Specification for Course Syllabuses
Basic information
- Course code and course title (be sure this corresponds with the KIMEP Catalog listing)
- Semester/year offered
- Course meeting time and place
- Course credits (credit hours and ECTS credits (= 3 X credit hours)
- Instructor name(s) (some courses may have more than one instructor, for instance a lecture/tutorial course)
- Instructor office location and office telephone
- Instructor e-mail contact address (this may be a kimep.kz address or a personal account as long as it is checked regularly)
Instructor availability
- Office hours
Office hours must be set at times when students are available; e.g., during evening hours if the instructor teaches evening courses.
Faculty are encouraged to specify additional consultation hours at times of peak student demand, for instance before assignments are due or examinations are scheduled.
- Teaching assistant’s hours
If a teaching assistant is assigned to the course and his/her duties include out-of-class tutoring of students or other forms of direct student contact, the times of availability by the teaching assistant to students should be specified in the syllabus.
- Tutor’s hours
In lecture/tutorial courses (normally larger introductory classes), the scheduled tutorial periods normally occur during regular class hours. If the tutor is a full-time faculty member, his/her scheduled office hours must be included in the syllabus.
Course description/overview
One paragraph is usually all that is needed. The catalog description can be used as a basis for this.
Learning objectives
For each course there must be a list of learning objectives included in the syllabus. These describe the instructor’s intentions.
Learning objectives should:
- reflect the broad essential subject-related knowledge, skills or values to be introduced or developed in the course;
- reflect the objectives of the learning experience, not the means or the process; and
- answer the question, “What should a student expect in this course?”
There should be a close relationship between the course learning objectives and the program learning objectives.
Intended learning outcomes
For each course there must be a list of the intended learning outcomes included in the syllabus. These describe what a student is expected to know, understand, and/or be able to do at the end of a course.
The intended learning outcomes should:
- narrow down the essential subject-related knowledge content and the abilities and skills practiced.
- describe what the student should be able to demonstrate after completing the course
- be formulated as requirements for passing the course; and
- be:
- relevant to the course learning objectives;
- realistic in terms of the study-time available and expected learning activities; and
- assessable by the chosen methods of assessment.
A clear intended learning outcome consists of:
- active verbs that express precisely and measurably what the student is expected to be able to do at the end of the course (such as describe, to explain, review critically, analyze, synthesize, evaluate, apply). Do not use vague verbs that are not precise and cannot be measures (such as understand, appreciate, explore); and
- nouns that describe the course’s subject-related knowledge content (such as key theories, concepts, institutions), the skills content (such as oral communications, ICT, writing skills, group working skills, critical thinking skills), and the attitudinal change content (such as
There should be no more than 6-8 intended learning outcomes in a course
The outcomes expected of students should be appropriate to the stage at which the course is in the program learning process (2000, 3000, 4000 or 5000 level courses). Learning progression involves the student building on and increasing the knowledge and skills they have acquired. As they advance through the program learning process, they need to be constantly challenged to develop an independent approach to study, take responsibility for their own work, and develop their communication skills, so that they can progress in the acquisition of knowledge and skills required for graduation.
Clear learning outcomes in the form of intended results of study make it possible for instructors to build on previous courses and they are therefore a prerequisite of reliable learning progression.
Relationship of course and program
- Target Program Learning Outcomes:
Identify, after consultation with the Chair, which Program Learning Outcome(s) the course is addressing
- Prerequisites, if any
- For which course(s) is the course a prerequisite (if any)
Teaching and learning philosophy and methodology
- The instructor’s teaching philosophy: probably addressing at least.
- Personal Objectives: What is your role in orienting students to a discipline, to what it means to be an educated person in your field? How do you delineate your areas of responsibility as compared to your students’ responsibilities?
- Teaching and learning approaches: Here you can discuss methods that you use to achieve or work toward the achievement of the course learning objectives. You might want to tie these directly to those objectives and discuss how each approach is designed for that purpose.
- Course teaching and learning methodology: How will students go about learning in the course? (lectures, class discussions, small group discussions, in-class exercises, readings, presentations, project assignments, videos, field visits, case study analyses – the list is endless).
Course Learning activities
The learning activities that students are expected to engage in during the course must be explicitly related to course intended learning outcomes and the assessment assignments specified, so that they can understand:
- what knowledge and skills they are expected to acquire in order to succeed in the course; and
- what learning activities they need to engage to prepare and practice for the assessment assignments.
It is essential that the allocation of time given to each learning activity must reflect the relative importance of the assessment assignment in the course assessment scheme.
In estimating students’ workload, institutions must consider the total time needed by students in order to achieve the desired learning outcomes. The learning activities may vary in different countries, institutions and subject areas, but typically the estimated workload will result from the sum of:
- the contact hours for the educational component (number of contact hours per week x number of weeks);
- the time spent in individual or group work required to complete the educational component successfully (i.e. preparation beforehand and finalizing of notes after attendance at a lecture, seminar or laboratory work; collection and selection of relevant material; required revision, study of that material; writing of papers/projects/dissertation);
- the time required to prepare for and undergo the assessment procedure (e.g. exams),
Since workload is an estimation of the average time spent by students to achieve the expected learning outcomes, the actual time spent by an individual student may differ from this estimate.
Each three-credit course requires students to undertake 150 hours of learning activities. On what activities students are expected to spend this time has to be specified in the course syllabus. The expectation is that instructors will continue to provide 45 hours of class contact. This means that a further 105 hours – 7 hours a week – must be explicitly allocated across a range of learning activities. These learning activities would probably fall into the following six broad categories (with indicative learning activities):
- Lectures
- A lecture schedule must be detailed enough so that a student can determine from reading the schedule what subject will be covered on any given class day during the entire semester.
- Required reading assignments and any other out-of-class preparation expected of students before a class must be incorporated.
- Due dates for all continuous and final assessment (other than final exams) must be incorporated.
- Reading (including note taking):
- for lectures (preparatory or reinforcing)
- for short assignments, reports and term papers
- for oral presentations
- for in-class discussions and debates
- for independent study (theses, research projects)
- Writing
- reports and term papers
- PowerPoint presentations
- Theses and research projects
- Discussion
- with peers for group reports, oral presentations, in-class discussions and debates, role plays and simulations, case study analysis
- with the instructor/supervisor (research project, thesis and internship supervision)
- Practicing
- Oral skills
- ICT skills
- Summarizing and Memorizing
- For quizzes, midterms, final exams
- Researching and Investigating
- Gathering primary data (surveys, interviews and observations)
- Data analysis
Assessment scheme
Each syllabus must state clearly how students are to be assessed in the course in the form of an assessment scheme. In establishing the course assessment scheme, instructors need to be aware of four recent Academic Board decisions:
- Students in three-credit courses are expected to engage in 150 learning-hours of study, of which 105 hours is independent study.
- Course assessment has to be submitted by the end of the semester rather than 72 hours after the Final Examination.
- Student appeals must now be in writing and must be considered by a departmental committee in the first week of the following semester.
- The submission date for a final project of at least 40% can any time after the final date before which students can withdraw from a course (the last two weeks of the Fall and Spring semesters and the last week of the Summer 1 semester)
Each continuous assessment assignments must be clearly described, and the proportion of the overall grade represented by that exercise must be specified. For example, for a written assignment an indication should be given of the topic and the expected length. Such assessment may include any combination of:
- quizzes
These are appropriate when intended learning outcomes require students to demonstrate that they have acquired specific knowledge. Multiple choice quizzes are discouraged as they do not unambiguously assess acquired knowledge.
- mid-term examinations
These should be scheduled around the middle of semester, irrespective of the timing of the mid-term break.
- written assignments
These are important to the development of analytical, critical thinking, and English writing skills.
- individual or group presentations
These are important to the development of English communications skills
- in-class exercises
These are appropriate when an intended learning outcome required students to have specific knowledge. Multiple choice questions are discouraged as they do not unambiguously assess acquired knowledge.
- participation
Instructors adopting this form of assessment must specify precisely expected of students and must have a robust means of recording participation grades that can be externally scrutinized.
- attendance
Instructors adopting this form of assessment must explain what they consider to be acceptable reasons for missing classes, and KIMEP-confirmed sickness and KIMEP-approved student activities must be given as acceptable reason.
Final assessment may be:
- a final examination
This may take the form of an open-book or closed-book, or take-home (in which case the due date must be specified in the syllabus). The length and the format of the final examination must reflect the amount of time assigned to the learning activities that constitute preparation for the Final Examination. It can only be should be scheduled during the published examination period,
- final project
The submission date can be any time after the final date before which students can withdraw from a course (the last two weeks of the Fall and Spring semesters and the last week of the Summer 1 semester.
- a combination of these.
The final assessment elements should be described, and the total weighting given should normally represent 40% of the overall grade for the course. Certain types of courses are exempt from this requirement: thesis and dissertations, internship, independent study, and research projects.
Faculty must draw students’ attention to:
- the consequences of plagiarism or cheating,
- penalties for late assignments or missed examinations
Grading scale
This must follow the KIMEP Catalog.
Course policies and instructor’s expectations of students
This can cover such matters as:
- attendance and academic performance policy
Please note that Academic Council has determined that faculty can no longer initiate Academic Withdrawals.
- expectations of classroom behavior
On these issues instructors must make reference to the relevant sections of the KIMEP Catalog.
Instructional resources
When determining the amount of reading to be assigned, instructors should be guided by the expectation that students registered on three-credit courses should engage in 150 learning-hours of study, of which 105 hours is independent study.
Any reading lists provided should be fully sited in accordance with the Department’s preferred style of referencing. This is to ensure that all instructors teaching on a program use the same referencing system, so as to minimize referencing confusion amongst students.
If a textbook is used, then indicate where the student can locate the textbook: purchase? Textbook rental scheme? Library copies available for loan (how many)? Library copies held on reserve (how many)?
If other reading is required – ad recommended readings or useful references – then indicate where the student can locate them.
