ACU Syllabus Template.docx

 [Semester (such as Fall 2014)] Syllabus for Course Number and TitleCourse SummaryIn this section, provide an “executive summary” of your course to help prospective students get an overview of the course. Include such information as:Course number and title:Catalog description: Use a short description of the course as it will exactly appear in the course catalog.Credit hours: List the number of credit hours students can earn by completing this course.Intended audience: Describe the characteristics of the students for whom this course is intended. Prerequisites/corequisites: Describe what prerequisites or corequisites you expect students to have when signing up for this course. Include skill sets if necessary.Meeting time: List time and days of the week classes meet. If it is an online class, indicate when the class starts, include time zone information. Classroom location: Describe where your class meets. Add lab location too if needed. Do not use abbreviation of the building name the first time you mention it. Here is a link to the ACU campus map if needed ()If this is an online course, describe how students access your course. Include information such as the URL for accessing course content, log in information, technical support if students run into issues accessing the course.About the Instructor(s) Professor’s name, title, or rank: Professional website (optional): Office location: Phone numbers: If you anticipate a change of phone numbers, a good idea would be to get a Google Voice number and link it to your phone. You can pair your Google Voice number with any phone number you may use during the semester. Check with the HelpDesk or the Adams Center for assistance in doing that.Email address: Ideally you use your ACU email address and encourage students to do the same.Contact expectations: You may want to provide additional information about your contact preference, for instance, Explain how soon students expect to hear from you if they contact you by email;Ask them to use their ACU email to email you as that will be easier to identify them. If they communicate to you by email, require them to include the full names in case there are different students with the same first names;Explain whether you would like students to text to your phone, leave a voicemail or whether you’d like students to contact you in the evenings and weekends.Teaching Philosophy: Please write about your teaching philosophy here. You may include scripture(s) that you may find relevant for this course, as well as faith/learning resources that your students can utilize.Mission StatementsACU Mission: The mission of Abilene Christian University is to educate students for Christian service and leadership throughout the world.College Mission: Please include the mission statement of your college here.Department Mission: Please include the mission statement of your department here.Learning ObjectivesDescribe here what kind of competencies you would expect students to master after taking this course. Be as specific and measurable as possible. You might want to think about the ABCD model of developing learning objectives (Heinrich, et al., 1996) when writing competencies as well as the measurement instruments:A (Audience): When students are expected to perform something, who would be their intended audience your course teaches them to address? B (Behavior): What should your student be able to do? C (Condition): Under what conditions do you students to demonstrate the behaviors;D (Degree): How well do you expect students to be demonstrating these behaviors. Example:By the end of this course, you will develop the following competencies, and in the form below we also describe the instruments that will be used to evaluate your mastery of such competencies: CompetencyMeasurement InstrumentExampleDemonstrate mastery of key terms and ideas relating to gaming design and the theories employed to study them.Weekly quizzesCourse ContentOutline: Provide an outline or main topics of what will be covered in this course, or include it in the course calendar (as shown later in this section).Format of Class: Describe what a typical class/module looks like. Will it consist of lectures, discussions, group activities, quizzes, or any other activities?Course Calendar: In your course calendar, you might want to include such details as: exams dates, assignments, due dates and other deadlines, schedule of readings and topics, as well as a statement to reserve right to modify the calendar as necessary . Consider using a form like the one below to describe weekly/daily activities for your course throughout the semester. Customize this form for the specific needs of your class. If your syllabus gets extremely long, create a separate item in your LMS and mention here instead that they should find the course schedule in the course site. Examples: If this is a face-to-face class:WeekTopicLecture Reading MaterialsAssignmentsTestsAugust 29Course introductionUnit 1 Classification Chapter 1September 1Lab 1: MicroscopesQuiz 1September 2September 5….If this is an online class: WeekTopicLecture Reading MaterialsAssignmentsTestsWeek 1(August 29, -September 2) Course IntroductionWatch my lecture video under “Course ModulesChapters 1 and 2Participate in Discussion 1 on the Discussion ForumSubmit your paper topic proposalComplete Quiz 1 in the “Quizzes” folder Week 2…You will notice that with an online course, you have to be very explicit where to find what. Provide folder information unless you have explained it using some other methods, such as a screencast session orienting students to the navigation of your course.Instructional MaterialsTextbook: Provide such details of your textbook as: title of the book, author(s), publisher, year of publication, edition. You might also want to add textbook information separately in your course site. You may also want to provide a link to the campus library: materials (optional): Explain to students if you require other learning materials, such as:Books reserved at the library for them to read,A Netflix account to watch certain movies required by your class,Access methods for a university online database,Access methods to materials you post to course sites (include the folder where such materials are posted).AssessmentAssessment activities: Explain what kind of assessment activities you have in this class, how they are graded, and how you will weigh the grades. Also explain whether you have some non-graded, formative evaluation activities in your course.Example:Assessment ActivitiesGrades PossibleWeightingAttendance and Participation 10010% Five assignments at 100 points each50050% 10 Quizzes at 10 points each10010% Mid-term exam and final exam at 100 each20020% Class presentation (100 points)10010% Total1000 (without bonus)100%Final Grade Calculation: Explain how you calculate the letter grade based on the grading. Range of PointsFinal Letter Grade90%-100%A80%- 89%B70%-79%C60%-69%DBelow 59%FExtra credit opportunity (optional)Explain whether you will award extra credit for certain activities or behaviors. Assessment Logistics [optional]: When you give students tests or assignments, you might want to explain in detail how your quizzes, exams and other assessment activities are logistically arranged. Ask yourself the following questions when you describe your assessment methods:Will you provide study guides beforehand?What are the exams generally like? The format (multiple choice/True or False/Essay)? Length of time? Attempts allowed? Proctor needs?Are students expected to bring laptops or other devices to class to complete exams or quizzes?In cases of assignment, what kind of file format do you expect students to use in submitting documents to you and how do you intend to receive such assignments (via a learning management system, for instance)?How many attempts do you give to students for assignment submissions?If you place your assessment activities online in a learning management system, where are they located?What do you expect for student writing, in terms of spelling, grammar and academic style (APA 6th, for instance) ? (Explain also to students that they can use the Writing Center if they need help with their writing.) Rules for Discussing Grades: Explain how you expectation students to address concerns with grades. Discourage discussions about grades in class as this is private information and should be regarded as such.Course PoliciesAttendance Explain your attendance policy in class. If the students miss a number of classes, what consequences will they face? Consider also what you mean by attendance for an online course. Do students have to log in to the class site every day, or at least a certain number of days during a week? Students would appreciate having some guidance here as not all students have the same motivation or self regulation when studying online.You might also want to explain your rule about absences for athletes who will be training during a certain time of the day, or students who engage in school-related activities such as performances, and how you expect them to make up for missed lessons.TardinessExplain your definition of “tardiness” and how that affects their attendance grades.ParticipationExplain how you expect students to participate in your classes. If you are teaching an online class, explain how you often you expect them to log in, how much you want them to participate in class activities, such as discussions.You may also explain your expectation about class decorum, misconduct in class, and whether you permit food and/or drinks in your class or lab sessions. Or simply refer them to the ACU student handbook for such policies. It would be wise to highlight certain aspects of these expectations if certain behaviors pose special challenges for your classes.Inclement weather In inclement weather conditions when campus is closed, how do you plan to teach or communicate with students? You can use your learning management system to conduct a wide range of teaching activities, such as posting reading materials, chat, discuss via the discussion board, etc.Late assignment/examExplain whether you accept late assignments. If yes, how would turning in late assignments affect grades? Explain whether you allow students to take exams late. If yes, how would that affect their grades?Academic integrity:Consider using the standard text below. Customize where necessary.[Violations of academic integrity and other forms of cheating, as defined in ACU’s Academic Integrity Policy, involve the intention to deceive or mislead or misrepresent, and therefore are a form of lying and represent actions contrary to the behavioral norms that flow from the nature of God. Violations will be addressed as described in the Policy. While the university enforces the Policy, the most powerful motive for integrity and truthfulness comes from one’s desire to imitate God’s nature in our lives. Every member of the faculty, staff and student body is responsible for protecting the integrity of learning, scholarship, and research. The full Policy is available for review at the Provost’s office web site: .]Questionable materials: Consider using the standard text below. Customize where necessary. [Occasionally, Abilene Christian University course designers and professors will include readings or audio-visual materials in courses that some individuals might deem offensive or questionable. The selection of activities, readings, and media are thoughtfully and prayerfully made. The decision to include such materials is made after careful consideration of several questions:Does the material simulate or portray actual life experience that enhances the learning potential of this course?Does the material deliver the information or experience in a manner that does not overly exaggerate or exploit the portrayal?Are there other, less objectionable, materials that could be employed to provide an equal or superior learning experience?When such questionable materials are employed, every effort is made to prepare students for exposure to the materials and to provide an appropriate advisory statement.]Technology useEvery student on campus probably has a digital device to use. Professors on the campus use a variety of ways to handle their uses in and outside of classes. Some make use of them in or outside of classes to help students learn, some ban them in class while using applications like OpenClass to communicate with students outside of class. Some allow laptops and other devices in class at their own discretion. Some do not mind students bringing such devices to class, but expect students to use them productively and responsibly (to take notes and conduct research for instance.) Think about what your students expect and decide on your own rules so that such technologies can be used productively for you. Your technology use policy can include such items as:Laptop use in classSmart Phone/Phone use in classUse of a learning management system (such as OpenClass, CourseSites or Moodle) in or outside classUniversity ResourcesSpecial Needs (ADA): Consider using the standard text below. Customize where necessary.[Abilene Christian University is dedicated to removing barriers and opening access for students with disabilities in compliance with ADA and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. The Alpha Scholars Program facilitates disability accommodations in cooperation with instructors. In order to receive accommodations, you must be registered with Alpha Scholars Program, and you must complete a specific request for each class in which you need accommodations. If you have a documented disability and wish to discuss academic accommodations, please call 325-674-2667.]Campus Services Consider using the standard text below. Customize where necessary.[Students are encouraged to seek university help for issues with other students, mental health, physical health, and spiritual health. The university has a variety of services that students may find helpful, for instance, Team 55 where you can find help with technical issues; the Writing Center where you can seek help with their writing; the campus Bookstore where you can purchase textbooks; and the Brown Library where you can check materials online. Check this link to student service page on the university website for further information: .]References: Heinrich, R., Molenda, M., Russell, J.D., Smaldino, S.E. (1996). Instructional Media and Technologies for Learning. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Merrill. ................
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