5/23/19 Today’s Session • Explore ways of intentionally shaping your Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching syllabi to be a more effective tool tailored for the individual contexts of your courses. Building an inclusive and • Discuss ideas and practices about the purpose learner-centered syllabus of the syllabus, how tone affects learner perceptions, syllabus components, and ways to enrich your syllabi. • Reflect on what you learned and what you still need to know. Laura Bestler, Ph.D. Program Coordinator, CELT Building an inclusive and learner-centered syllabus Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching Workshop resources website : Your Best Class (Think • Pair • Share) http://bit.ly/celt-syll-work Think about the best class you have ever completed. • What do you remember? • How was the class structured? (Brain Drain - http://bit.ly/2YHDgaI) Building an inclusive and Building an inclusive and learner-centered syllabus learner-centered syllabus Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching 1
5/23/19 Backwards Design Connecting your course to ISU What should students learn/take Accreditation away from this course? Learning Goals University’s How will I know if students are Strategic Plan learning what they need to know? Feedback & Program Assessment Objectives Plan learning experiences and instruction Course Teaching Approach Objectives From Understanding by Design by Wiggins and McTighe Building an inclusive and Building an inclusive and learner-centered syllabus learner-centered syllabus Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching Connecting Outcomes to Assignments Constructive Course Alignment CELT’s course alignment website: http://bit.ly/coursealignment Building an inclusive and Building an inclusive and learner-centered syllabus learner-centered syllabus Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching 2
5/23/19 What is a syllabus? Is it? Or a syllabus… “A syllabus is the most simply “… contains the information students defined as a concise outline of a need in order to understand what the course study. But it is also the course is all about, where you are trying students’ introduction to the to go with the course, and how it is going to operate.” course, the subject matter, and you.” (Fink, 2013, p. 159) (Nilson, 2016, p. 61) Building an inclusive and Building an inclusive and learner-centered syllabus learner-centered syllabus Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching General Syllabus Components What are Syllabus ‘ Must Haves’ Typical components: An online/hybrid course may include: For Students For the Teacher? For Iowa State Course title (dept/course number info)/ A communication strategy Course name General info Clear description of the time frame and (your contact/TA info; office hours) format Course description and objectives Guidelines for online class participation Evaluation plan (assignment descriptions) Technical requirements and support Detailed course outline with start and end Grading scale and procedures dates Required readings & recommended/optional readings Course/university policies (e.g., attendance, late work, academic integrity, ADA) Course outline/Structure, sequence of (Brain Drain - http://bit.ly/2YHDgaI) activities, due dates for major assignments, tests, and projects Building an inclusive and Building an inclusive and *Nilson (2016) recommends a caveat/disclaimer syllabus is subject to change… learner-centered syllabus learner-centered syllabus (Fink, 2013; Nilson, 2016; Vai & Sosulski, 2011) Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching 3
5/23/19 Download CELT's Mindful and Learner - Centered Syllabus ISU Faculty Handbook: Checklist (PDF) (http://bit.ly/celtsyllabus) 10.6 Course Information Section Instructors shall provide information regarding course content, objectives, and procedures to students during the first week of each course. The information shall include a course syllabus or schedule of proposed topics, readings, and course materials or other description of the course content. The evaluation procedures to be used, as well as expectations for attendance and assignments, shall also be included. (was approved by the Faculty Senate on 11/12/1996) Building an inclusive and Building an inclusive and learner-centered syllabus learner-centered syllabus Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching CELT's Mindful and Learner - Centered Syllabus Checklist • Which component from the Checklist is new Words are chameleons, to you? which reflect the color of • Which components will you consider adding their environment . to your syllabus? --- Learned Hand (Syllabi wording examples read aloud) (Brain Drain - http://bit.ly/2YHDgaI) Building an inclusive and Building an inclusive and learner-centered syllabus learner-centered syllabus Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching 4
5/23/19 Types of Syllabi A Welcoming Syllabus • “Warm” language vs. “cold” Listers: provide a schedule of topics to cover or language chapters to read, but no indication why they are relevant • Invitations instead of commands • Cooperative, welcoming language Scolders: describe at length all the rules and all the consequences for breaking each one versus authoritarian language Rubin, 1985 Building an inclusive and Building an inclusive and learner-centered syllabus learner-centered syllabus Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching E-Mail and Electronic Devices Computers as Tools You may use e-mail to inform me of an absence and I am tired of hearing computer-based excuses for late or scheduled return to class; I do not use e-mail as a discussion incomplete assignments. The technology has been here for forum. E-mail allows you “to hide inside the machine”; if you most of your life, and we have all learned to deal with it. have an important issue to discuss, you need to meet with me Computers are tools, just like hammers, and a carpenter can – in real life – during office hours or by appointment. E-mail is no more blame a hammer for shoddy and incomplete work permanent; it provides a record of your technical writing that you can blame a computer. Account for the time and competency and professionalism. Treat e-mail with the same effort needed to use technology effectively. If you come to me attention to detail and accuracy that you would a formal with one of those soggy “My computer ate my homework” assignment. Any e-mail that you send will be evaluated for its excuses, you will receive a zero for the assignment. technical communication competency. (Syllabi wording examples read aloud) (Syllabi wording examples read aloud) Building an inclusive and Building an inclusive and learner-centered syllabus learner-centered syllabus Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching 5
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