of privileges of legitimate users

Sharing of password is prohibited.

B. Online Platforms

The current health crisis brought disruptions to the traditional modality of education.
NWU explores innovative ways of delivering education remotely and in digital formats so that students will continue their learning while face-to-face education is not yet feasible.

The Canvas online learning management system allows teachers and students to collaborate regarding schoolwork. There will be one Course Card for each of the subjects. Students who rely on their mobile phones or tablets are advised to download the Canvas app. When accessing the Canvas on a mobile phone or tablet, a student should make sure that his/her currently logged account is his/her account by installing the work profile setting on his/her device. Students using desktop or laptop computers may access Canvas by logging onto their account using a web browser (https://nwu.instructure.com/login/canvas).

C. Online Class Requirements

Technical Requirements

A student should use a mobile phone or tablet that enables him/her to surf the internet using any browser, participate in video conferences, create and share multimedia files, read emails, and maintain a Canvas account. A student is advised to better use a desktop or laptop computer with the necessary hardware and software requirements:
1. Intel Core i3 or Core i5 processor, or AMD Ryzen3
2. 8GB RAM or higher
3. 500 GB hard disk or higher
4. Audio-video peripherals if using a desktop computer (webcam, headset, speaker, microphone)
5. Pre-installed software applications such as but not limited to: Web Browser (Google Chrome is recommended.); MS Office or Google Suite; Plug-ins (Adobe Reader, Flash, and Java); Video/Audio Software (VLC is recommended.); Videoconferencing Tools (Zoom is recommended.)

Internet Service Provider

High-speed internet connection (DSL, Fiber, Cable) with at least 5 Mbps or a higher bandwidth is recommended for an optimum online learning experience.

While classes are scheduled well ahead of time, students with poor or no connection are advised to seek places with strong internet connection prior to the conduct of a virtual class.

Technical Skills

Canvas Onboarding Orientation for students

A student must have moderate computer experience – including but not limited to:
1. navigating the World Wide Web
2. sending and receiving an email with or without attachments
3. uploading and downloading files (including copying, pasting, renaming, and locating files)
4. using productivity tools (word processors, spreadsheets, presentations with embedded audio/video, etc.) 5. creating multimedia materials (video/audio)

Continuing Remote Learning for Students without Internet

A student can continue with his/her remote learning without internet through the following:

Students can use G Suite for Education and G Suite applications, such as Calendar and Drive, on their Chromebooks even without the internet. However, they do need the internet for the initial setup.

Google Docs also has an offline extension that can be downloaded on the Chrome browser. This extension allows teachers and students to access several apps, including Google Sheets, Google Docs, and Google Slides, while offline.
Any lecture or document can be downloaded from Google Drive and Google Classroom while online. Then they can be accessed while offline from any device.
Textbooks as a supplementary material are required so as classes may continue despite poor internet connection or interrupted sessions due to uncontrollable circumstances

D. Learning Modalities

During the first week of the semester, an instructor will post a course syllabus in the Canvas to guide students to the kind of teaching and learning they can expect in class and lead them to take responsibility for their education. The online modality of learning includes synchronous and asynchronous learning sessions.

I. Synchronous Learning Session

This refers to the set time for students and instructors to meet through a video-conferencing application. For every class, synchronous learning sessions are scheduled every week as indicated in the learner’s guide. Instructors use the Google Canvas for real-time online meetings. For other alternative platforms are google meet or zoom. classes held on these platforms are to be documented and submitted to the deans and department heads for attendance purposes (screenshots at the beginning and end of every class, later submitted to IPODD.
Should there be connectivity issues, the class can use an equivalent application such as MS Teams or Messenger. The following are synchronous learning protocols:
1. Students are expected to go online to attend the weekly synchronous learning session/s per subject.
2. Instructors shall remind students of the scheduled synchronous learning session, including the topics to cover, how they should prepare, and what they will be expected to do.
3. Students should select a comfortable and conducive place that is free from distractions before joining the synchronous session.
4. Students are expected to dress appropriately, strictly no everyday clothing or sleepwear.
5. Only students officially enrolled in the class shall join the synchronous learning session.
6. Students are encouraged to constantly turn their cameras on during lectures so that the instructors can see them and turn their microphones off, except when asked to recite or ask questions.
7. The instructor shall note the names of the students who joined for the entire duration of the session. 8. Students should avoid inappropriate behavior during a video conference.

II. Asynchronous Learning Session

This refers to a time for students to do a self-study by viewing and/or reading instructional materials and accomplishing learning tasks. Every synchronous class has an equivalent asynchronous learning session, as specified in the learner’s guide. Instructional materials usually uploaded in the Canvas include but not limited to the following:
1. Modules or Worksheets
2. Lecture Notes (PDF, Word Doc, Image Files, etc.)
3. Lecture Slides (PowerPoint Presentations, Prezi, Adobe Spark, etc.)
4. Lecture Videos (TEDx, YouTube, or any video sharing site)
5. Website Links
6. Leaf Packets
7. Ebooks

Instructors may post their lecture videos on a video-sharing site and invite the students to subscribe to their channels.

Some examples of learning activities but are not limited to the following:
1. Book Report/Written Work
2. Simulations/Role Playing Activities
3. Demonstrations
4. Individual/Group Reports
5. Case Studies
6. All other activities related to the course

The instructor will be online during the asynchronous learning period and will be available to answer queries.

E. Use of Third-Party Materials in Online Learning

Images, videos, audio, and text can all be essential in giving meaning to the course content. Before incorporating any of these, it is necessary to consider copyright restrictions. Violations of copyright laws could be subject to civil penalties and criminal liability. Some of the best practices in avoiding copyright infringement are the following:
1. Create original content, particularly for images.
2. Share a link to the work instead of making copies of it.
3. Limit the use of third-party copyrighted materials. Credit all sources, display the copyright notice, and indicate which materials have been used with permission. Citing the material does not grant permission to use a copyrighted work.
4. Take precautions to protect the copyrighted work from broader distribution (e.g., by streaming rather than posting a film; by posting on a password-protected site).
5. Be mindful of the rules regarding the proper use of copyrighted materials and the consequences of infringing on others’ rights.

F. Students’ Data Privacy

The university takes account of data privacy in collecting data and education records. Hence, the instructor and the students are ethically obliged to follow and model acceptable digital citizenship practices and behaviors:
1. The instructor and the students are responsible for reviewing the settings in sharing digital files and folders All personal information should be kept confidential in the online learning environment.
2. Use social media responsibly.
3. Closely review any image file before posting.
4. Never display sensitive individual or class information.
5. Never share student’s photos, videos, or names without explicit consent.
6. Instructors are not allowed to require students to post their photos or recorded videos on social media or any video sharing platform (e.g., YouTube).

G. Consultation Hours

Since instructors are expected to be online during the asynchronous session, a student may get in touch with his/her respective instructor for concerns that require real-time attention. This session may be done using Google Hangouts, Google Classroom, Google Meet, Zoom, etc. Moreover, a schedule for online consultation and mentoring period for students will be announced by the instructor during the first week of the semester. No calsl or inquiries will be entertained after school hours.

H. Online Attendance

The students are expected to join the synchronous session. Suppose a student already reached the maximum number of absences in the synchronous classes (20% of the total school hours for a course) shall be dropped from the class. (Policy on Students’ Attendance as provided in the Student Handbook.)

I. Submission of Student Activities, Examinations, and Grading System

1. Submission of Student Activities

All students’ submissions should be made using Canvas. Large files can be stored in Google Drive and the link shared through the Canvas. The school strictly enforces this rule to maintain the integrity and confidentiality of files. Any schoolwork that has been submitted after a deadline has passed is considered late. Since the prompt submission of schoolwork is a part of practicing student discipline, the student with a late submission should notify his respective teacher of the justifiable cause and be liable to a penalty.

Since NWU requires all faculty and students to have a Canvas account, the use of its prescribed instant messaging application is encouraged. However, the creation and use of social media group chats are only allowed during inevitable situations. It should be upon the consensus of the class. If one student disagrees, the course instructor and students should communicate using the prescribed platform.

2. Examination and Grading System

Transparency in the grading system keeps the instructors and the students accountable and aware of where they stand. It exudes trustworthiness, which plays a vital role in nurturing good school relations and raising students’ achievement.

a. The instructor should discuss and upload the grading system at the start of the semester.

b. The grading system for college online classes is given below:

c. The Distribution of Percentage under the written works and performance tasks can vary depending on the nature of the course but it should still be 40% and 60% in total for written work and performance tasks respectively.
d. The teacher must present the breakdown of every category above to students at the start of the semester. If there are alterations during the semester, the instructor should immediately advise all the students.
e. NWU implements a numerical grading system, with the following grade points, their recommended percentage equivalent, and corresponding remarks.

Grade	Equivalent	Description
1.25	95-97	Excellent
1.50	92-94	Very Good
1.75	89-91	Good
2.00	86-88	Above Average
2.25	83-85	Average
2.50	80-82	Satisfactory
2.75	77-79	Fair
3.00	75-76	Pass
INC	70-74	Incomplete
5.00	69-below	Fail

f. If a student missed a significant examination, the student should immediately request the instructor for a special exam in accordance to existing policy.
g. Students are encouraged to verify their class standing with their respective instructors during the final examination week.

J. Incomplete Grades

I. Incomplete Grade

1. A faculty member can file a grade of Incomplete (INC) only for students that have satisfactory class standing but with the following deficiencies:
a. an excusable absence for a major examination (lack of examination);
b. failure to submit a course requirement as indicated in the syllabus; and

2. Lack of examination and lack of requirements must be completed only within the allowable period of one (1) year after the INC grade has been filed at the Registrar’s Office.

II. Removal of INC Grades

The removal of the INC grade due to lack of examination or lack of requirements can only be settled through an accomplished completion permit or blue form issued at the Registrar’s Office within the allowable period of one (1) year. Failure to complete the INC grade within one (1) year will automatically supersede it as No Grade.