DEPARTMENT OF ARTS & HUMANITIES

MISCELLANEOUS POLICIES OF INTEREST TO STUDENTS

(The following is from a Department directive to Instructors about information to be provided students; Most if not all of the information required for PHIL 3375 is in Guide To Successful Completion of Course which can be found by clicking on the link)

1. Please stipulate in clear language all policies governing the following: Attendance, Tardiness, Grading Methods, Number and Kind of Evaluative Instruments, Due Dates, Late Work, Missed Work, Office Hours (and availability—i.e. email, telephone, etc.), and anything else that might be misinterpreted or assumed by either the student or instructor. No one is dictating how these things should be done (within the perimeters of university policy, of course), but it is important that even though they may seem obvious, they should be spelled out. Student awareness of specific language and application thereof is developing at phenomenal rate; this may be testimony to the effectiveness of our rhetoric program.

2. Assignments should be detailed where appropriate, particularly with regard to reading lists or the participation or viewing of performances, exhibits, concerts, etc. Any required activity or endeavor must be specified as to time, place, and cost to the student, if any.

3. Any changes in a syllabus calendar, especially those regarding reading assignments, exam or other due dates, alteration of order of material or addition or elimination of materials, changes in course policy regarding the number or weight of evaluative instruments or anything else that might have an impact on a student’s grade should be given to the class in writing. Oral announcements are not sufficient to avoid student grade disputes based on incidental syllabus changes.

4. The university policies regarding academic dishonesty changed as of last year. Please review the university catalogue on the website and be sure that your syllabus reflects these policies as published thereon. Each syllabus should include a statement on academic honesty, making it clear to students that academic dishonesty includes cheating, plagiarism, collusion, and falsifying academic records.

5. The university policies regarding incompletes changed as of last year. Please review the university catalogue on the website and be sure that your syllabus reflects these policies as published thereon. Be especially aware that to obtain an incomplete, a student must have completed 70% of the coursework and must have a reasonable expectation of completing the course in a specified time period. Both the student and the instructor must sign the incomplete form.

6. University policy regarding physically disabled students have also been changed in the past few years. Please review the university catalogue on the website and be sure that your syllabus reflects these policies as published thereon. It would be useful to put the number of the Office of Disability Services on there (ext. 6104), as well.

--In summary, All Syllabi, at the minimum, should contain the following:

A. A description of the purpose and content of the course.

B. Instructor information, including instructor’s name, office location, telephone numbers, email address, and office hours.

C. A list of catalogue prerequisites for the course.

D. List of all required and recommended readings for the course.

E. Weekly lecture sequence and calendar of due dates.

F. Method of grading and/or evaluation.

G. Penalties for poor attendance, missed examinations, late or missed assignments and makeup opportunities (if any).

H. Policies governing incompletes.

I. Policies governing academic dishonesty, disabled students, and other general university policies.

• General

1. Grade Changes. At the end of the spring semester, the number of grade change forms filed rose to epidemic proportions. Some instructors filed changes for as much has half a course. Recognizing that mistakes do happen, particularly mathematical mistakes, especially in the large sections where more than one person is working with student grades, the unfortunate appearance has been created that some instructors are using the incomplete as a way of circumventing the new, stricter rules governing incompletes. We are certain this is not the actual case among A&H faculty; however, we must request that more attentive care be given to the figuring and reporting of final grades, particularly in classes with lower enrollments; otherwise, we have been notified, that if the inordinate number of grade change requests, particularly those involving “clerical error” or “instructor’s error” does not decline, then each request for grade change will have to be accompanied with appropriate documentation to explain the change. This will be time consuming and annoying to all.

2. Midterm Grades. As usual, midterm grades for freshmen will have to be reported on time and in good order. Please plan your evaluative instruments and due dates accordingly. Be aware that you should be able to report a reasonably accurate reflection of a student’s academic progress in your course by the middle of the semester. Specific due dates for these reports will be forthcoming.

3. Course Fees. Course fees are higher this year for most all Arts and Performance area courses. Although it is not necessary to post the fee for a course on the syllabus, it probably would be a good idea for individual faculty members to know what the fees will be for the courses they teach. A full schedule of fees is available from Kathryn Evans, and faculty wanting to know what the fee is for a specific course should email or go by her office. The same would be true of students questioning the fee for any given course.

4. New Curriculum. The new curriculum has worked some confusion (as we anticipated) into the schedule of classes and course coordination. Many students, particularly upper division students, may find that the courses they are taking to fulfill requirements no longer do so or that the courses have been redesignated to a different division. Grandfathering is possible in many cases, but in some, alternatives will have to be worked out between students and their individual advisors. It would be useful to state on your syllabus whether or not a course fulfills the state General Education Requirement, but this might cause confusion, if you’re not sure. If you wish to put it on the syllabus, please check the 2003 interim catalogue on line to make sure the language regarding General Education (Core Curriculum) is present.
• There is a new drop policy in effect as of this fall term. Flyers outlining the specific are available in the A&H Suite, and it’s also outlined on the website. In a word, it’s complicated. It requires you to keep abreast of specific dates on the academic calendar. If you publish anything about the drop policy as a part of your syllabus, you might want to review this and make any changes warranted. If not, at least be aware of the new and somewhat more strident policy regarding Ws and WP and WF grade assignments. This may have some negative impact on your ordinarily affable relationship with the more lethargic in your classes; be that as it may, forewarned is forearmed.
• There is a new communications policy in effect as of the fall term. Effective August 1, all electronic communications between students and faculty and faculty and students must go through the UTD server using UTD email addresses. All instructional faculty and all students are assigned a UTD email address, and this is the address that must be used for all official communications. Many people have asked what will happen if this policy is violated. I have no idea. But it is in place for your own protection as well as to establish a means whereby grievances and disputes stemming from a claim of emails unsent, unreceived, or unacknowledged can be quickly settled. In sum, depart from this policy at your hazard.*
• We are under notice from the administration that it is vitally important that all faculty protect student privacy. Of specific concern is the dissemination of student social security numbers. You should take all precautions to protect student social security numbers from being seen by any unauthorized person. It’s probably best if you don’t even see them. As these numbers are sometimes communicated via email or published roll sheets, you might consider keeping these away from prying eyes. Identity theft is a growing concern and the reason behind this initiative.
• An increasing number of our students are subject to being called for active military duty, either for short or for extended periods of time. In some cases, considerable advance notice is given; in other cases, it is not. The university’s policy is that we will do whatever is necessary to accommodate any student who is called to active military duty. This may work some inconvenience on some instructors, but you are asked to be as cooperative as possible should a student approach you with the situation.
• Midterm grades will be due, once more, at, ahem, midterm. Faculty who have freshmen enrolled in their classes should be alert to this requirement and should be able to offer a reasonable assessment of a student’s progress and standing in a course at midterm.
• Classes are going to be extraordinarily full this fall; some of you, even the hoary-headed veterans amongst our happy band, may be facing more actual students than ever before. This may necessitate the establishment and/or enforcement of more strident policies regarding attendance, late work, and make-up exams, etc. If this is the case, then it’s a very good idea to establish those policies in writing on the course syllabus and to make sure that all students are aware of them.