Suggested Syllabus & Backwards Design

• Course title, number and section
• Contact information & office hours
• Course description and Outcomes
• Required textbooks, resources, and materials
• Communication policy
• Attendance
• Academic Integrity and Course Etiquette
• Technology and Recording
• Grading and late work policies
• Calendar and Assignments: Types and where to find

Accessibility and Accommodations

• Resources for Students (listed in every
• Canvas Course under “Student Resources” in the Canvas dashboard)

Faculty should be available at least 3 hours per week outside of class meetings. You might consider terming them “drop-in hours” rather than office hours for students unfamiliar with the notion of office hours.

• Provide a course description consistent with what appears in the College catalog, including any pre-requisites.
• Consider including additional information to help students understand the purpose and value of the course. How will taking the course prepare students for future learning and/or professional work, and/or life outside it?
• Consider listing student-centered course goals or learning objectives, identifying where you hope students will be by the end of the course.

• List required and recommended texts and other course materials, including title, author, edition, and where they can be located (e.g. what needs to be purchased and what can be found in Canvas, etc.)
• Include information about any required field trips or class events that have an additional cost or that will occur outside of regular class time

• Consider providing guidance around communication outside of class. Topics could include student and faculty expectations and responsibilities for communication, including checking Canvas and e-mail, communicating with faculty about course-related questions and absences, your preferred methods for contact, and professional communication etiquette

• There is no College-wide attendance policy. Attendance and lateness policies are determined by instructors as appropriate to their courses, and these policies must be outlined clearly in the syllabus.
• If attendance is an essential component of a course, faculty should keep accurate records in case attendance becomes an issue in a grade dispute.
• While faculty have final authority over attendance policies, instructors should recognize students may encounter circumstances that interfere attendance. Accordingly, the College strongly suggests instructors provide some flexibility with permitted absences.
• The College does not prescribe a specific number or percentage of absences, but a rule of thumb is to allow at least the equivalent of 1 week of course time (approximately 7% of course meetings) with no penalty.

• Include a rationale
  • A brief rationale helps students understand why attendance is an essential component of the course and inextricable from the learning outcomes
• Decide whether you distinguish between excused and unexcused absences
  • Some attendance policies outline only the number of absences and do not distinguish between types of absence (e.g. for illness, athletics, etc.) This involves less tracking for faculty, but also requires careful explanation so students understand there are no additional circumstances that affect policy.
  • Faculty who wish to distinguish between excused and unexcused absences should give clear guidelines on what would count as excused.
  • There is no College office that excuses absences; the authority for doing so is the purview of individual instructors.
• Decide whether you have an overall limit to the number of absences allowed, regardless of circumstances
  • If there is a limit to the number of classes a student can miss and still pass a course, this must be included on the syllabus. This should include a rationale for the policy, and a clear indication of whether this number holds regardless of the specific reasons for the absences.
• Are there separate guidelines for athletics or accessibility?
  • There is no specific absence policy for student athletes or students registered with the Office of Accessibility. Professors may make additional allowance for these students if they wish to do so, but this is not required by the College.

• Consider Providing a statement of your grading philosophy to help students understand how you will be evaluating their work.
• Provide a grading scale (e.g. 90-100 A) and a breakdown of how course components affect the grade. Make it clear to students if you are using a points system or percentages.
• Clearly outline your policies on deadlines, late work, and missed quizzes or exams, including any penalties and/or guidelines on re-grading.

• Include a brief statement on Academic Integrity and expectations for classroom decorum (examples linked below), including any course related sanctions for violations of those polices (may need to qualify for Code).
  • Short Excerpt on Academic Integrity: All students are required to review and abide by the College Policy on Academic Integrity and Student Code of Conduct.
• While unauthorized use of generative artificial intelligence is covered by the Academic Integrity policy, you might consider an additional statement informing students of the rules around AI in your class.

• Consider specifying student options and responsibilities for missed work and classes
• With the exception of some students with documented learning differences (see below), professors may but are not required to allow students to use technology in the classroom. If you have specific policies around technology use, please include those guidelines and rationale on your syllabus.
• Some students with documented learning differences require technology in the classroom, which is an explicit part of their accommodation plan. In these cases, faculty will receive a notification letter from the Office of Accessibility specifying those accommodations, and faculty are required to honor the conditions of the letter
• Instructors may but are not required to record their classes. Recording can be particularly helpful to some students with learning differences, and the Office of Accessibility will work with faculty to arrange accommodations where possible.

• Faculty should provide a clear reference of readings, homework, due dates, and/or any other work involved in preparing for class meetings and assignments. This can be done through a syllabus calendar or via tools available in Canvas.
• Make sure to explain to students how to navigate your syllabus. Students may have little experience with academic practice, and/or be required to navigate systems and organizations that are different from your own.  We recommend teaching them how to use your syllabus and/or Canvas course.

• Saint Michael’s College is devoted to ensuring equal educational opportunities and a responsive campus environment for students with disabilities. Students with documented learning differences must be registered with the Office of Accessibility. The Office will issue a letter to faculty outlining any required accommodations, and those accommodations are mandatory.