We found 411 results that contain "syllabus design"

The Chronicle of Higher Education offers a step-by-step guide to creating a syllabus with helpful notes about what to include and what to avoid in designing your class and writing the syllabus.

 
Outlined Learning Objectives.
Up until this point, this guide has mostly focused on the instructor listing topics as opposed to objectives. While listing topics has a form of value, the topics may not communicate exactly what you hope students can achieve at the end of the course. For this reason, as much as possible an instructor should consider changing course topics to learning outcomes: concise statements describing the skills or abilities a student should have at the end of a course/unit.
 
Tips for writing learning objectives:

Begin each objective with the phrase, “After participating in this session, students should be able to…”

This is not how it may be phrased in your syllabus but will hopefully provide an effective brainstorming session on how to transform topics into objectives.


Choose verbs that are indicative of specific, measurable and observable behaviors which match desired level of knowledge or skill:

“Recall…”
“Describe…”
“Evaluate…”
“Create…”
Etc.


Write them as an outcome, not as a task.

Your objective should describe what students should be able to do/know as a result of the course/unit.
For example:

“Write a reflection on ______ .” is a task, not an outcome.      





 
Teaching Methods.
Each instructor has their own approach to teaching. The general version of this approach has most likely already been listed in your syllabus. However, now you should consider how well your approach fits with the methods described in the syllabus itself and your goals as an educator. Here are some examples of teaching methods and why you may choose to use them. Reflect on what your own teaching method is and how it is incorporated throughout your syllabus.
 

Lecture-based learning:

Common for large groups, introducing a new topic, or delivering a complex lesson. This type of learning can be efficient for covering large amounts of information; however, it may decrease student engagement and encourage passive learning if done frequently.


Discussion-Based Learning:

Common for encouraging critical thinking, covering literature, philosophy or subjects that would benefit from multiple and diverse viewpoints. This type of learning can help promote active participation and deeper levels of understanding but can be time-consuming and run the risk of being dominated by a few participants if not moderated properly.


Inquiry-Based Learning:

Common in science and project-based learning, or areas where exploration is prioritized. This type of learning hopefully fosters curiosity and independent learning, however, relies heavily on student motivation so it requires heavy facilitation and planning.


Problem-Based Learning:

Common in applied fields such as medicine or engineering which rely on problem solving capabilities. This type of learning strongly develops analytical skills and problem solving but can be extremely challenging for students not used to open-ended tasks and is often affiliated with burnout.


 Flipped Classroom:

Commonly used to engage students in higher-order thinking during class-time as opposed to presenting information. Ideally this will increase active learning and engagement during class but requires access to technology and relies on student motivation outside of class.


Differentiated Instruction:

Common in mixed-ability classrooms, this teaching method is tailored to different student learning styles, needs, and abilities. It is inclusive and student-centered, which may increase student/teacher relationships, but demands heavy planning and flexibility on the part of the instructor.


Montessori Method:

While more common in early development, this teaching technique encourages students to select activities from a range of options, which can encourage independence and self-motivation; however, it requires access to a lot of material and an extensive amount of planning from instructors.



 
Assessment Strategies.
Following the guide through each step means you already have some type of description of your assessments provided. Take this time to explain your strategy and reasoning behind those assessments.
 
Support
Be reflective of how you manage and support students in your class:

What implicit biases are built into your class and syllabus?

What is your stance on ableism?
Are their social/political motivations embedded in the syllabus?


Does your syllabus benefit one student over another?

If students are struggling financially, would that impact their ability to access resources for your class?
If students had a form of neurodivergence, how would that affect their performance in your class?
Do you favor one type of student over another?


What accommodation are you providing for students?

Here are some to consider:

Notes? Recorded Lectures? Audio recordings? Online attendance options?
Physical copies of materials? Electronic ones?
Extended test time? Alternate Test Locations?
Links to additional resources?
Assistive technology? Preferential seating?





 
Here is the time to demonstrate how you teach, set that clear expectation for students, and flesh out what it means for them to be in the class. 

 
Since the syllabus is written to correspond to a single class per a single semester, as opposed to other class resources which may be re-used, it acts as an incredible time capsule into one’s class. This page states all the necessary record keeping one should attempt to keep on their syllabi: Course Information, Topics Covered, Major Assessments.
 
Course Information.

Course Title
Location
Meeting Time(s)
Instructor Name
Instructor email
Names of any Teaching Assistants
Office hours (if available) and location 

Topics Covered.

Provide a list of all topics that will be covered during the semester.
Reflections/Questions to Consider:

What topics should be covered in this course?

What topics have other instructors of this course covered?


Why do you want to cover each of these topics?
Is there adequate time to cover all topics listed?

What parts of each topic do students struggle with? Have you allocated enough time for that struggle?


What online/university resources are available to you to help cover those topics?



Major Assessments.

(Due) Date/Time and Location (if applicable)/ of:

Exams
Final Examination
Planned projects


Reflections/Questions to Consider:

How many projects are you planning to have?

How does that support learning objectives?
Is there enough time for each?


How many exams are you planning to give?

Is there adequate material between each for students to be assessed on?


In your view, are the expectations being placed on students reasonable?



 
If you have all these details present in your syllabus, it will be easy for those in the future to know what major events occurred in the class, when they occurred, and what total material students were exposed to. This allows different universities to compare courses across institutions, researchers to view trends in educational practices over time, and verification for any discrepancies that may come up after the course has ended.

Mandatory reporting
If you are an employee and a student or colleague discloses that she or he was a victim of sexual assault or relationship violence, your response and support can make a big difference.
MSU recognizes the complexities associated with fulfilling your mandatory reporting obligations as an employee while offering support and maintaining the relationship you have built with the student or employee. To that end, MSU has created the University Reporting Protocols in order to provide employees with information about the mandatory reporting process, including what happens when a report is made, as well as tips for responding and supporting students and employees.
Unless identified as a confidential source, all university employees are obligated to promptly report incidents of sexual harassment, sexual violence, sexual misconduct, stalking, and relationship violence that:

Are observed or learned about in their professional capacity
Involve a member of the university community or
Occurred at a university-sponsored event or on university property

Employees are only required to report relationship violence and sexual misconduct of which they become aware in their capacity as a university employee, not in a personal capacity.

For more information about employee mandatory reporting roles and responsibilities, download the University Reporting Protocols.

I am a faculty member or instructor.  Is there recommended language I can put in my syllabus to notify students that I am a mandatory reporter?
(EXAMPLES OF RECOMMENDED LANGUAGE)

Michigan State University is committed to fostering a culture of caring and respect that is free of relationship violence and sexual misconduct, and to ensuring that all affected individuals have access to services.  For information on reporting options, confidential advocacy and support resources, university policies and procedures, or how to make a difference on campus, visit the Title IX website at civilrights.msu.edu.
Limits to confidentiality.  Essays, journals, and other materials submitted for this class are generally considered confidential pursuant to the University's student record policies.  However, students should be aware that University employees, including instructors, may not be able to maintain confidentiality when it conflicts with their responsibility to report certain issues to protect the health and safety of MSU community members and others.  As the instructor, I must report the following information to other University offices (including the Department of Police and Public Safety) if you share it with me:

Suspected child abuse/neglect, even if this maltreatment happened when you were a child;
Allegations of sexual assault, relationship violence, stalking, or sexual harassment; and
Credible threats of harm to oneself or to others.

These reports may trigger contact from a campus official who will want to talk with you about the incident that you have shared.  In almost all cases, it will be your decision whether you wish to speak with that individual.  If you would like to talk about these events in a more confidential setting, you are encouraged to make an appointment with the MSU Counseling and Psychiatric Services.

Accesible Design Checklist: Overview
This post provides an overview checklist for some digital composition accessibility requirements. This is meant to serve as a starting place, rather than a complete list or expert regulations. Accessibility should be considered throughout all parts of the design process, and designing accessible compositions benefits all people, not just those with disabilities. This post is the first part of the Accessible Design Checklist series: 

Overview
Text and Content
Multimedia

Overall Design Accessibility
When looking at the design, composers should consider the overall structure and content.
Design FormatFor digital distribution, web pages with HTML or CSS are the most accessible. Other accessible options (when following the design checklist) are Word or Google Docs. PDFs are only accessible if they have been remediated correctly. DisplayInformation is set to be perceivable in either landscape or portrait modes. The design should not require users to scroll in both up/down and left/right. The design can be zoomed in without losing meaning. The design should be able to be navigated and interacted with using a keyboard alone. HeadingsHeadings use tagged heading structures with hierarchies. The headings do not skip levels. Use the Level 1 Heading designation only once per design.LanguagesThe design’s language is set to the primary language of the document. Any words or phrases in additional languages are set for those words as a different language. NavigationThe design allows for more than one way to find relevant pages within a set of pages. The design also provides content overviews with links so that users may bypass content.OrderThe design provides an easily understandable order to the content. When using lists, use bullet points and order the information logically, such as alphabetically or by data size.TitleThe design has a specific title. This title is displayed in the document name or the tab of a website.
References and Resources for Accessible Design

Level Access’ Must-Have Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) Checklist 
Michigan State University’s Create Accessible Content
University of Washington’s Accessibility Checklist
Web Accessibility in Mind’s WCAG 2 Checklist
Web Accessibility Initiative's Design and Develop Overview

Continue to read more about the checklist in the next part of the series, Accessible Design Checklist: Text and Content.Accessible Design Checklist: Overview © 2024 by Bethany Meadows is licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0. The cover photo, "Close checklist wooden surface" is marked with CC0 1.0.

Accesible Design Checklist: Text and Content
This checklist meant to serve as a starting place, rather than a complete list or expert regulations. Accessibility should be considered throughout all parts of the design process, and designing accessible compositions benefits all people, not just those with disabilities. This post is the second part of the Accessible Design Checklist series: 

Overview
Text and Content
Multimedia

Text and Content Accessibility
When looking at the overall design of content, composers should consider the overall text and content on their designs.
Color ContrastColor alone should not be used to convey meaning. When color is used beside black and white, it should have a color contrast between the text and background of at least 4.5 to 1. Spartan Green is also an acceptable addition to use with white. The colors used should not affect colorblind users.FontThe font chosen should be a sans serif font with no narrow, bold, or decorative features. Preferably, a font that has unique characters (e.g., the I, l, and 1 are different) should be chosen. 

In general, no more than two different fonts should be used.
The font size should be at least 12 points.

HyperlinksHyperlinks should be descriptive, which means that without the context of the sentence around the hyperlink, it should be understandable on its own. Avoid using the full link directly into a design.Inclusive LanguageThere are many considerations for written language within a design. 

The work should avoid jargon and idioms that are not understandable for a wide audience. 
Written work should be concise and understandable. 
Avoid using a word fully capitalized to convey information (if it’s not an acronym). Acronyms should not be used without first defining them.
Avoid using language that excludes and/or harms users, such as ableist language or genderist language. 

SpacingText should be left-aligned, and alignment should not be used to convey meaning. There are many textual spacing properties to consider in designs: 

Line spacing is at least 1.5 times the font size;
Spacing following paragraphs is at least 2 times the font size;
Letter spacing is at least 0.12 times the font size; and
Word spacing is at least 0.16 times the font size.

TablesTables should be used for tabular data rather than visual presentation. Use simple tables with one column and/or one row with headings and avoid merged cells. Tables should have captions, textual contextualization, and all cells filled.
References and Resources for Accessible Design

Level Access’ Must-Have Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) Checklist 
Michigan State University’s Create Accessible Content
University of Washington’s Accessibility Checklist
Web Accessibility in Mind’s WCAG 2 Checklist
Web Accessibility Initiative's Design and Develop Overview

Continue to read more about the checklist in the next part of the series, Accessible Design Checklist: Multimedia.Accessible Design Checklist: Text and Content © 2024 by Bethany Meadows is licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0. The cover photo, "Free close design text computer" is marked with CC0 1.0.

Boston College's Center for Teaching Excellence provides an outline for creating a course that uses the principles of backwards design (meaning that it begins with goals and works backwards to content).

Beginning to Teach Inclusively
How do I encourage students to bring diverse perspectives to the subject matter I teach? How can I promote inclusive behavior of students working in groups? These were just a few questions posed by approximately 45 doctoral students and postdocs at the “Cultivating an Inclusive Classroom” workshop I ran last year with Dr. Sheila Contreras. To begin answering them, Inside Teaching posts over the next few weeks will address different areas for you to focus on toward a more inclusive classroom. In today’s post, I’ll discuss where to begin: making your curriculum design choices more inclusive.
What Do I Mean By “Inclusive”?
Before I start discussing how your content and curriculum design choices can be more inclusive, let’s start with a working definition for an inclusive classroom. According to the Association of American Colleges & Universities, inclusive classrooms are learning spaces where “active, intentional, and ongoing engagement with diversity” occurs “in ways that increase awareness, content knowledge, cognitive sophistication, and empathetic understanding of the complex individuals interact within systems and institutions.” 
 
So, as an instructor concerned about inclusive teaching, I encourage you do consider how your course content and assignments both represent a diverse (for example, gender, sexual orientation, race/ethnicity, nationality, epistemological perspectives) set of scholarly voices and how you can hold yourself – and your students—to more inclusive standards of behavior and discourse in the classroom.
Inclusive Classrooms Require Intentional Thought and Not “Extra Work”
Graduate students and other beginning instructors are often overwhelmed by the volume of things they need to learn about teaching in a college classroom or lab. Creating an inclusive environment in your classroom does not require “extra work” – what it requires is “intentional thought” in how you plan and implement your classes. This involves a deliberate awareness of the decisions you’re making and the impact they have on how you represent your discipline and the multiple voices connected to it. I’d argue that this level of intentionality is a key hallmark of curriculum design across disciplines. To help with this intentionality toward more inclusive classrooms, I provide the following four tips below.
Four Tips Toward Inclusive Curriculum Design
(1) Select the work of scholars from different cultural or paradigmatic backgrounds
Make sure you are presenting a variety of voices and perspectives across the course readings, videos and material you select.  Additionally important is presenting a full spectrum of disciplinary paradigms in the field so that students have a full picture of disciplinary conversation(s).
(2) Acknowledge the limitations of course material with regards to demographic representation
Frame what you are providing and point out the potential limitations of your materials. This can help students see how and why you have made the decisions you did. This can also help students to get a better window into your teaching decisions and engage alongside you critically.
(3) Pay attention to WHO and HOW you represent in your presentation slides, case studies, videos, and guest panels
As with our tips above, it’s important that the slides, case studies, and videos you use reflect multiple voices and backgrounds. Additionally, it’s important to pay attention to how various individuals and groups are portrayed in these materials. In their portrayals, are you sending the messages you want sent to a diverse group of students?
(4) Maximize the inclusion of all student voices in instructional activities
Make sure you provide multiple opportunities and safe spaces in your classroom for all student voices. Not all students will immediately respond to one way of engaging in the classroom, so make sure your approaches vary and respond to what you have come to know about the different students in class. We will share more specific tips about instructional activities in later posts.
 
Additional Resources
The goal of the Inclusive Teaching Workshop, in addition to soliciting student questions, was to present a Framework for Inclusive Teaching, modified from resources from both a resource from the Center for Research on Teaching and Learning at University of Michigan and a paper produced by the Bok Center for Teaching and Learning at Harvard.
 
We’d like to know: What have you done to make your course content and curriculum more inclusive? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below or with us on social media using the hashtag “#iteachmsu.”
 

 
Originally posted at “Inside Teaching MSU” (site no longer live): McDaniels, M. Cultivating Inclusive Classrooms: Inclusive Curriculum Design. inside teaching.grad.msu.edu