Instructor Name:

My Office:                   Phone:                        Email:

Department Office Phone:                Fax:    

My Office Hours:       Be explicit. Consider including: And by appointment

Course Description/Learning Outcomes/Instructional Methods:  Include course content, student learning outcomes (what the student will know, be able to do, and value upon successful completion of the course) and, if appropriate, describe instructional methods such as group work, projects, presentations or portfolios.

Required Text(s): (if any)

Assignments, including Readings:

Homework:  Give policies including, if/how homework will be graded and factored into the grade, and how late homework will be handled.

Exams, Quizzes, and Projects: Give policy on missed exams or quizzes, and consider notifying students of the Final Exam date/time – available from the Registrar’s calendar.

Use of Technology: Explain what will be used/required/optional and how to access it.

Attendance/Participation:  Policies at the professor’s option; check departmental norms. If a student’s attendance is not meeting your expectations and you have concerns about the student, consult with your department chair or associate dean.

Extra Credit:  If offered, it must be fairly and universally offered, not just to selected students.  Be specific how it is factored into the grading.

Grading:  Be very specific regarding the components of the grade and include “floors” for each of the letter grades A (or A range) through D (or D range).  One possible way to state a “floor” as follows: an overall average of xx% will receive at least a grade of A-.

Academic Honesty: Include some version of the following: Academic dishonesty will be treated as an extremely serious matter, with serious consequences that can range from receiving no credit for assignments/tests to expulsion.  It is never permissible to turn in any work that has been copied from another student or copied from a source (including Internet) without properly acknowledging the source.  It is your responsibility to make sure that your work meets the standard of academic honesty set forth in the “LMU Honor Code and Process” which appears in the LMU Bulletin 2008-2010 (see http://www.lmu.edu/about/services/registrar/Bulletin/Academic_Degree_Requirements_and_Policies.htm ).  Also, you might include a more specific statement about plagiarism if students will write papers in your class. Useful information for preventing plagiarism may be found at http://library.lmu.edu/Services_for_Faculty/Preventing_Plagiarism__links_for_faculty.htm

Americans with Disabilities Act: Students with special needs as addressed by the Americans with Disabilities Act who desire assistance or academic accommodations should contact the Disability Support Services on campus to make arrangements for accommodations and services (Location: Daum Hall, Room 224; Telephone: 310-338-4535).

To Promote Classroom Respect:  You can refer to the Lion’s Code or to LMU’s Community Standards (Student Conduct Code, Section IV. D.). Here is one possible wording based on the Lion’s Code:  RESPECT FOR SELF AND OTHERS:  As an LMU Lion, by the Lion’s code, you are pledged to join the discourse of the academy with honesty of voice and integrity of scholarship and to show respect for staff, professors, and other students.

Email Communication:  If you plan to communicate with your students by email using the email addresses on PROWL (the registrar’s database) or on LMU’s course management system (LMU Connect), it will be important to tell them they must either check their student email account periodically or forward email from it to their personal account.  Here is one possible wording: EMAIL COMMUNICATION: At times I will communicate with the entire class using campus email systems, so it is essential that you regularly check your lion.lmu.edu email address or forward your lion account email to your preferred email address.

Important Note:  Be sure to include something like the following: If necessary, this syllabus and its contents are subject to revision; students are responsible for any changes or modifications announced in class or posted on LMU's course management system LMU Connect, if you are using that technology.

Optional:   A list of important dates, the add/drop date and final exam dates, some advice on how to succeed, the prerequisites for the course, when/where you are willing to discuss questions about grades, your cell phone and other electronic devices policy and courteous behavior suggestions.  Regarding cell phones, here is one possible wording: ELECTRONIC DEVICES: Please turn off and put out of sight all electronic devices (other than a calculator or computer, if/when allowed) during classtime.  The interruptions they cause disrupt class and interfere with the learning process. A repeat offender may lose credit for the day's work.

For additional advice and examples, see: http://depts.washington.edu/cidrweb/syllabus/index.html