Section 3 How will we communicate?
Canvas.
We will be heavily relying on Canvas, UT’s Learning Management System. Each week, the topic, assignments, and assessments for that week will be posted to Canvas. Please check Canvas regularly.
Ed Discussion.
We will be using Ed Discussion as our class’ discussion board. Ed will be the preferred and quickest way to communicate with the teaching team.
When you make a post on Ed, epecially if it pertains to a certain problem on the homework or in-class activity, please include the problem statement along with your question. Simply asking "I need help on Problem 3 of HW 3." is not sufficient. Make sure your questions are communicated clearly.
You must read the discussion board at least once per day, and should post course-related technical or administrative questions or problems there. You are encouraged to respond to your class-mates posts. I expect you to make good use of the discussion board when you have technical or administrative questions or problems. Our TAs and I will be closely monitoring the discussion board.
Course-related announcements will be cross-posted on the discussion board. Every time I check throughout the semester, you must have read at least 85% of the discussion board posts (as recorded by the discussion board, so you must read them through the website, not through emails).
You are responsible for any and all information posted to the discussion board by any of the course staff. You are expected to read all announcements within twelve hours of being posted.
Emails to you.
In this course, email will be used as a means of communication with students. You are responsible for regularly checking (at least every 24 hours) both your CS email and your email officially registered with UT for class work and announcements.
Emails to the Instructor and TAs.
Email is not the best way to get in touch with the teaching team. If you need to have a personal conversation with one of us, please approach us at office hours or after class.
To follow up, we may ask you to send us an email. In this case, emails to course staff should begin with "CS311:" in the subject line, followed by a brief description of the purpose of your email. I teach multiple classes, and by following this format, I can ensure I can better address your questions in a timely manner. If you miss this detail, a response to your email may be delayed altogether.
Do not use Canvas messages to contact the teaching team. If you use Canvas Messages, you may not receive a reply.
Please do not expect to get detailed answers to technical questions by email.
Last-minute assistance requests by email will not be supported. To ensure successful and timely results, please plan for sufficient lead time to account for the time to do your work including the additional time for the waiting period for assistance.
To Summarize.
Please make a sincere effort to find your own answers by checking the syllabus, Ed, announcements on Canvas and in class before contacting the teaching team.
| Catagory of Question | Examples | Where to get the information |
| Logistical | - When and where is class? - When is HW due? - Do we have discussion this week? - When is the exam? |
Can you find this information on the Syllabus or Canvas (Modules and Assignments)? If not, make a post on Ed. |
| Content Related | - Is this use of the associative rule correct? - I don’t quite understand Proof by Induction, can you help me through this problem? I do not understand how to set up the inductive step. |
Post your question on Ed. However, if it is a more conceptual question, visit us at office hours and we will help you out. |
If you are struggling or feeling overwhelmed |
Reach out to me via e-mail or visit me during office hours. We can chat to find a way to get you the help you need. |
