Fall 2021 Session 2 -- What is YOURPace?

[TMcClary]

I have already sent Jessica a detailed email with screenshots to find out what options I have, but she is out of the office this afternoon and I need to vent a little.

SPA 102 is a complete hot mess. The class is unfinished with tons of technical issues. The quizzes are filled with placeholder text instead of actual questions. The instructional material looks like it was pasted from random websites with no care to if it makes any sense. There is the occasional bit pasted from what looks like a more traditional online version of the class but they are out of context and don't make sense in the YourPace structure. A ton of the links don't go where they are supposed to go. It is incredibly unprofessional and not like the other classes. I don't know if other people have taken SPA 102 through YourPace. It was clearly a brand new setup for the class on Monday because it had an issue that caused the first lesson to crash immediately. No one could have gotten by that before. Cody had to put in a placeholder question to fix it so I could move forward at all. I thought I could just move through it quickly, do the written milestones, and get it done, with the amount of Spanish I already know. The instructor ended up making some rather rude comments indicating that she thought I was doing something inappropriate (getting outside help). This was incredibly upsetting. She made another rude comment on the "daily schedule" milestone about the time I wake up in the morning. It was weird. Why does when I wake up matter? The Spanish was correct (mostly). I answered the milestone appropriately. Insulting me for the time I wake up was out of line (9:30 am in case you are wondering).

I have asked Jessica for help. Since the class is clearly unfinished and should not be live for students, I think UMPI should make an exception to the requirement but I am not holding my breath that will happen. My plan right now is to ask for permission to take it at Study.com or Straighterline and transfer it in, drop it at UMPI, and take an elective for the three credits I will still need. I am a bit annoyed that it means an extra class and more work on my part but I just want to graduate and move on now.

I don't know how accurate the seat count listings are, but I see one other person enrolled for the term (session? I don't know what time the seat counts cover). I wonder what their experience has been? There is so much outright broken it cannot just be me.

Edit: I just got a quick email from Jessica asking to share the info with the Dean of Instructional Design. So the issue is being addressed. She will email me tomorrow to discuss it more.