Internal study materials ON-LINE STUDY HANDBOOK doc. dr. Sandi Knez, viš. pred. Jana Knez Ljubljana November 2024 Avtorja: doc. dr. Sandi Knez, viš. pred. Jana Knez Naslov: ON-LINE study handbook Založnik: IBS Mednarodna poslovna šola Ljubljana Elektronska izdaja Ljubljana, 2024 Kataložni zapis o publikaciji (CIP) pripravili v Narodni in univerzitetni knjižnici v Ljubljani COBISS.SI-ID 214425603 ISBN 978-961-96525-8-9 (PDF) IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA FOREWORD The On-Line Study Handbook is designed as a key tool for successfully navigating the virtual environment at IBS International Business School Ljubljana. Its purpose is to introduce the specifics of online study at IBS International Business School Ljubljana and to provide practical guidelines for efficient and seamless operation within this modern educational system. The handbook guides the reader through all essential aspects of online study: from a general overview, introduction, technical requirements, and platform usage to time management and interaction in the virtual space. It serves as an excellent resource for both students and lecturers who want to make the most of the opportunities offered by IBS's online system. Let this handbook be your reliable guide as you familiarize yourself with and master online study. IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA ON-LINE STUDY HANDBOOK IBS International Business School Ljubljana ESTABLISHED, TESTED, ACCREDITED At IBS, we have been practicing a proven and modern hybrid mode of study for many years. This is one of the forms of distance learning that takes place and is carried out live with direct interaction between the professor and the student. We also support the most demanding model of online education in a virtual learning environment, where students can access study materials, all content and use communication tools. A unique advantage of our distance learning is the comprehensive support we offer to students from the beginning to the end of their studies – you are accompanied by online mentors, higher education teachers, you are personally accompanied by academic advisors, and technical support is also available to you. STUDENT EXPERIENCES According to the statements and responses of students, we can conclude that they are excited about the possibility of following and attending live lectures with the help of modern information solutions even from remote locations, so they do not miss lectures even if they cannot attend them in the physical classroom at the location of study. In the online classroom, they receive assignments with deadlines, which they are informed about both in the application and by email. They can monitor the professor's feedback on the task at hand in real time, as well as communicate with the professor in means of consultations on open questions. 1 IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA COURSE OF ON-LINE STUDY On-line study is a very accessible and flexible form of study, which is adapted primarily to students who want to actively study and at the same time combine their study with other activities that do not always allow them to come to a classic classroom, but want to perform assignments, exercises and seminars in a time that is consistent with their other activities such as work, family, sports and others. When studying, students are thus unlimited in terms of location and largely adjust the time of study activities themselves, while at the same time achieving great transparency, planning and organization of study. PREPARATIONS FOR ON-LINE STUDY Before conducting online study, preparation for the study is carried out, which begins on the introductory day. This is followed by the settings and testing of both hardware and software necessary for implementation, as well as learning about the basic environment based on ongoing work, assignment of tasks, types and methods of communication in online study, communication with other participants, tutors, professors. Acceptable forms of oral presentations and the conduct of examinations shall also be presented. LIVE VIRTUAL MEETINGS In each course, in addition to conducting lectures in the classroom on site, an interactive lecture is also carried out through a software environment; these are held live with the help of the latest tools that encourage communication between all participants. In virtual meetings – hybrid lectures, the student's activity is expected to be the same as in the classroom. Some course meetings may be mandatory and are graded according to the course's grading scheme. They take place at a specific time, but on different days. The schedule of lectures is received by the student before the start of each course. During the lectures, the professor presents the way of working on the course, if necessary, further explains the subject matter, provides guidelines for further work, and students are expected to participate in discussions. If the student has excusable reasons for not being able to attend the lectures, the missed can be compensated by providing materials, consultations or in other forms. In many courses, as part of the activities and tasks of the course, there are also invited external experts who are related to the content of the course. COOPERATION AND COMMUNICATION Studying online at IBS isn't about listening to recorded lectures and receiving tedious tasks by email. IBS conducts an active and dynamic study with a lot of communication and cooperation, which is crucial both during the study and later in the work environment for which students acquire knowledge, skills 2 IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA and attitudes. Cooperation competencies are encouraged through teamwork, performing group tasks, learning from others, exchanging ideas, discussions. Students interact with each other and communicate with their colleagues, mentors, and professors while conducting study activities in a virtual environment. For each assignment, task, seminar, they receive a deadline as well as quality feedback from the professor. 3 IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA EQUIPMENT FOR ON-LINE STUDY For the smooth implementation of online studies (including hybrid implementation), appropriate hardware and software is required. Hardware • To conduct lectures (especially hybrid implementation from the classroom on site), IBS provides hardware that meets modern standards – a touch screen computer with a camera and microphone and appropriate network equipment for Internet connection. • Both professors and students should provide modern and sufficiently powerful equipment in the form of a personal computer or laptop computer (minimum requirements: preferably not older than four years, Intel i3 processor - 8th generation, memory 4 GB), but also a suitable tablet or phone that has the appropriate peripherals listed below and allows the use of the intended software. • Recommended headphones with a microphone (if possible with a more stable wired connection) or a suitable alternative (wireless headphones with a large enough battery capacity to follow the entire lecture without interruptions), can also be the speaker and microphone of the device. • A webcam (for the exam it is necessary to have an external one, USB, which allows you to record the entire surroundings and also the device on which the exam is conducted). • Internet access (stable, preferably broadband connection with a speed of at least 10/5 Mbps). Software • Operating system: Updated Windows 10, Windows 11, or Mac OS. • Web browser: Updated MS Edge, Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome or Apple Safari. • Java, Flash Player, PDF-document viewer. • It is recommended to install MS Teams – although it is possible to use the web version, the application provides an even better user experience • Warning: Older versions of operating systems than listed are not supported. The use of private computers and devices is recommended for study. Most organizational (work) computers have restrictions on users due to company security policies. These limitations can make it difficult to study, in the form of difficulty installing programs or running applications with full privileges. Office 365 for email, collaboration, and communication Students and teachers can use the Office 365 online toolkit (Education A1), which includes a 50 GB email inbox, access to SharePoint, and instant communication with Microsoft Teams. MailBox IBS provides all of its students and practitioners with an IBS mailbox that allows them to keep track of security policies and reliable communication between students and the school. 4 IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA SUPPORT When studying ON-LINE at IBS, students are not alone. IBS strives for student success, so comprehensive support is provided during the study from mentors, higher education teachers, tutors and advisors. Higher education teachers - Professors The professors of the IBS International Business School Ljubljana are top experts who know the difference between theory and real life, and the academic choir consists of habilitated academic associates who also provide their knowledge at several faculties of all Slovenian universities. They are employed in leading positions in the economy and non-economy and transfer their rich practical experience to the study process. They are professors who add something more to the knowledge, which is important for action and decision-making in the future, and at the same time they perfectly direct the research activity of students with their experience. Tutors & Advisors Tutors and advisors accompany smaller groups of students (usually within the same year or study group of the course). These students accompany all days of course delivery, regardless of what day of the week it is. It motivates, accompanies and reminds students of deadlines for submitting assignments, assignments and encourages them to cooperate and help each other. They also guide and motivate students to take a proactive approach on the way to completing their studies throughout the duration of their studies. In case of difficulties in studying, they find a path together that allows the student to complete their studies despite the challenges that have arisen. Expert Associates and the Student Affairs Office and the Library Expert associates in the Student Affairs Department take care of the application and enrolment procedure and the issuance of all necessary certificates and documents. They are primarily focused on finding solutions and are very responsive and, above all, accessible to the student. In the case of searching for appropriate literature, the library offers assistance both with resources available in its own library and through interlibrary cooperation or through databases accessible at IBS. During the study, students can also rely on professional associates in terms of ensuring the operation of all systems, software to make the study work flawlessly. Students are thus provided with access to up-to-date information and materials related to their study at anytime and anywhere – on a 24/7 basis. IT professionals at the faculty provide technical support and consultation by phone or email. 5 IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA PRESENTATION OF THE MS TEAMS ENVIRONMENT Example On-line classroom at IBS International Business School Ljubljana Created in MS Teams in conjunction with other MS tools The main page that the student accesses: - Basic information, - Part of the materials used, - Script, slides, handouts – depending on the subject and in the domain of each professor - Current part of the schedule – a detailed schedule is sent to all designated participants as an "invitation" to the calendar, where events are automatically created in the calendar 6 IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA Through the main page, all other parts of the online classroom can also be accessed: In the part where an example of real-time notifications can be seen in the general part of the channel – the classroom – here you can see all current posts and communication – posting assignments – tasks. This section displays assignments—both seminar papers and exercises, if and when they are scheduled. If a specific deadline with a date and time is set, that deadline is automatically enforced. Once the deadline passes, it will be marked as overdue, as shown in this section, with the time lapsed since the deadline—an example of an assignment: seminar papers for a course where the submission deadline has expired. 7 IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA In this image, a view of an individual assignment—specifically a seminar paper—is shown, where it is visible that one student has not submitted the assignment, while three assignments have been submitted. This section shows a list of returned assignments with the status Returned, with grades also given 8 IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA By clicking on an individual student and his work, his submitted contribution can be seen, which can be submitted in various formats (excel, word, pdf,...) as an attachment that can be reviewed, directly comments and further instructions or feedback on the work itself within the tool, and the evaluation of the paper, if it is set, as in this case The online classroom tool also allows you to review the graded assignments-tasks – in this case, only one work per student was evaluated, but there could be more than one – from this site it is also possible to export and further process the data if and when necessary. 9 IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA In the online classroom, there is also a tool for creating and processing a written test (which in practice, when a written exam is scheduled, it is carried out live in the classroom), and more often an oral exam is carried out, where it is easier to provide an environment in which cheating is prevented Student's View: The student sees all his subjects or created online classrooms for the subjects to which he is assigned and is determined by the IBS technical staff according to the schedule and the module and program for each student. 10 IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA On the main page, the student can access all relevant files that have been assigned to them by the technical staff in connection with the specific course. These are most often materials such as textbooks, scripts, slides, handouts, or possibly assignment materials from other students, if the task specifies that the group should discuss the shared results. 11 IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA The main page of the online classroom displays the individual schedule for each student, although the entire schedule is also imported into their calendar. 12 IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA Through the online classroom, students can establish direct communication with professors by clicking on the profile. 13 IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA In the online classroom, direct communication between the professor and the student, as well as between the students within the class, is possible. In the online classroom, the student receives feedback on his work and the status of his assignments. 14 IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION GUIDELINES: School Email, MS Teams, and Private Email Different communication channels are used in the school environment for different purposes. When communicating regarding assignments, tasks and term papers, please follow these guidelines, keeping in mind that school email has primarily an administrative function, while MS Teams has a primary function for communicating and collaborating on assignments and projects. 1. School email When to use: • Login and access: The school email is intended for logging in to MS Teams, logging in to the electronic index and to the exam registration system. • Administrative Communication: It is used to receive official notifications from the school or university, such as announcements of schedule changes, exam application deadlines, and other administrative information. What not to send via school email: • Do not send documents, assignments, projects or seminar papers. The school email should be used exclusively for administrative logins and notifications. • Do not use it for private purposes or to communicate with classmates about projects, assignments or seminar papers. How to use: • Logging into systems: Use your school email only to log in to MS Teams, index, register for exams, and other school administration systems. • Receive official notifications: Check your school email regularly for important information from your school or university. 15 IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA 2. MS Teams When to use: • For all communication related to assignments, seminar papers, real-time assignments, and group projects. • To distribute tasks, give feedback, and collaborate on projects and assignments on an ongoing basis. • For group communication and quick exchange of information about assignments or seminars. How to use: • Dedicated channels: Use specific channels for individual subjects or projects where you can share documents, submit assignments, and get feedback. • Tag team members (@ime): Bring important tasks or questions to the attention of colleagues. • Documents and drafts: Upload assignments and seminars directly to MS Teams, allowing for collaborative editing and accessibility for the entire team. 3. Private email address When to use: • For private communication and personal matters unrelated to school or study. • To log in to personal accounts (e.g., social networks, personal online accounts), but not to school systems or MS Teams. What not to send via private email: • Do not use a private email for school assignments, logging in to MS Teams, registering for exams or communicating with professors – use only school email or MS Teams for this. 16 IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA 4. Summary of use Channel Intention What not to send School Login to MS Teams, electronic index, exam Assignments, seminar papers, project Email registration, administrative notifications communication All communication regarding assignments, MS Teams No restrictions for school purposes seminar papers, and projects Logins to school systems, Private Personal matters, login to private accounts communication with teachers and email professors 5. Conclusion Use the school email exclusively for administrative purposes and logging into school systems. All communication regarding assignments, seminars and projects should take place in MS Teams. Private email should only be used for personal matters and not for school assignments or logging into school systems. 17 IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA IBS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL LJUBLJANA INSTRUCTIONS FOR INSTALLING STUDENT EMAIL INBOX IN OUTLOOK 1. If you don't have Outlook, please use link provided by referat to sign in to your email address. Use the email and password given to you by the paper. 2. Open Outlook. 3. A window will open and write in your email address, then select "Advanced options" and check "Let me manually set up my account". 4. After that, click "Connect" and the "Advanced Settings" window will open. 5. Click on POP, if you will use this email on only one device, if you will use the email on multiple devices, click IMAP. 18