Syllabus
A syllabus is a faculty member's first opportunity to describe the role and responsibilities that the students will have in a course. A carefully developed syllabus can actively support their learning and success in the course. It should be distributed and reviewed with students on the first day of class. Faculty members are encouraged to discuss their syllabi with faculty colleagues and their department chairperson. A book titled "The Course Syllabus: A Learning-Centered Approach" (authors Judith Grunert O'Brien, Barbara J. Millis and Margaret W. Cohen) is recommended.
A syllabus is essentially an agreement defining mutual obligations between instructor and student and should be adhered to throughout the course. Because unforeseen situations may occur that require modifications to be made to the syllabus, faculty should include a statement to that effect, stating that they reserve the right to make a modification and indicating how students will be notified of any change to the original syllabus.
Your assignments should take into consideration that students are expected to study three hours a week for every hour spent in class. Several copies of the syllabus prepared for each section should be turned in to the department's administrative assistant no later than the first week of class.
What to include in your syllabus:
- Your name
- Course title
- Department
- Course and section number
- Semester and year
- Your telephone and e-mail address
- Office hours and location
- Materials and text required
- Detailed course schedule
- Possibility of syllabus modification
- Course objective/learning outcomes
- Course requirements
- Assignments and due dates
- Add/drop date
- Policy on class attendance
- Policy on late/missed exams/assignments
- Method on computing the course grade
- University policy on academic honesty
- Americans with Disabilities Act policy
- Classroom conduct expectations