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Adding a Fourth Credit to Your Gen Ed Course
 s you consider how to develop a 4th credit for your General Education course, the Center for Teaching (CFT) staff offers a range of consultation services related to all phases of course design (e.g., planning, implementation and assessment).
For example, you can meet with a CFT consultant to discuss how to:
- prepare a syllabus
- develop new goals for student learning and the assessment strategies
- incorporate technologies
- design innovative teaching strategies that appropriately address the size of your course
- gather student feedback
- build in opportunities for active learning and group work
- collect confidential mid-term feedback on the course from students (MAP).
Faculty can also take advantage of CFT’s in-house resource video and print library, which has books on course planning, syllabus design, teaching strategies, and tools for undergraduate teaching.
Finally, the CFT staff can also help you identify and prepare for useful consultations with other support services on campus.
You can contact us at 545-1225 or cft@acad.umass.edu.
RESOURCES FOR INSTRUCTORS
Information / Consultation Sessions (no need to register to attend)
Midterm Assessment Process (MAP)
Guiding Principles for Conversion
Conversion Planning Phase
General Education: Resources for Teaching
INFORMATION/CONSULTATION SESSION
These drop-in sessions are designed to answer questions about the proposal process and to provide you with the opportunity to briefly meet with and/or schedule consultations with the offices providing instructional and technological support. Members of GERICO and staff members of the CFT, OAPA, OIT Academic Computing, University Libraries, Learning Resource Center, Office of Community Service Learning, and CESD will be present to help you.
ALL DROP IN SESSIONS ARE HELD IN THE TEACHING COMMONS ON THE 26TH FLOOR OF THE W. E. B. DU BOIS LIBRARY
Monday |
Tuesday |
Wednesday |
Thursday |
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September 23rd
11 - 12 noon |
September 24th
3 - 4 PM |
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September 29th
1 - 2 PM |
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October 1st
9 - 10 AM |
October 5th
3 - 4 PM |
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October 7th
1 - 2 PM |
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Proposals are due October 15th 2009
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THREE TO FOUR CONVERSION: GUIDING PRINCIPLES OF COURSE DESIGN
This conversion may allow you to extend course content, incorporate new teaching strategies, and/or diversify learning activities and assessment methods. As you plan the conversion of your Gen Ed course from 3 to 4 credits:
- Focus on how to deepen learning outcome goals
- Articulate how changes align with General Education objectives
- Consider the coherence of course elements (e.g. learning objectives, activities, and assessments)
- Incorporate appropriate assessment strategies
- Attend to diverse learning styles
- Explore the options available in SPARK for online learning
- Communicate regularly with students about your expectations
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THREE TO FOUR CONVERSION: PLANNING PHASE
As you plan your new course design, these questions may help shape your thinking:
- Are there new learning activities you can deepen or extend as well as add?
- Are there additional learning objectives that you may have wanted your students to engage in (e.g. small group activities or presentations)?
- Consider teaching to diverse learning styles, incorporating group work, peer learning opportunities, self directed learning activities and/or experiential learning through community based projects.
- Are there new ways by which you could assess student learning? What new criteria and evidence can be use to demonstrate student learning?
- Consider how technologies can help you engage students in new ways (e.g. Writing-to-Learn activities - example from the Gen Ed Workshop on June 9th, 2009)
Consider new roles for TAs. For example:
- Can TA(s) help with course management tasks?
- Can TA(s) help facilitate student learning?
- Can TA(s) help collect feedback from students?
As you communicate your expectations to students:
- Provide early on the rationale for 4 credits.
- Be as explicit as you can about how student performance will be assessed.
- Gather formative feedback from students about their preceptions of the course.
- Consider a MAP to help collect such feedback from students mid point.
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MIDTERM ASSESSMENT PROCESS (MAP)
The Midterm Assessment Process (MAP) is an opportunity for instructors to get student feedback on a selected course while the semester is in progress. It provides a unique opportunity to tap into the perspectives of students early in the course. This can be especially helpful when launching the 4th credit because it allows you to gauge how and what students are learning and to assess their perceptions of the course while it is in progress. Many instructors use the MAP as a way to begin a dialogue with students about what works and what could be improved related to a course. (As is true of all CFT services, a MAP is confidential and voluntary.) Request a MAP.
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Finding addtional support for your conversion proposal:
October 15th is a close deadline; do not hesitate to contact us or visit the Gen Ed Web page for ideas, support, and resources.
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