EPCC Meeting #7

November 22, 2011

3:30-MHB 315

Members in Attendance: Deborah Thien, GEOG; Mark Wiley, CLA; Cherie Dougan, CLA; Liz Philipose, I/ST; Yutian ‘Kate’ Chen, ECON; Markus Muller, RGRLL; Alosi Moloi, AFRS; Gary Griswold, ENGL; Jason Whitehead, POSC

Guests in Attendance: Maulana Karenga, AFRS; Eileen Klink, ENGL; Mark Williams, ENGL

1. EPCC #6 minutes of November 15, 2011: Some revisions are necessary: the guest list is incomplete; some revisions to items were not recorded. ENGL and AFRS are the appropriate acronyms for English and Africana Studies. C1, last bullet for AFRS, streamlining the curriculum, should be added under item E2, new course. Minutes will be sorted out by Deb and Gary later today. With changes, minutes are approved.

2. Announcements/Additions to the Agenda: D. New course, GEOG 500; B. Revisit AFRS 207 to consider for GE A2; Change B to C: RGRLL

3. New Business

  1. College of Liberal Arts
  1. Program Change to BALA: program is an extension that enables degree completion for students who have lots of units but haven’t completed a degree (70-90 units). Technical writing fits better their needs than advanced composition. Hence, removing 300.
  • Changes to program requirements, pg 2, #2: brackets 1-3
  • @ 319 is missing the WGSS version of 319
  • Inconsistency between Area II bullet list and Area II list of courses at the bottom of page 1: should include ANTH 475 in both
  • Add ENGL 300 for students who may want additional writing back to the list Area I
  • COMM 334 need not be added to list of changes Area I since it is already in the program

Approved with suggested changes

  1. a. Course changes ENGL 1, 100; AFRS 1, 100; ASAM 1, 100; and CHLS 1, 104. These are all the same cross-listed class with different numbers and titles. The changes respond to the mandatory early start program by revising the early writing skills non-credit course to an academic for-credit writing course. Students take a sequence of A, B, C, etc. 100A, 100B, 100C Composition. Early start is a week-long program that is unlikely to provide students with enough writing skills. They still need ENGL 1, to be revised as 100A. Counts as elective units.
  • Suggest: Change the name of the ENGL 101 course from Composition to course to “Writing a Research Paper’ which more accurately reflects the content of the course.
  • Should inform GEGC to change course numbers to match these changes

Approved with suggested changes

  1. b. Course number changes from 100 to 100B courses. Already approved SCO. Simple number change approval.
  • Catalogue description of ENGL 100 Composition differs from the SCO description of 100B; they should match. Use the description on the course change form for SCO and catalogue
  • Pg 5, methods of instruction, should be VI
  • Section 8, Textbooks, pg 6, last line: add ‘in consultation with respective department chairs and composition instructors’

Approved with suggested changes

  1. New courses: ESW1 and ESW1V: Early Start Writing 1 (1V for Visiting Students). 1 unit at C3. One week Chancellor-mandated course. Questionable approach given the task of improving low-performing students’ skills, but the mandate is to create a path for students to “start” improving their skills. ESW courses are available to any students in CSU system. 15-hour one-unit course. Grading: 0; or 1. 0 means they began but didn’t finish. 1 means they passed and can go into ENGL 100A. All low-performing students must take ESW to move on to ENGL 100A.
  • Concerns include the problem of instituting a 15-week curriculum in a one-week class; the system of grading that rewards for little or no academic performance; course that can be swapped from one campus to another.
  • ESW does not fall under any criteria for university curriculum policies such as incompletes, withdrawals, grades, prerequisites, attendance, methods of assessment, value of assignments, student expectations, grade appeals, inequities of the grading system and access to 100A.

Courses are tabled until Spring 2012 because of the above serious concerns. EPCC will seek further information.

  1. AFRS 207: Consideration for GE Status A2. GEGC will look at the course to see if it fits A2 Oral Communication description. GEGC doesn’t see a conflict with COMM.
  • New revised version of AFRS 207 responds to EPCC suggestions of November 15: mandatory oral presentation component has been added; student learning outcomes includes theoretical knowledge up front; added another line about rhetorical theories pg 2 SCO.
  • Under justification, expand the appeal to non-majors and general education students while also serving majors and minors in AFRS
  • Question about whether GEGC will agree to status as a skills course in oral communication. The course description and week-by-week SCO breakdown is content-driven rather than skills-based. IV B, Evaluation Instruments mentions oral presentations but not as the primary assignment.
  • Add more speech practice and skills emphasis in more weeks of the course; emphasize oral presentations as the focus of evaluation at IV.B.
  • In IV C, Instructional Strategies, emphasize the practice and oral communication practices, skills and teaching.

Approved with suggested changes

  1. RGRLL Department. Introductory Spanish is not offered at CSULB. Pedagogically, this is a problem because students are asked to jump into the middle of a textbook. At the same time, there’s a need to move students through the first two years in ways that motivate them more quickly. Hence, offering SPAN 100 and SPAN 200. PORT was cut because of budget issues, but PORT is compatible with the program. PORT 100 is for Spanish speakers. PORT 100 is a one-semester course to revive interest in PORT to then revive PORT 101A and 101B, already in the catalogue.
  1. New Course: PORT 100. Fundamentals of Portuguese. 6 units at C4.
  • Course change form: prerequisite/co-requisite is any Foundation course
  • Add statement: ‘not open to students with credit in PORT 101A and/or 101B’
  • Statement on grading: no assignment shall be more than 1/3 of the grade
  • Grading: symbol for ‘less than’, at F

Approved with suggested changes

  1. New Course: SPAN 100, Fundamentals of Spanish. 6 units at C4
  • Course change form: prerequisites/co-requisites is any Foundation course
  • Add: not open to students who have completed SPAN 101B
  • Statement on grading: no assignment shall be more than 1/3 of the grade
  • Grading: symbol for ‘less than’ at F

Approved with suggested changes

  1. New Course: SPAN 200, Intermediate Spanish 6 units at C4.
  2. Course change form: prerequisites completion of SPAN 100 and prerequisites/co-requisite of any Foundation course
  3. Not open to students with credit in SPAN 201A or 201B

Approved with suggested changes

  1. Geography Department
  1. New Course: GEOG 495. Field Training in Geospatial Techniques. Course must be offered this summer because it is connected to a grant. Because it is a self-support course, a course design has to pass through EPCC rather than offering it as a special topic under state support.
  2. C4 could be up to six units. 1 unit at C4; 2-5 units at C17. Students can sign up for different unit value which could be confusing.
  3. Designed for undergraduates to take part in a grant-supported research project. Is the grant buying up the units?
  4. Need clarification on the variable unit values

Approved, pending clarification about the variable unit values and implications for students.

  1. New course: GEOG 500. Geography 400 already exists with identical course description. GEOG 500 is the graduate version of it, to offer an authentic graduate experience to GEOG students. Course was designed two years ago but didn’t make it to the EPCC until now.
  • Question about the distinction between 400/500 split courses and 400 and 500 courses that are essentially the same course, separately listed.
  • 400/500 courses are often taught as one course that allows both grad and undergrads in the same classroom with the same instructor

Approved, pending clarification of the numbering in the catalogue

Meeting adjourned at 5:20.

Thank you, EPCC members, for your thoughtful service this semester.

EPCC normally meets the first and third Tuesday of each month.