A syllabus (/ˈsɪləbəs/, AFI: /ˈsɪl.ə.bəs/; pl.: syllabuses[1] or syllabi[2])[3] or specification is a document that communicates information about an academic course or class and defines expectations and responsibilities. It is generally an overview or summary of the curriculum. A syllabus may be set out by an examination board or prepared by the tutor or instructor who teaches or controls the course. The word is also used more generally for an abstract or programme of knowledge, and is best known in this sense as referring to two catalogues published by the Catholic Church in 1864 and 1907 condemning certain doctrinal positions.[4]
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the word syllabus derives from modern Latin syllabus 'list', in turn from a misreading of the Greek σίττυβος sittybos (the leather parchment label that gave the title and contents of a document), which first occurred in a 15th-century print of Cicero's letters to Atticus.[1][5] Earlier Latin dictionaries such as Lewis and Short contain the word syllabus,[6] relating it to the non-existent Greek word σύλλαβος, which appears to be a mistaken reading of syllaba 'syllable'; the newer Oxford Latin Dictionary does not contain this word.[7][self-published source?] The apparent change from sitty- to sylla- is explained as a hypercorrection by analogy to συλλαμβάνω (syllambano 'bring together, gather').[7]
In a 2002 study, Parks and Harris suggest "a syllabus can serve students as a model of professional thinking and writing".[9] They also believe effective learning requires a complex interaction of skills, such as time management, prioritization of tasks, technology use, etc., and that a syllabus can promote the development of these skills.
In 2005, Slattery & Carlson describe the syllabus as a "contract between faculty members and their students, designed to answer student's questions about a course, as well as inform them about what will happen should they fail to meet course expectations". They promote using action verbs (identify, analyze, evaluate) as opposed to passive verbs (learn, recognize, understand) when creating course goals.[10] Habanek stresses the importance of the syllabus as a "vehicle for expressing accountability and commitment."[11]
Thank you (and Yale) so much for sharing this syllabus and class! What huge benefit to those of us who until recently have been remiss in learning about Ukraine's fascinating history and culture. I'm ashamed it took a brutal war and genocide to get my attention. Around the time of the Iraq war I remember reading somewhere that invasions and wars are how Americans learn geography. Sadly true. Much gratitude to you for sharing your incredible knowledge of Ukraine, its history and people, with us. There is no one better to be learning it from!
Dear Friends, this semester I am teaching a lecture class at Yale devoted to the history of Ukraine. The lectures are being made available on a Youtube channel: the first one is here. They will continue to be published over the course of the autumn. A number of you have asked for the syllabus, so I am placing it here. I hope it\u2019s of interest. By the way: I will have a long article on Ukraine, war, and democracy appearing in Foreign Affairs this week. More soon! Best, TS
Attendance is the responsibility of the student. However, attendance itself may not be used as a criterion for grading. Students are expected to attend all meetings for their courses, as they are responsible for all material covered, and active participation is frequently essential to ensure maximum benefit to all class members. Participation may be used as a criterion for grading when the parameters and their evaluation are clearly defined in the course syllabus and the percentage of the overall grade is stated. The full policy language can be found in the Presence in Class Policy F15-3 [pdf].
Success in this course is based on the expectation that students will spend, for each unit of credit, a minimum of 45 hours over the length of the course (normally 3 hours per unit per week with 1 of the hours used for lecture) for instruction or preparation/studying or course-related activities including but not limited to internships, labs, and clinical practice. Other course structures will have equivalent workload expectations as described in the syllabus.
Your syllabus gives students a first impression about what to expect from your course and fosters their curiosity and interest. A comprehensive syllabus helps you to structure and articulate your course expectations in support of student learning.
For those enrolled in the course, a detailed syllabus will be provided by the Instructor at the beginning of the term. Please keep in mind that not all courses are offered every year. Consult Webster for scheduling information.
The Office of the University Registrar is pleased to announce the creation of a syllabus database. This initiative was prompted by a Student Government resolution that recommended the creation of the database. With the assistance and guidance of Information Technology Services, the database is now a reality.
Students may access the database under the Registration Services tab at the myLSU portal. Additionally, the database may be accessed by visiting: lsu.edu/syllabus. All faculty will have access to update the database with their syllabi. Graduate Assistants do not have update access to the syllabus database. To have your syllabus uploaded, send to Assistant Registrar Capri Alvarez (ca...@lsu.edu) to upload on your behalf.
The Syllabus Archive is a collection of syllabus files from the past seven years. This is a voluntary campus-wide service that departments can utilize to make their course syllabus files available via Google drive. If you cannot find a syllabus file that you are looking for, please contact either the respective department or the instructor of record. If you're a department and would like to upload a syllabus, please use the link below.
Students should visit and review all syllabus statement information. The full university syllabus statement includes information on safety, registration, the VCU Honor Code, student conduct, withdrawal and more.
Below you will find resources to help you design your syllabus and a list of required components that all syllabi should contain. Instructors are expected to have a complete version of each course syllabus prepared and ready to share with students by the first day of class, and make sure to upload a copy of that syllabus to the Online Syllabus Manager (OSM) application for archiving purposes. (Adapted from Office of Undergraduate Curricula Syllabus Guidelines.)
Near the start of each academic term, the Online Syllabus Management system will generate an email to primary instructors listed in the schedule of classes for that term, notifying them to upload the same complete course syllabus they will present to students in the first class session.
In January 2012, Rice's Faculty Senate approved a student-initiated motion regarding syllabus standards and the required distributing of course syllabus information. Beginning with the Fall 2012 semester, instructors should post and archive the syllabus for their course in ESTHER, where it can be viewed by enrolled students. While instructors may additionally post their course syllabus in other locations such as on a course web page, Canvas, or even as distributed paper handouts, the posting in ESTHER is the official recorded distribution and archiving of the course syllabus. Optimally, instructors should have their course syllabus uploaded before the opening of the registration period for that course in the upcoming (future) semester. Minimally, the syllabus is expected to be uploaded and posted in ESTHER before that semester's first day of classes.
This collection of sample syllabus statements has been curated by the Office of IDEAS as a resource for instructors to include or make adjustments to their syllabi. Faculty are invited to use as much or as little of this content as they see fit. The content of this document contains suggestions based on best practices and feedback from our instructional designers and faculty members.
Students are responsible for reading and understanding all university-wide policies and resources pertaining to all courses provided on this webpage. For course-specific policies and resources, consult the course syllabus provided by your course instructor.*
*On February 2, 2022, the Faculty Senate approved, effective Fall 2023, the creation of the University Syllabus. All statements above will no longer appear in individual course syllabi. Instead, faculty will make available in their course syllabus a statement about and link to this University Syllabus.
The syllabus is your opportunity to set the framework for the class. Certainly, it sets the rules for the course, but it also provides an opportunity for you to explain the purpose of the course and your values as the professor, as a representative of your discipline and as a member of the university community. A strong syllabus prevents confusion by setting clear expectations and encourages the structured development of ideas by outlining learning objectives. The best syllabi give students a sense of what they need to do in order to successful in the course and are written using positive terms.
The Georgia State University community has worked to compose key elements of the syllabus. These elements illustrate our values as a community and help create consistency across courses. The following information is found in the GSU Faculty Handbook and lays out information that is REQUIRED to be included on a syllabus for all classes at GSU.
Course syllabi shall contain the following items of information:
More detail:
Tips for writing SLOs IDEAs in Action Student Learning Outcomes and Questions for StudentsEach requirement in the IDEAs in Action curriculum has a set of standard Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs) and Questions for Students. Use these instructions for adding SLOs and Questions for Students to your syllabus for approved Gen Ed requirements.