A campus of The California State University

Office of the Academic Senate • One Washington Square • San Jose, California 95192-0024 •408-924-2440  Fax: 408-924-2451

F06-2

At its meeting of July 17, 2006, the Executive Committee acting on behalf of the Academic Senate, passed the following Policy Recommendation presented by

Sigurd Meldal for the Instruction and Student Affairs Committee.

POLICY  RECOMMENDATION

GREENSHEETS (SYLLABI)

Rescinds S05-14  

Whereas:      Greensheets provide an opportunity for faculty to openly communicate with students so that students more thoroughly understand the course requirements; and

Whereas:      Greensheets uphold professional responsibility by providing full information to students to increase student success in the classroom; and

Whereas:      As stated in university policy S99-8 Academic Freedom and Professional

                        Responsibility, "Professional responsibility is the natural complement of the academic freedom essential to the university's mission. Through their responsible professional conduct, faculty members promote and protect academic freedom." and

Whereas:      Responsible professional conduct includes announcing course requirements in a timely fashion; explaining how course grades are determined; assigning marks based only on criteria providing dependable evaluation of academic performance; and prohibiting the belated imposing of requirements not originally made clear; and

Whereas:      It is desirable to support accessibility of students to faculty; and

Whereas:      Confusion exists among faculty and students about University policy about grading on attendance and participation; and

Whereas:      There is a need to enhance the students’ understanding of the professor's goals and the criteria upon which the students’ performance will be evaluated, and

Whereas:      There is a need for accurate and consistent language on greensheets regarding university policies; and

Whereas:      The SJSU Accommodations Advisory Board has recommended language for greensheets to ensure SJSU compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act,

Whereas:      There is a need to enhance the students’ understanding of the Academic Integrity policy including faculty requirements under that policy and University policy F06-1 states “It is the role and obligation of each faculty member to: 1) Apprise classes of the Academic Integrity Policy and the ethical standards required in courses and the permissible procedures in class work and/or examinations. This information should be referenced in course syllabi (and other materials as appropriate) and

Whereas:      There is a need to encourage discussion of expected classroom behavior; and

Whereas:      It is desirable to provide resources for faculty, especially new faculty and lecturers, in syllabi development; and

Whereas:      The Office of Judicial Affairs has changed name, and consequent changes have occurred to the names and URLs of referenced documents; now therefore be it

Resolved:     That the attached document replace S05-14 GREENSHEETS (SYLLABI); and be it further

Resolved:     That the Provost be urged to have the Center for Faculty Development and Support develop a greensheet template to be made available to all faculty electronically and provide further resources such as samples of greensheets that meet policy requirements; and be it further

Resolved:     That this policy be provided in New Faculty Orientation sessions held by Faculty Affairs each Fall semester; be provided by Chairs to new faculty unable to attend orientation and to new temporary faculty hired in the spring; and be it further

Resolved:     That College Deans shall remind all faculty periodically of these greensheet requirements; and be it further

Resolved:     That faculty are encouraged to use strategies to counter the potential for negative environmental impact of potentially longer greensheets.

Resolved:     That the attached policy be implemented.

Approved:                              July 17, 2006

Present:                                  Lessow-Hurley, Meldal, Sigler, Phillips, Lee, Najjar, Hebert,                                                       McClory

Absent:                                   Bros, Thames, Veregge, Van Selst, Gutierrez, Kassing,                                                             David

Vote:                                       8-0-0

Financial Impact:                   None

Greensheets (Syllabi)

Introduction: Greensheets help enable students to better understand and fulfill their responsibilities as learners in courses. They are a necessary tool in higher education to enable students to take part in the learning process through knowing what is expected of them and what they can expect from the course. Student success is aided by students knowing in advance as much as possible about the course requirements so that they can plan their study time and coordinate work on assignments from multiple courses. Student success is also aided by encouraging students to contact their professors and providing information about key university policies to which they are subject. In addition, greensheets provide an opportunity to model thorough, clear, professional communication.

A. General greensheet procedures

o Each member of the faculty at San Jose State University shall provide a greensheet to each student in every class, to be available no later than the first class meeting. Exceptions are made only with approval of the department chair.

o If the faculty member chooses to make the greensheet available only on-line and not distribute hard copies to students, it must be available not later than the first class meeting. The faculty member shall provide an electronic or hard copy of the greensheet to the department office for department files on or before the first day of class.

o The greensheet is an agreement to provide certain classroom experiences to students. While it may be changed as the semester develops, any changes must be communicated to the students. Changes to the greensheet are not allowed after the semester ends.

B. Each greensheet shall include, at a minimum, the following items.

1.   Course Information

a) Basic information:

o San José State University

o Course title, number, and section; days and times taught, location of class

o Semester and year course is being taught

o Professor’s name, office number and location

o Professor’s contact information: include as much information as possible and at least one direct way for students to reach you, i.e. phone number(s) or email

NOTE: While not required, it is strongly recommended in the spirit of encouraging

interaction with students, that faculty members include a statement of the method by which they prefer students to contact them to maximize successful communication between faculty and student.

b) Office hours and days

c) Course or section information:

o Description of the course from the University catalog augmented by section-specific description.

o Prerequisites

o Required and recommended texts, readers, or other reading materials

o Any other necessary equipment/materials/fees

d) Student learning objectives for the course, and if the course is GE, GE area student learning objectives

e) Course requirements, e.g. papers, projects, exams, quizzes, homework, laboratory work, fieldwork, participation, etc.

o Tentative course calendar including assignment due dates, exam dates, date of final exam; you might want to include “subject to change with fair notice” as well.

NOTE: It should be noted that the Academic Vice President in a memorandum dated October 25, 1977 cites a university policy that states that there shall be an appropriate final examination or evaluation at the officially scheduled time in every course, unless specifically exempted by the college dean who has curricular responsibility for the course.

o Since attendance per se may not be used as a criterion for grading, if you grade on participation (which can be used) some indication of how participation will be assessed should be included, pop quizzes, in-class writing assignments, conversation and discussion groups, etc.

NOTE: According to University policy F69-24, “Students should attend all meetings of their classes, not only because they are responsible for material discussed therein, but because active participation is frequently essential to insure maximum benefit for all members of the class. Attendance per se shall not be used as a criterion for grading.”

f)    Grading information:

o A statement of how you will determine letter grades for the course, including +/- grades if you use them

o Extra credit options, if available

o List of the percentage weight assigned to various class assignments

o Penalty (if any) for late or missed work

2.   University, College, or Department Policy Information

a) Academic integrity statement (from the Office of Student Conduct and Ethical Development):
“Your own commitment to learning, as evidenced by your enrollment at San José State University, and the University’s Academic Integrity Policy requires you to be honest in all your academic course work. Faculty members are required to report all infractions to the Office of Student Conduct and Ethical Development. The policy on academic integrity can be found at http://sa.sjsu.edu/student_conduct.

b) Campus policy in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act:
“If you need course adaptations or accommodations because of a disability, or if you need special arrangements in case the building must be evacuated, please make an appointment with me as soon as possible, or see me during office hours. Presidential Directive 97-03 requires that students with disabilities requesting accommodations must register with DRC to establish a record of their disability.”

c) Policies or information required by the department, or college with which the class is associated.

APPENDIX

The following items are recommended for consideration. This list is not exhaustive. 

o “In addition to my specifically posted office hours, I am available by arrangement.”

o An invitation to use office hours for help

o “You are responsible for understanding the policies and procedures about add/drops, academic renewal, withdrawal, etc. found at http://sa.sjsu.edu/student_conduct.

o Expectations about classroom behavior; see Academic Senate Policy S90-5 on Student Rights and Responsibilities.

o As appropriate to your particular class, a definition of plagiarism, such as that found on the website of the Office of Student Conduct and Ethical Development athttp://sa.sjsu.edu/student_conduct.

o “If you would like to include in your paper any material you have submitted, or plan to submit, for another class, please note that SJSU’s Academic Integrity policy F06-1 requires approval by instructors.”

o Statement about whether collaboration is allowed and in what form.

o The name and contact information for the librarian liaison.

o Evacuation plan for the classroom.

ACTION BY UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT: Approved by President Don Kassing on                                                                                           July 28, 2006