AAC: Couse Proposal and Syllabi Materials - What to Include

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AAC’s Recommendations for What to Include in Course Proposals and Syllabi Materials

 

The Academic Affairs Committee (AAC) is composed of faculty members appointed by Faculty Council, and typically draws from across the fields and areas of expertise represented in our faculty.  As such, the first, and perhaps most important piece of guidance in preparing a proposal (more information on what falls under the AAC’s purview can be found on the ‘Course Proposal Submission Guidelines’ page) is to contextualize the course material and work expectations for colleagues who may be reading about your course from another disciplinary perspective.  While the AAC expects an academically demanding course (consistent with its proposed level), what constitutes ‘academically demanding’ work is variable across disciplines (such as in what kinds of source material is used, and what kinds of assessments are used and weighed most heavily).   

 

The full requirements for what should be included in a proposal can be found on the appropriate form.  The items below represent advice from current and past AAC members concerning the parts of proposals that are most frequently deficient. 

 

Advice on what ought to be included in a successful proposal 

  • Clarification of assessment.  That is, the AAC looks for a clear understanding of how course goals are assessed, how work expectations for various assignments are reflected in the relative weight of those assignments, and how different components of the students’ grade are determined.  In particular, AAC often finds that syllabi could be more clear about how participation will be assessed, and when and how feedback will be provided; if participation is a significant portion of a student’s grade, we urge you to be especially thorough here. 

  • A list of the course, departmental, and university learning goals this course meets.  While we encourage the inclusion of course goals in your syllabus, the proposal should place those goals in the context of larger departmental and university goals. 

  • An explanation of how your course meets departmental and university learning goals.  This, for example, can take the form of a mapping of assessments to learning goals, or a description of how those goals are met through course activities. 

What to include in your Syllabus

  • A clear indication of how you will meet contact hours expectation for finals week. St. Lawrence University counts finals week towards its contact hour requirement. Having students sit for an exam meets this requirement, or, one might alternatively require students to submit other final work. While faculty may use discretion in choosing how to meet the contact hour requirement in the context of their course, the AAC expects to see how the proposed course meets this requirement.
  • Assessment criteria (complete listing of assignments, relative weight, and how final grades will be calculated).
  • Course Description
  • Course learning goals
  • Information about any required commitments outside of class time (labs, field trips, readings, lectures, etc.)
  • Information about the schedule, including any exam dates and due dates for significant assignments
  • Course readings
  • Contact information and office hours
  • Policies (including pass/fail policy)
  • Statements: o Academic Honesty Statement (found in the Student Handbook: http://www.stlawu.edu/associate-dean-student-life)
  • Student Accessibility Services Statement (see: http://www.stlawu.edu/disability-and-accessibility-services)