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Definitions of Course Delivery Modalities
PCCC offers a wide range of college-level distance learning courses. Course learning outcomes and materials are the same in all delivery modalities. There are no additional fees for identity verification when taking a distance learning course. Some distance learning courses may require a limited number of campus visits for exams.
Face-to-Face courses are taught on campus at the scheduled course times so that students can interact with their instructor and classmates in person.
Distance Learning Courses
Online courses are taught using BlackBoard. Assignments have deadlines, but students have the flexibility of studying where and when they want. Access to a camera and microphone may be required.
Remote Learning courses are taught using Zoom and require students to log in at the scheduled course times to interact with their instructor and classmates. Access to a camera and microphone are required.
Hybrid Online courses are taught using a combination of face-to-face and online activities. Face-to-face classes meet one day each week on campus at the scheduled course times and the remainder of the instructional time is completed online. Access to a camera and microphone may be required.
Concurrent Courses are taught simultaneously face-to-face (on campus) and remotely via a web conferencing platform at the scheduled course times. Students register to attend the face-to-face section or the remote section. Access to a camera and microphone are required.
Hyflex courses are taught simultaneously face-to-face (on campus), remotely via a web conferencing platform at the scheduled course times, and online. The online portion is taught using Blackboard, and assignments have deadlines. Students choose whether to attend class sessions face-to-face, remote, or online and can change modalities at their discretion. Access to a camera and microphone are required.
Online courses are not self-paced; they begin the first day of the term and conclude at the end of the semester. Students must adhere to assignment due dates.
Distance learning courses cover the same material and carry the same number of credits as their traditional, face-to-face classroom counterparts and are subject to the same Academic Integrity Policies. Success in these courses requires the same mastery of competencies from students as in traditional, face-to-face courses. In order to succeed in distance learning courses, students must be self-disciplined, strongly motivated, willing to reach out to the instructor for help, and able to work independently.
The technical requirements for distance learning courses are:
• Regular access to a computer with Internet access,
• Familiarity with internet browsers such as Edge, Firefox, Google Chrome, and Safari,
• Familiarity with email, and
• Familiarity with and access to word processing software such as Microsoft Word.
Student Identity Verification To verify and authenticate student identity, a process for all students beginning at the point of student application for admission to the Colleges is utilized. Upon submission of their admission application, several processes are run to discard fraudulent applications or flag them for manual verification of identity. Student applications are imported into the college student information system, which creates a “person” record and corresponding unique identifier for the student, internally referred to as their Student ID. This assigned identification number serves as the key identifier and is required to be used by students for all subsequent and administrative functions at the College.
A unique PCCC account, linked to their institutional Student ID, is created for the student granting them access to the MyPCCC portal for registration purposes. By using this account, students agree to abide by the college’s acceptable use policy. This prohibits sharing of credentials. Once registered for a class, the student is granted a full PCCC account with email access and appropriate Microsoft licenses. The PCCC account is required for accessing online services such as the MyPCCC portal, Blackboard LMS, and Office 365.
PCCC complies with federal regulation 34 CFR §602.17(g), which requires institutions offering distance education to establish that the student who registers for a distance education class is the same student who participates in and completes course work and received the academic credit. Authentication of users happens on the MyPCCC Portal where users’ identities are verified using their assigned username and a self-created password. Once users have been properly authenticated to MyPCCC, external systems, such as Blackboard, are also authenticated with MyPCCC in a trust relationship, called "Single Sign On."
