Dear World Campus Students,

As we begin to see early signs of spring here in State College, we are filled with the hope of warm sunny days and BBQs with good friends. It has been a seemingly long, cold winter and we send you all our warmest greetings! Spring also serves as a reminder that it is time to register for the fall semester. So with that in mind, I send some updates and reminders.

Fall 2022 course offerings

For Certificate Students: Completion of the Certificate

When you have completed 15 credits (five courses) of eligible courses in the certificate program, please contact Ms. DeShong or Dr. Kim to initiate the process of verifying and issuing your certificate. Please note that certificates are not generated automatically and we must hear from you to initiate the process.

For Masters Students: Completion of the Degree

You will complete the M.Ed. in LDT degree when all of the following have been certified by the program coordinator:

1. Completion of 30 credits (10 courses) of coursework

1. 1. LDT 415A, LDT 467, and LDT 527 are required
   2. No more than four total 400-level courses may be counted toward the degree
   3. 18+ credits completed in courses at the 500- or 800-level
   4. Cumulative GPA as a graduate student of 3.00 or higher

2. SARI Training Requirement: See information about SARI requirements here.

3. Capstone Portfolio

3. 1. The Capstone Portfolio will be supervised by your assigned faculty academic advisor and completed near the end of your coursework in the M.Ed. in LDT degree program. See the Documents page for current guidelines.

4. Intent to Graduate

4. 1. At the beginning of the term when you intend to graduate you must notify the university in LionPATH of your intent to graduate. This initiates the comprehensive review process that ultimately certifies that all requirements have been satisfied and that your degree may be conferred at the end of the term.
   2. If you are planning to graduate in the summer: Remember to notify your advisor early, as many faculty are not around during summer and may require that capstones be finished early. So please check-in with your advisor and devise a shared plan.

Important Dates for Summer Semester:

Ongoing dedication to our students

Until next time, take good care of yourself!

Dear LDT World campus Students,

Welcome back! I hope you all had a restful and joyful break. As the semester begins, I wanted to draw your attention to a few important reminders.

Dropping/Withdrawing: You may drop one or more courses in LionPATH, however LionPATH will not allow students to drop all courses during a term after the term has started. If you will be dropping all of your courses in a current term (below 3 credits), you must submit a withdrawal from semester form to the Office of Graduate Enrollment Services.  Please refer to this page for additional information about withdrawing: https://student.worldcampus.psu.edu/a-z-index/withdrawing-from-the-semester.

Tuition Adjustment Fee: Each course has an established Regular Drop Period during which a student may drop a course without penalty. Dropping a course or withdrawing from the term after the Regular Drop Period may incur a significant financial penalty. The typical Regular Drop Period is the first few days after a course officially starts. Please refer to the following link for information regarding the Bursar Office Tuition Adjustment Policy: https://bursar.psu.edu/tuition-adjustment-policy. Overall, know that a decision to take a course must be made very soon after the course opens or else a tuition adjustment fee will be assessed.

For Certificate Students: Completion of the Certificate

When you have completed 15 credits (five courses) of eligible courses in the certificate program, please contact Ms. DeShong or Dr. Kim to initiate the process of verifying and issuing your certificate. Please note that certificates are not generated automatically and we must hear from you to initiate the process.

For Masters Students: Completion of the Degree

You will complete the M.Ed. in LDT degree when all of the following have been certified by the program coordinator:

1. Completion of 30 credits (10 courses) of coursework

1. 1. LDT 415A, LDT 467, and LDT 527 are required
   2. No more than four total 400-level courses may be counted toward the degree
   3. 18+ credits completed in courses at the 500- or 800-level
   4. Cumulative GPA as a graduate student of 3.00 or higher

2. SARI Training Requirement

2. 1. Learn more about the program’s SARI Training here: https://ldtonline.psu.edu/sari-training/ , and note the following:

2. 1. 1. You must complete the LDT Program’s specific SARI training program. Do not complete the CITI Training or RCR requirements that may be expected of other graduate programs across the university.
      2. The LDT Program’s SARI Training is available as part of two options: (1) online as a 3-week group-based asynchronous experience available only in the Fall and Spring terms, (2) (New starting SP2022) enrollment and completion of LDT 561 or LDT 843. The fulfillment of the SARI requirement through completion of LDT 843 and LDT 561 is a new option approved starting Spring 2022. As such having completed these courses prior to SP2022 would not fulfill the SARI requirement.

3. Capstone Portfolio

3. 1. The Capstone Portfolio will be supervised by your assigned faculty academic advisor and completed near the end of your coursework in the M.Ed. in LDT degree program. See the Documents page for current guidelines.

4. Intent to Graduate

4. 1. At the beginning of the term when you intend to graduate you must notify the university in LionPATH of your intent to graduate. This initiates the comprehensive review process that ultimately certifies that all requirements have been satisfied and that your degree may be conferred at the end of the term.

Important Dates for Spring Semester:

Intent to Graduate – Activation Period

Sunday, January 2 – Monday, January 24

Regular Drop – Deadline ²

Saturday, January 15 at 11:59 p.m. (ET)

Regular Add – Deadline ²

Sunday, January 16 at 11:59 p.m. (ET)

Late Drop Begins ²

Sunday, January 16

Late Registration Begins ²

Monday, January 17

All the Best,

Hi Everyone,

Congratulations on almost finishing the semester! You’re in the final stretch! Here are a few final reminders.

Please be sure to finalize your enrollment for SP2022. Here is the list of current open courses:

Please be sure to check in with your advisor, if you have not done so already, to ensure that your courses for spring aligns with required courses and electives for your program or certificate. Also, be sure to notify your advisor if you plan to complete your degree/certificate in SP2022.

Finally, we, in LDT, want to thank you all for a wonderful fall semester.  The faculty and staff of the Learning, Design, and Technology Program are grateful for the thoughtful coursework, creative problem-solving, and time that our students invest in their studies. We are truly blessed to have such kind, active, and motivated students.

Wishing you all a restful and joyful break and a very happy new year!

Marcela Borge, Professor in charge of Learning, Design, and Technology

Hello Everyone,

Course offerings Update: I hope you are all having a lovely end of October and preparing for some much needed, holiday fun. We have been busy checking in with students to ensure that those graduating soon get their preferred class offerings. We asked all of you to respond to a survey to gather your graduation dates and course needs and many of you responded, so thank you! Based on those responses, we have added LDT 566 (Using technology to enhance learning processes-formally, Using computers as learning tools) and maintained EdTech 561 (Measuring the impact of technology on learning); these were the two courses most requested by students. Please note that neither LDT 566 nor LDT 561 are slated to be taught in summer and may not be taught next year. So if you’d like to take them, now is the time. Be sure to enroll in your courses as soon as possible because many courses fill up quickly and we also keep track of enrollments; any courses with no enrollments or low enrollments may be subject to cancelation.

Reminder about mental health resources: Students may be feeling added stress at this time due to a variety of different factors. October and March tend to be common times in the semester when students start to feel overwhelmed. Please reach out to your instructors and/or your advisor if you need some added help. World campus also has mental health resources available to online students. You can find more information about services here: https://student.worldcampus.psu.edu/student-services/mental-health-services

Reminder about submitting your intent to graduate:If you are planning to graduate during the SP22 semester, be sure to notify your advisor as early as possible and submit your intent to graduate. The intent to graduate activation period for the Spring 2022 semester is Sunday, January 2^nd through Monday, January 24^th. Please see these links for information and instructions regarding how to apply for graduation: https://tutorials.lionpath.psu.edu/public/S_ApplyGrad/ ; http://www.registrar.psu.edu/graduation/intent.cfm

You can find all commencement details here (this link will update in the future): https://www.commencement.psu.edu/.  Next semester after you submit your intent to graduate, Penn State World Campus will send you emails regarding commencement to your Penn State email account.

Request for those completing TLO K-12 Certificates in SP22: If you plan to complete your Teaching and Learning Online in K-12 certificate this spring (2022) and need to enroll in LDT 835, please send me an email at mborge@psu.edu to let me know. That is all for now.

Please take good care of yourselves!

Dear LDT Online Students,

It is with great pleasure and excitement that I take on new leadership responsibilities within our World Campus LDT program. I am an associate Professor in the Learning, Design, and Technology program and the new Professor in Charge (PIC). I have had the pleasure of teaching within this program and advising online Masters students since 2014. In that time I have developed great respect for our online students, many of whom are balancing work and home responsibilities while at the same time pursuing their educational goals. This is the type of life long learning and dedication that we should all aspire to! As such, Dr. ChanMin Kim (incoming Certificate Program Adviser) and I are committed to helping our online students succeed in meeting whatever goals they set.

I see my role this coming year as one of learning and working towards positive change. I will be learning more about our online students, their backgrounds, courses, and needs from them, our staff, and our World Campus partners. I plan to work in collaboration with our faculty, staff,  and World Campus partners to document students’  needs and find better ways meet these needs.

Dr. Kim and I will also work together to ensure that our students know about all upcoming deadlines in our program and resources offered through World Campus. Towards this aim, I include some information about some resource below.

Have a great semester!

Dr. Marcela Borge

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