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Section Four - Courses and Curricula

Fountain near CSULB Theatre

Attachment 4-5 - Standard Course Outline Sample

This is only an example. Please check with your College Curriculum Committee as they may have their own college format.

1. Course prefix, number, title (units)

2. Course Description

Description of the course as it will appear in the Catalog cannot exceed 40 words. Prerequisites, fieldwork hours, service learning, clinic experience, lab or material fees, "consent of instructor," designation of the course as "Credit/No Credit" or "Letter grade only (A-F), or other requirements that do not describe the content of the course are not included in the 40 word limit.

3. Student Learning Outcomes

What students should know and be able to do upon completion of the course.

4. Outline of Subject Matter

Course subject matter should be directly aligned with Student Learning Outcomes. The number of the corresponding SLO should appear in parentheses after relevant content.

5. Recommended Texts (including instructor course packet as applicable)

6. Assessments and Grading System

  • 6.1 The Standard Course Outline should contain a description of key assessments that measure student performance on course SLOs. The number of the corresponding SLO should appear in parentheses after relevant assessments. The description of these assessments should be sufficient to allow course instructors to incorporate them in course syllabi. Course instructors may have additional assessments that are explicitly linked to SLOs. The following matrix is an example of how to display course assessments linked to SLOs:

Assessment in Course XXX:

Assignment Description
Linked to SLO
% of Course Grade
Assignment #1
(brief descriptive title and/or description)
SLO #3
xx%
Assignment #2
(brief descriptive title and/or description)
SLO #2
xx%
Assignment #3
(brief descriptive title and/or description)
SLO #1
xx%
Assignment #4
(brief descriptive title and/or description)
SLO #4
xx%
Assignment #5
(brief descriptive title and/or description)
SLO #5
xx%
  • 6.2 Grading policies and procedures and the percentage of the course grade associated with each assessment must be explicit on each instructor's syllabus. Instructors must develop scoring guidelines for assessments, which must be made available to students.
  • 6.3 The final course grade will be based on a descriptive scale such as the following:
90-100%
=
A
mastery of the relevant course standards.
80-89%
=
B
above average proficiency of the relevant course standards.
70-79%
=
C
satisfactory proficiency of the relevant course standards.
60-69%
=
D
partial proficiency of the relevant course standards.
Below 60%
=
F
little or no proficiency of the relevant course standards.
  • 6.4 In compliance with university policy, final grades will be based on at least three, and preferably four or more, demonstrations of competence. In no case will the final examination grade count for more than one-third of the course grade.

7. Policies for Attendance, Withdrawal, Late Assignments

The instructor's syllabus must contain explicit statements of attendance, withdrawal and late assignment policies, which must be consistent with University policies. Instructors should refer to the current California State University, Long Beach Catalog of Graduate and Undergraduate Studies and to the Academic Senate website for campus guidelines and policy statements as they develop their individual course policies.

8. Special Needs Statement

Required statement in standard course outline and each syllabus:

Students with disabilities who need reasonable modifications, special assistance, or accommodations in this course should promptly direct their request to the course instructor. If a student with a disability feels that modifications, special assistance, or accommodations offered are inappropriate or insufficient, he/she should seek the assistance of the Director of Disabled Student Services on campus.

9. Selected Bibliography (1-2 pages; please check with your college to see what format is required - e.g., APA, MLA, Chicago.)

10. In keeping with the CSU Assistive Technology Initiative (Fall 2007), instructors are required to make their course syllabi and materials accessible to all students, including print and e-versions.