Anatomy of a Syllabus

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Anatomy of a Syllabus

• Baker College
• Effective Teaching Learning

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Importance of the Syllabus

• Students can hit any target that is not moving.
• Dr. Katherine Manley
• Ferris State University
• College of Education

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Syllabus Outline

• Standard Syllabus Cover Page
• Instructor Requirements
• Standard Course Outcomes

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Standard Items

• Most recent version available from Curriculum
  Information in the Solar System
• Your name and contact information

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Instructor Requirements

• Contact Information
• Course Requirements and Evaluation
• Attendance policy
• Grading scale
• Tentative Calendar
• Other Class Policies
• Description of Assignments
• Student Success Policy
• Disclaimer

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Contact Information

• Email address
• Office/lab hours
• Phone number(s)

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Course Requirements Grading

• Based on student accomplishment
• No grading on a curve
• Points are better than letters
• More than just a midterm and final
• Participation yes, attendance no

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Attendance Policy

• Instructor created
• Must be published in the syllabus

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Grading System Methodology

• Determine number of items to be graded
• Determine number of points for each item
• Create grading scale based on total number of
  points
• Determine how each item will be scored
• Special grading policies

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Tentative Calendar

• Do not copy and paste the syllabus guide
• Do include in class and out of class activities
• Do specify that the schedule is tentative

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Description of Assignments

• Requirements
• Due Dates

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Other Class Policies

• Incompletes
• Attendance
• Make-up work
• Late assignments
• Extra credit
• Classroom etiquette

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Class Policy Discussion

• Based on your experiences as both a teacher and a
  student, what other class policies should be
  included?

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Student Success Policy

• Opportunity not a guarantee
• Allow students to re-do work
• What work and how it will be graded is at
  instructor discretion

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Disclaimer

• The only constant is change. Let the students
  know that up front.

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Activity

• With your partner, complete the syllabus review
  activity provided to you by your instructor

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Final Thoughts

• Copy back-to-back with clean originals
• Double check required policies for your campus
  and department
• Borrow and share ideas with others
• Exercise and express your individual style,
  creativity, and personality

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Whats Policy and Whats Not Game

• For each item, see if you know whether it is
• A Baker College System Policy
• A Policy on your campus
• A Policy of your department
• Not a policy

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Whats Policy and Whats Not Game

• Grading Scale
• Typed Name on Cover Page
• Schedule of activities
• Student Success Policy

• Incomplete Grades
• Class attendance as part of grade
• Include instructor email address
• Grading on a curve

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Curriculum Resources Demonstration

• Logging into the Solar System
• Accessing Curriculum Resources
• Retrieving the Syllabus and Course Outcomes

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Questions?