Office of Academic Planning and Assessment, updated May 2017

Syllabus Requirements and RecommendedTemplate

SyllabusRequirements

In accordancewiththeregulations laidoutintheGWFacultyHandbook,*updated April 2015,Section2.7.3.4, the syllabus forall proposedcourses should includethefollowing:

1.Bulletincoursedescription.

2.Courseprerequisites, if any.

3.Learningoutcomes thatstatedescriptionsofbehaviors orskills thatstudents willbeableto demonstrateattheendoftheclassorunit,(see:assessment.gwu.edu/course-assessment).

4.Average amount of direct instruction or guided interaction with the instructor and average minimum amount of independent (out-of-class) learning expected per week.**

5.Requiredtextbooks,materials,and recommended readings.

6.Week-by-weekscheduleoftopics tobepresented.

7.Descriptionof assignmentsandother courseassessments thatdelineatehowstudentperformancewill beevaluated.

8.Statementon Universitypolicyonobservanceof religious holidays(seetext,below).

9.Statementregarding accommodations for studentwith disabilities (seetext, below).

10.ReferencetotheGWAcademicIntegrityCode(seesuggestedtext,below).

11.ReferencetotheSecurityand SafetyPolicy(seesuggestedtext,below).

*For theGWFaculty Handbooksee

**This information is now required on all syllabi in accordance with federal regulation. For moreinformationonGW’s credithour policysee This requirement was added after publication of the Faculty Handbook.

RecommendedSyllabusTemplate

Course andContactInformation:

Course:[department, coursetitle, number, section] Semester:[semester, year]

Meetingtime: [day,time:from-to] Location:[building, room]

Instructor:

Name:

Campus Address: Phone:

E-mail:[PleaseuseGWaddress]

Officehours:

Bulletin Course description:

[Thecoursedescriptionshould bebrief(1-2sentences), written inthepresenttense, andincludeonlythe primarythemes/topicsto becovered.Pleaseavoid using jargon. Approvedcourses can usetheGWBulletin description.]

Course prerequisites,if any:

[Listall prerequisitecourses using departmentalcodeandcoursenumber.In addition, listspecificskills,knowledge, credits completed, andthelike, if appropriate.]

Learningoutcomesthatstate descriptionsof behaviorsorskillsthatstudentswillbe ableto demonstrate at the endof thecourseorunit:

[Pleaseensurethatthelearningoutcomes areappropriatetothelevelatwhichthecourseis designed. Avoid verbs like“understand”or“know;”instead, useverbssuch as analyze, synthesize, apply, andevaluate.]

As a result of completing this course, students will be able to:

1.

2.

3. [etc.]”

[Note:Forguidanceonwriting learningoutcomes, see:assessment.gwu.edu/course-assessment]

Average amount of direct instruction or guided interaction with the instructor and average minimum amount of independent (out-of-class) learning expected per week:

[On-campus courses—To calculate the averageminimumamount of out-of-class orindependent learningexpected per week use the following formula to calculate the average minimum amount of time expected for out-of-class or independent learning per weekfor inclusion on the syllabus:Ina 15-weeksemester, includingexamweek, students areexpectedtospendaminimumof100minutesof out-of-classworkfor every50minutesof directinstruction, for aminimumtotalof 2.5hours aweek. A3-credit courseshould include2.5 hoursof directinstructionanda minimumof5hours of independentlearning, totaling a minimum of 7.5 hours perweek.

Online and hybrid courses—The number of direct and independent learning minutesforonline and hybrid courses vary. For each credit hour,students areexpectedtospend a total average of 2.5 hours per week of combined direct and out-of-class learning for a total of 37.5 hours per 15-week semester.

Courses with irregular class meetings—For courses that might not meet in class on a weekly basis, such as research and independent study courses and internships, the number of direct and independent learning minutes may vary. For each credit hour, students areexpectedtospend a total average of 2.5 hours per week of combined direct and out-of-class learning for a total of 37.5 hours per 15-week semester.

Course workload estimator:Faculty may wish to use the “course workload estimator” developed by Rice University. This tool allows the user to estimate how much time to allot for different types of reading assignments. See

Requiredtextbooks,materials,andrecommendedreadings:

[Listall requiredtextbooks,workbooks, websites, etc.

Listall recommendedor supplemental courselearningmaterials

Clearlyidentifywhichmaterials arerequired, recommended, orsupplemental]

Author / Title / Edition

Week-by-week schedule of topics to be presented:

A detailed breakdownof courseassignments and duedates bylessonmodule. Including assignment descriptions,methodofassessment/evaluation, andpointvalueis recommended.]

Date / Topic(s) and readings / Assignment(s) due

Assignments

[A detailed breakdownof courseassignments and duedates bylessonmodule. Including assignment descriptions,methodofassessment/evaluation, andpointvalueis recommended.]

Assignment / Description / TotalPoints
TotalPossible Points

Grading

Listwhatwill becounted and percentages.[Forexample:

  • midtermexam(__%)
  • paper (__%)
  • final exam(__%)
  • class participation/attendance( __%)

Universitypolicies

Universitypolicyonobservanceof religiousholidays

In accordancewith Universitypolicy,studentsshouldnotifyfaculty duringthefirstweekofthesemesteroftheir intentionto beabsentfromclassontheir day(s)ofreligiousobservance. For details and policy, see: students.gwu.edu/accommodations-religious-holidays.

Academicintegritycode

Academicdishonesty is defined as cheatingofanykind, including misrepresentingone'sownwork,takingcredit for theworkofotherswithoutcreditingthemandwithoutappropriateauthorization, andthefabricationof information. For details andcompletecode,see:studentconduct.gwu.edu/code-academic-integrity

Supportforstudentsoutsidetheclassroom

DisabilitySupport Services(DSS)

Anystudentwhomayneedan accommodation basedonthepotential impactofa disabilityshouldcontact the Disability SupportServicesofficeat202-994-8250 intheRomeHall, Suite 102, toestablisheligibilityandto coordinatereasonableaccommodations. Foradditional informationsee:disabilitysupport.gwu.edu/

MentalHealthServices202-994-5300

TheUniversity'sMental Health Servicesoffers 24/7assistanceandreferral toaddress students' personal, social, career,andstudyskills problems. Services for students include:crisis andemergencymental health consultations confidentialassessment,counselingservices(individual andsmallgroup), and referrals. For additional informationsee:counselingcenter.gwu.edu/

Safetyandsecurity

Inthecaseof anemergency, if atall possible,theclass shouldshelter in place. Ifthebuildingthattheclassis in isaffected, followtheevacuation proceduresforthebuilding. After evacuation,seekshelter ata predetermined rendezvous location.

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