Introducing WebCT
This page will provide information to help you determine what it will be like to take an online course from RUSA using WebCT. Links to various support services provided by the WebCT developers are provided as well as some screenshots and explanations of the tools used in online courses. Much of the material is taken from the Navigational Tour that will be a standard part of every course RUSA offers using WebCT.
Support for students using WebCT.
Find out what browsers have been tested by WebCT and are supported.
 Audio files used by our Reference Interview course were produced in the .WAV format, which is quite commonly used on the Internet. The "Audio" button at left indicates that an audio file is available and is used as a link to such files. You may need to download the file and then play it, or it may go right into a player depending on your browser set-up. If you need to download a plug-in for your PC, you should consult with your system administrator.
Once you log in . . .
Your own page with whatever course or courses for which you have registered will appear. You can create and have displayed your own bookmarks pertinent to your coursework. You can access a calendar and see how class schedules mesh and add your own appointments to the mix. You can change passwords and set preferences for the way WebCT looks on your browser. Furthermore, announcements by instructors and bookmarks they recommend can be found here.
Once inside the course, the screen will look like this:
The WebCT navigation bars, seen above, give you the option to return to the first WebCT page myWEBCT, resume the course from your last location, view the entire course through the COURSE MAP, check your browser, Log Out, and find HELP for using WebCT. Note: Clicking on the WebCT icon in the far left corner at the top of the page will take you to the WebCT Web site. While it's a very interesting place filled with a lot of information, you don't need the distraction from the more important work of taking our course!
 The action menu (seen magnified at left) will be of great importance when moving through the course content. You can choose to move through the course with the buttons (left to right): Return to Contents, Previous page, Next page, Retrace path, and Refresh. Watch also for additional "tool" buttons that can follow, such as References, Glossary, Discussions, and especially Quiz or Self-Test. You might notice that the Back arrow on your browser has been disabled. We have done this to ensure you don't use it while taking this course. If you were to use the Back (or Forward) arrow, WebCT would lose track of where you are and navigating the course may become confusing. If it has not been disabled, please refrain from using your browser's method of turning pages. If you should find yourself using those buttons and lost, use either the Home button or the Retrace button in the ACTION MENU to reorient yourself.
Another invaluable aid in navigating the course are the "bread crumb" links (highlighted in yellow tint above) that map out the route you've taken to get to the page you are on. You may click on any of the links on that line in retracing your steps.
The Course Menu is located on the left side of the screen. You can view it in two ways. The drop-down version (above) allows for a bigger viewing area of the course. The other version of the menu (below) is activated by clicking on the green triangle at the left of the drop-down menu, and makes the menu available all the time, but takes up some of your screen's real estate to do so. Both versions will let you move to a different area of the course.
For example, if you find a concept within the coursework that you would like more help with, you could simply click on Mail and be taken to a page where you can compose and send an e-mail or use Threaded Discussions to create a discussion post about the topic. Note that within the courseware, e-mail is separate from your usual e-mail account.
Other Navigation Tips
Sometimes text within the course will appear as a link (blue or purple and underlined). Clicking on this text will open a new window. Those of you using screen readers need to keep this in mind. Unless a link goes to an outside Web page, a button for closing the window will be available at the top or bottom of such a page.
Another unique aspect of the way this course is laid out is that captions for illustrations and photos are embedded in links rather than awkwardly placed in the layout. You can "read" the caption by holding your mouse over the photo or illustration. People using screen readers can access the "TITLE" information of the image.
Your browser provides a way of tracking the pages within a course module. As illustrated below, the Status Bar at the bottom of your browser's window will provide information about the page you are viewing. (Consult your browser's View menu for options concerning the Status Bar.) The top illustration is for Internet Explorer, the one below it is for Netscape.
 
Finally, when you've reached the end of a module, you can use the "bread crumb" link named "Homepage" to return to the main home page of the course, where all the available modules and tools are accessible. When you've taken the last quiz of a module, the next module will become available and it is at this hub that you will be able to access it.
To continue investigating the courseware used to provide RUSA online continuing education, click on Introduction, page 2 on the lefthand menu of this page.
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