How to Propose a Foundational Studies Course

Steps for Proposing a Foundational Studies Course

For general inquiries about proposing courses for Foundational Studies (needs in certain categories, process, requirements, etc, please do not hesitate to contact the Chair of University College Council.

I.          Identify a category (Communication, Historical Studies, Lab Sciences, etc.) within Foundational Studies where the Department wishes to contribute a new course(s).

II.        Prepare an initial version of syllabus for the new course to be proposed or existing course to be modified. As under IV-C below, courses will need to lay out how they meet the specific learning objectives and skill learning requirements for the particular Foundational Studies category. In order to facilitate Foundational Studies programmatic assessment, UCC requires that all new courses submitted for consideration will contain, in addition to materials already specified, clear assessment plans that demonstrate how artefacts will be used to assess FS Learning Objectives.

Exemplar syllabi for FS proposals can be found at indstate.edu/academics/fs/ex-syllabi.

In addition, all syllabi for approved FS courses may be found at indstate.edu/academics/fs/approved-courses.

Syllabi will also need to include the following policy statements/information (OR REFERENCE THE FS WEBSITE LINK FOR INFORMATION REGARDING SPECIFIC POLICIES)

  • Statement explaining the FS requirement the course is meeting.
  • Statement identifying specific FS learning objectives for the course.
  • Statement explicating how the assigned work assists students in meeting the program, goals as well as the goals of the specific FS category under which the course falls.
  • When appropriate, a statement outlining the citation style the instructor wishes students to use and the repercussions they will face if they plagiarize or act in other academically dishonest ways.
  • Statement explaining course attendance policy.
  • Statement encouraging students to review the University’s Academic Dishonesty Policy found in the Student Code of Conduct.
  • Statement describing the central tenets of academic freedom and how these relate to the course.
  • One of the four designated statements on laptop computers.
  • The University statement on students with disabilities.

III.       Optional but highly recommended: Confer with the University College Council Executive Committee to explore A) whether the particular Foundational Studies category needs new courses (if there has not been a call for courses); B) whether the proposal in question has clear areas of concern that the Executive Committee can identify before formally submitting the course to Curriculog. Please note that this is an informal step. Courses still need to go through their normal steps for approval and will still need the approval of the full UC Council for FS approval.

 IV.      Make final preparations to submit the course to Curriculog. Course proposals will need to include the following:

            A) All information requested in Curriculog.

            B) One page narrative describing how the course meets the program and category (submit as attached file)

            C) An “exemplar” syllabus with annotations about how the course meets the specific learning objectives and skill/learning objectives for the category in which the course is being proposed. (submit as attached file).

            D) A Foundational Studies course proposal cover page from the department chair outlining the department’s commitment to teaching the course (face-to-face versus online, Spring/Fall/Summer semester, etc.) (submit as attached file)

V. Submit the proposal via Curriculog to go through the Department, College, and University level approval processes

VI. When courses arrive at the University College Council, the UCC exec will review the proposal to make sure there are no obvious problems or areas of concern. If there are any, the proposing department will be consulted. If the proposal appears ready for review by the full Council, it will scheduled at the earliest Council meeting with an opening on the agenda. If courses are approved, they will be moved on to the next stage (usually consideration by CAAC). If there are concerns, but the course proposal is not rejected outright, the Council may request revisions and then reconsider the proposal.

 

PDF Files

application-pdf.png Cover page for Foundational Studies Proposals
application-pdf.png FS Cover Page Writable

Helpful Links

Information Literacy Library Guide
Information Literacy Library Guide- BLOG