Syllabus Guide

This is something I wrote for New Faculty Orientation (this version is from August 2008). It may be useful. Julie

Include on each syllabus:

• Course name, course number, name, section number, and credit hours
• Instructor Name, Phone number, E-mail address, home page URL (if you have one), office number and office hours
• Academic Semester and Year
• Meeting Days and Times
• Important dates, including: Mid-Term Date (Last day to withdraw with a “W”), tests and/or major assignments, University holidays during the term
• Prerequisites, if any
• Course Outcomes or Objectives
• Grading System (be specific!)
• Attendance Policy (be specific!)
• Make-up Policy (be specific!)
• Textbooks and other required books, supplies, supplementary materials, etc. (Title, author, date, current required edition; ISBN number is useful as well)

Be Sure You Build Into Your Syllabus / Course Plan:

• Students may add or drop courses until the end of the first week of classes—your roster may change, and students may not be penalized for work they “missed”
• Engagement measure (you must report whether each student is Engaged, Not Engaged, or has not attended; this report is due at the end of the third week of classes)
• Mid-term grades (you must report Satisfactory or Unsatisfactory for each student; this is due just before the middle of the course so students have information on which to base their withdrawal decisions)

Academic Honesty and Disruptive Behavior
Policies on student conduct and academic integrity are in the University’s “Student Handbook”.  This can be accessed by including on the syllabus the following URL: http://www.spsu.edu/student/handbook.html#acedreg
You can also refer your students to an excellent document on academic honesty prepared by SPSU faculty Bob Brown and Bob Harbort: http://www.spsu.edu/cs/faculty/bbrown/papers/conduct.html

ADA Compliance Statement
 “If you have a documented disability as described by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) that may require you to need assistance attaining accessibility to instructional content to meet course requirements, we recommend that you contact the ATTIC at 678.915.7361 as soon as possible.  It is then your responsibility to contact and meet with your instructor.  The ATTIC can assist you and the instructor in formulating a reasonable accommodation plan and provide support in developing appropriate accommodations for your disability. Course requirements will not be waived but accommodations will be made, when appropriate, to assist you to meet the requirements”.

This list is intended to provide helpful suggestions—check with your department head for any departmental requirements. You can see Julie Newell’s syllabi (feel free to borrow anything you find useful) at: http://www.spsu.edu/sis/newell

Last updated: 2009-08-15 17:44
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