La Realidad Social: Una Introducción a los Problemas y Políticas del Desarrollo Social en América Latina

In order to participate in an online course you must have a computer with an Internet connection. We recommend that participants have the following:

• Connection: Access to high speed data network – not dial-up (wire, DSL, etc.)
• Processor: Pentium IV 3.0 Ghz / equivalent or superior processor (a dual core processor recommended)
• Operating System: Windows XP Service Pack 3, Windows Vista Service Pack 2, Windows 7 & 8 with the latest updates installed (updates availables on: http://update.microsoft.com ), GNU/Linux (Debian, Ubuntu, Linux Mint, etc)
• RAM Memory: 2+ Gigabytes RAM
• Hard Disk: 120 Gb
• SoundCard and speakers (headset (microphone, headphones) connected to the soundcard of the computer)
• Software: to install latest updates unless otherwise specified:
  • Internet Browser: Firefox / Chrome / Internet Explorer 8 or superior
  • Internet explorer: http://www.microsoft.com/ie
  • Firefox: http://www.firefox.com
  • Chrome: http://google.com/chrome
  • Anti – virus: Current
  • Office Automation: Microsoft Word 2003 or later, Libre, LibreOffice, OperOffice
  • Java / JRE: http://java.sun.com/javase/downloads/index.jsp
  • Adobe Flash Player: http://get.adobe.com/flashplayer/
  • Adobe Reader: http://get.adobe.com/reader
  • QuickTime: http://www.apple.com/quicktime/download/

The advantage of an online course is that you can attend class from any location and without having to keep a strict schedule. This facilitates the participation of students and teachers from diverse backgrounds, enriching the process of transculturalization in the global approach we intend to take in these courses.

Each course has been designed to be completed in a predetermined number of hours. While the virtual classroom allows for flexible hours, you must commit to comply with the allotted timeframe for completing each module. This course includes group activities, during which you will need to coordinate your work with peers assigned to your group.

The Virtual Classroom you will find all of the necessary information that corresponds to your course; from the different sections of the room you can access learning materials, assignments, tests, and other relevant documents

INDES has completed a number of publications, including books, case studies, and other work documents and publications. Click here to see a list of all INDES publications.

If a participant needs to withdraw from a course due to circumstances beyond his/her control, INDES will make every effort to refund the course fee. However, due to the high administrative costs involved in processing a check from the Inter-American Development Bank to a given participant, the following conditions will apply:

• 1.Virtual courses: No refunds will be given for virtual courses. Participants will receive a course payment transfer which can be used for any courses offered by INDES during the next year.
• 2.Course payment transfer policy: If a participant requests to transfer his/her course payment to participate in a future edition of a course due to circumstances beyond his/her control (ex. health issues, family issues), the course coordinator will make the decision as to whether or not to grant him/her the transfer. It is important to note that course payment transfers are reserved exclusively for those persons who find themselves in an unexpected situation which prevents them from participating in the course. This privilege may only be used once. Depending on the course, a difference in course fees of a future edition to which the participant has transferred may apply
• 3.In case of dismissal: No refunds or course payment transfers will be given to a participant who is dismissed from a course due to inappropriate behavior as detailed in the participant dismissal policy

Any participant whose failure to comply with the conditions established in the course syllabus may lose his/her right to continue accessing the virtual classroom. Failure to comply with any of the following conditions will result in immediate dismissal from the course and may not be eligible for a course payment transfer:

• Failure to complete two of the mandatory evaluated activities
• Failure of a participant to access the virtual classroom during the timeframe established in the course syllabus
• Any participant that continues to behave inappropriately in the virtual classroom after having received notification about his/her inappropriate behavior from the instructor/tutor and/or course coordinator concerning the inappropriate behavior.

Instructor responsibilities: Each instructor has different responsibilities during course preparation and will play different roles during the course. The team is comprised of a course coordinator, who has developed the didactic material related to the content and the introductory instructions to the course activities, and the instructor-tutors. The instructor-tutors are a satellite group supporting INDES who have participated in the course creation as well as having taken an INDES train-the-trainer course and a face-to-face INDES course related to social management. The course instruction will be built on exchanges that include the course coordinator and the course instructor-tutor. The responsibilities of each are detailed below: Coordinator: The course coordinator is charged with the coordination and supervision of the course development, including:

• Supervising the didactic material and the description of the course activities
• Monitoring the course tutor
• Participating in some of the discussions during the course
• Defining the evaluation matrices and guidelines for course activities
• Reviewing participant evaluations and their corresponding academic certificates
• Intervening in possible appeals or disagreements between the instructor-tutor and participants in reference to said evaluations

Instructor-tutor: The course instructor-tutor is focused on the participant orientation, monitoring and interaction, through communication resources available in the INDES virtual classroom: instant messaging, forums and announcements. The instructor-tutor’s commitment during the course can be summarized as follows:

• Respond to messages within 24 hours during the weekday and within 48 hours during the weekend
• Review submitted papers and provide feedback to participants within 3 days (72 hours)
• Notify a participant of losing his/her right to continue in the course in the case of not having adhered to his/her responsibilities as detailed in the participant section below
• Provide guidance to participants in the course dynamics and facilitate exchanges among participants
• Provide information relevant to participant performance at the end of the course

Participant responsibilities: Participants are responsible for their own learning process. Their expected to fulfill the following commitments:

• Access the course at least once a day to keep informed of proposed course activities, lectures and tasks
• Fulfill proposed task requirements by the established deadlines, both individual and group activities
• Keep the instructor-tutor informed about any exceptional circumstances which may impede compliance with participant responsibilities in the course and submit incomplete assignments as indicated by the instructor-tutor
• Perform all required course work, individual as well as group activities. Actively participate in group activities. Group activity is obligatory. Failure to comply with this requirement will result in losing the right to access the classroom and the course
• Collaborate in the learning of other participants in the course, sharing experiences, ideas and lessons with the instructor-tutor and other participants

Any participant who fails to fulfill these commitments puts his/her achievement of the course objectives in jeopardy and may lose his/her right to access the classroom. Failure to comply with the following obligations will result in automatic suspension of said rights:

• Failure to access the classroom for more than one week
• Failure to participate in any group activities
• Failure to turn in or partial completion of three or more required activities
• Continued unacceptable behavior in the classroom after having been notified by the instructor-tutor and/or the course coordinator of this unacceptable behavior