The Lab at Vancouver Career College
We acknowledge that our campus occupies unceded lands. Unceded means the land was never surrendered, sold, or otherwise given to Canada by the Indigenous peoples. VaCC Surrey occupies the ancestral territories of the Katzie, sc̓əwaθenaɁɬ təməxʷ (Tsawwassen), Kwikwetlem, S’ólh Téméxw (Stó:lō), Kwantlen, and Stz'uminus peoples.
LGBTQIA positive
All Abilities Welcome
Welcome to the lab!
You and your classmates are taking a variety of courses in communications, computer skills, and career skills. These courses are self-propelled, with an emphasis on personal organization and individual/small group work. Our goal in the lab is to prep you for the work environment; these courses are at least partially about learning how to find, utilize, and recognize resources on your own, as well as troubleshooting. Regardless, please don't hesitate to reach out with any questions.
The lab has prerecorded lectures and a loose structure, but there is still a schedule and high expectations for your behaviour and your work.
Policy
Attendance
Class runs 8 until noon, Monday to Friday.
To get full attendance points:
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Sign into ECampus each morning and leave the tab open
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Join the attendance and announcements meeting; roll call is at 8.30
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Join your daily course-specific study group
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Email me at the end of class
Tests
Exams – Online
During an exam, you are to stay in the specified exam room on Teams, cameras and mics on. When the exam is submitted, return to your usual study group meeting.
ECampus exams will become available to you the day of writing.
Missed Exams
For online practical exams (Pearson, Paradigm-Cirrus/Typing Test), you may take the exams at any time during class once they have been made available to you.
For ECampus exams, see your course’s Daily Schedule document. Usually these are taken Fridays at 9am.
If you miss an exam and have not made prior arrangements, you will usually be allowed to take the exam the next time I offer it – however, you will receive an automatic deduction of 25%. This is an accommodation, and therefore a privilege, not a right.
Failed Exams
If you were provided a study guide, you may not rewrite an ECampus exam unless you fail. If you fail, you may rewrite the exam – however, you will receive an automatic deduction of 25%. You may rewrite ECampus quizzes without permission. Please note Pearson exams may be redone multiple times in the same manner as Pearson Grader assignments. See “VaCC Policies” and your course outline for further detail.
Assignments
Due Dates
All assignments are due 4pm on the final Friday of your course unless otherwise specified or discussed. Refer to the Daily Schedule for your course, Announcements (blog), and/or Courses page to confirm the assigned material for your course; check your ECampus schedule to see the date range. If you are unsure, please let me know in your progress emails.
Requesting Extensions
Deadline to request: 4pm Thursday. Put the request in writing, preferably via your progress email. I guarantee I will grant you an extension until at least the following Monday at 4, at which point the late policy will reapply. If you need further time or other accommodations, please email me Monday morning. As always, it’s about proactive communication. Failure to keep me updated will result in an “Incomplete” course result. I usually put up a blog post with approved student numbers so you can confirm.
Late Assignments
If you have not requested an extension before the deadline, late assignments receive a 5% deduction for being after 4pm, then a 10% deduction per day. For example, an assignment due Friday but submitted Monday would lose 35%.
If you did receive an extension, the daily 10% deduction resumes after the new deadline unless further contact is made and accommodation granted.
For Pass/Fail courses, late submissions without prior approval result in failure of the class.
I am aware that this is steep: see extension policy.
Resources
Please note that, unless specified, all resources are on this site instead of ECampus. We will use ECampus for tests and assignment submission only.
Course-specific resources are found on the Courses pages. Use your daily schedule to progress through the material.
General resources are grouped by topic under Resources.
I strongly encourage you to access your local library for free services including
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borrowing books
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borrowing other items such as bird-watching kits, VR headsets, puzzles, DVDs...
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databases, journals, and other material usually hidden behind a paywall
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streaming services for movies, tv, and lectures
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available computers with Office installed
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classes and other sessions for learning how to use devices such as computers or tablets
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ESL conversation groups
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events and talks for adults and children
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assistance with research or using the computer
Computers and Other Supplies
On Campus:
Though I will be teaching remotely, you are welcome to use the campus computer labs which have up-to-date Windows OS and Office 365.
From Home:
You need a stable internet connection, a proper keyboard, and access to either Windows 10, Windows 11, or the recent Mac OS. For most lab courses, you will also need access to your Office 365 (for Windows or Mac) account provided by the college. The online in-browser versions, unfortunately, will not suffice. If you have a Chromebook or other cloud-based device, you will need to utilize the classroom computers. For instructions on accessing these programs with your student account, see the documents below.