Hi Jodi,
Thanks for sharing this advice with us. This will really be of benefit to other beginning instructors as they prepare their syllabus and enter their first teaching assignment.
Gary
I have just completed teaching my first class, and one very important thing I have learned is to make my syllabus much more detailed. This will help clear up a lot of questions that my students had.
I feel a well-prepared syllabus is crucial to the classroom. I use the course syllabus and course calender to stay on track and meet the course objectives. A few times throughout the course I have the students pull out the syllabus and outline to remind them of our path in the course. Many students file their syllabus away after the first class never look at it again, but by reminding them and looking at it together there are no surprises of what I expect out of them and what they expect from me. I love organization and following the syllabus and outline keeps my classes organized.
Many of the courses I teach have a website component with a complete syllabus provided by the college and I am not permitted to change it. Some of those syls are 8+ pages so I create a two-sided, one page handout with a clear statement to refer to the course site for the complete syl. I do this because one piece of paper is a more manageable view of what is expected of them.
I personally use my syllabus to keep myself accountable as well as to inform the studetns about the objectives of the class, how they will be grades, due dated, etc. The syllabus helps keep me on track because I include an outline of what will be covered in each class-and I stick to it-that way their are no surprises for the student. At the end of each class, I pull out a copy of the syllabus and tell the studets what we will be doing in the next class. If something changes, I make sure to tell them and ask them to write it on their copy.
It is absolutely essential to have a well-prepared syllabus. It gives the students direction and lets them know what they will learn and how they will learn it. It outlines specific expectations, deadlines, a schedule, etc. so that students always have something to follow from beginning to end.
Hi Scott,
Very true. We have to be flexible because we cannot account for different variables that might cause us to get off our schedule a bit. So informing the students that there may be some variance from the syllabus in terms of schedule is an important thing to do. They need to realize though that you are talking about just the schedule and that the assignments and course requirements listed in the syllabus are going to remain constant.
Gary
Hi Richard,
I think it is great that you have the syllabus posted two weeks in advance. This should help the students to feel more comfortable at the start of the course because they have had time to read and digest what the syllabus is telling them.
Gary
To me the syllabus is the classroom bible. It is a concise and instructional document that enables the student and the teacher to stay on track during the completion of the course. I try to follow it 100%. I am also amazed at how many colleagues choose to ignore it.
I've found no matter the age of my students, to
have a clearly defined course requirement,ob-
jectives, and time span for the subject matter
being taught and schedule for completed assignments to be turned in helps organize
students and allows them to manage their time
wisely.
It is important to use a well-prepared syllabus to ensure that the instructor has a clear "road map" to what he/she will be covering and equally as important that the students know what the objectives of the course are and how will the students reach these objectives. The syllabus should give the ground rules of the course, text and other materials for the course, required outside reading, what will be covered during each class session, the homework, when quizzes, tests, midterms, finals will be given.
I believe it is important to have a well-prepared syllabus because use it for so many important things. It is a way of telling the students when we will be covering topics, due dates, explain my policies and procedures, and to give them the project rubrics. The syllabus is a lifeline between me and the students.
I once had a student who had his syllabus out every day, checking each item off as it was completed. One day we ran out of time for something, and he immediately brought it to my attention. I explained that I would try to cover everything as it was detailed on the syllabus, but sometimes we wouldn't be sticking exactly to the schedule. I stressed that everything would be covered at some point during the class. It made me realize that I needed to address that flexibility of the syllabus during my opening comments on the first day.
We have recently adopted a great standard format for creating our course syllabus. The consistency has eliminated many questions, and gray areas, for our students. Also getting the syllabus on the student portal 2 weeks before a class starts helps instructors, and students alike.
I agree; a well prepared syllabus make teaching/learning a lot easier.
Hi Tom,
I like the way you use the syllabus and make it a part of the course. Make sure to refer to the syllabus after several class meetings. Have them pull the syllabus out and follow along as you refer to a section within it. This way you are sending a very clear signal about how valuable you think the syllabus is to the course so they will refer to it through out the course and you won't have to answer so many questions related to the basics of the course.
Gary
Hi Rhonda,
Yes, it is important that you can be flexible with your instructional plan based upon the needs of your students. This helps you to be able to target the learning needs of your students.
Gary
In my opinion the well-prepare syllabus helps students to be more informed about course requirements and due dates. . I always tell my students to keep a copy of syllabus in their class folder.
I think is always important to be flexible. Well-prepared syllabus should include information that instructor is allowed to make modifications during a course.
I always try my best to stick to a rigid calendar. That syllabus can save some troble later on when due dates are in question. However, I do believe it is imperative to be flexible and recognize flaws in an organized system. I have had to at time deconstruct an entire plan due to student evaluation or simply non-input from students.
