Where to Find Help

Resources

Video Script

[Slide 1]

As you work on the materials in this course, you may run into questions or problems and need assistance. This video reviews the various types of help available to you in this course.

[Slide 2]

First and foremost, anytime you have a questions or need assistance in the Computational Core program, please email the appropriate help group. It is the best place to go to get help with anything related to this program, from the tutorials and projects to issues with Codio and Canvas. For example, if you are enrolled in CC315 and have questions, from your KSU email, you would type cc315-help and hit tab to auto-complete the email.

[Slide 3]

If you have any issues working with K-State Canvas, K-State IT resources, or any other technology related to the delivery of the course, your first source of help is the K-State IT Helpdesk. They can easily be reached via email at helpdesk@ksu.edu . Beyond them, there are many online resources for using Canvas, all of which are linked in the resources section below the video.

[Slide 4]

If you have any issues using the Codio platform, you are welcome to refer to their online documentation. Their support staff offers a quick and easy chat interface where you can ask questions and get feedback within a few minutes.

[Slide 5]

If you have issues with the technical content of the course, specifically related to completing the tutorials and projects, there are several resources available to you. First and foremost, make sure you consult the vast amount of material available in the course modules, including the links to resources. Usually, most answers you need can be found there.

Of course, as another step you can always exercise your information-gathering skills and use online search tools such as Google to answer your question. While you are not allowed to search online for direct solutions to assignments or projects, you are more than welcome to use Google to access programming resources such as StackOverflow, language documentation, and other tutorials. I can definitely assure you that programmers working in industry are often using Google and other online resources to solve problems, so there is no reason why you shouldn’t start building that skill now.

[Slide 6]

Next, we have grading and administrative issues. This could include problems or mistakes in the grade you received on a project, missing course resources, or any concerns you have regarding the course and the conduct of instructors and your peers. Since this is an online course, you’ll be interacting with us on a variety of online platforms, and sometimes things happen that are inappropriate or offensive. There are lots of resources at K-State to help you with those situations. First and foremost, please email your instructor as soon as possible and let them know about your concern, if it is appropriate for them to be involved. If not, or if you’d rather talk with someone other than your instructor about your issue, I encourage you to contact either your academic advisor, the CS department staff, College of Engineering Student Services, or the K-State Office of Student Life. Finally, if you have any concerns that you feel should be reported to K-State, you can do so at https://www.k-state.edu/report/ . That site also has links to a large number of resources at K-State that you can use when you need help.

[Slide 7]

Finally, if you find any errors or omissions in the course content, or have suggestions for additional resources to include in the course, email the instructors. There are some extra credit points available for helping to improve the course, so be on the lookout for anything that you feel could be changed or improved.

[Slide 8]

So, in summary, the content and links in the modules should always be your first stop when you have a question or run into a problem. For issues with Canvas or Codio, you are also welcome to refer directly to the resources for those platforms. For questions specifically related to the projects, use the courses help group. For grading questions and errors in the course content or any other issues, please email the instructors for assistance.

Our goal in this program is to make sure that you have the resources available to you to be successful. Please don’t be afraid to take advantage of them and ask questions whenever you want.