Faculty Meeting – IV14 04/18/14

  April 29, 2014 ,

ELI Faculty Meeting IV14

Memorial 123, 1 pm on Friday, April 18, 2014

Committee Reports

Student Conduct and Attendance Committee:

Lowell presented goals and challenges for the Committee

Since Session IV 2013 we have dismissed 35 students. For Session IV 2014 there are 67 students on probation. At an April 2 meeting the Committee agreed on the following goals:

  1. Design a policy source document for the Faculty online handbook explaining promotion, retention, and matters concerning probation policy.
  2. Update the Student Handbook and section in the ELI website Current Student Portal that clearly explains the probation policy (including the combined grade percentage threshold.
  3. Discuss the issue of incompletes and effort grades at the next faculty retreat.
  4. Communicate  the Attendance Committee/ELI policies more clearly to the sponsors

Lowell reminded the faculty that they need to enter their attendance regularly each week – no later than Monday evening following the close of each week.

Advisory Committee:

Scott summarized the policies addressed this session:

  1. How faculty should handle recommendation requests from students applying to schools. Creating an app for recommendations (possibly separate for graduate and undergraduate applications) and design an e-form that students can use to request recommendations. Some questions:  Should there be a minimum GPA? A time limit?  How can teachers comment on language proficiency of a student who was in their class several years ago?
  2. Addressing religious accommodations, e.g. student not wanting to take Compass on Friday afternoons. The Committee consulted UD Legal for a policy.  Where religious accommodations unreasonably interfere with the academic experience of other students or the integrity of the academic program, then we can reasonably ask the student to comply with what we want them to do in the classroom.  Scott says it comes down to the teachers using their best judgment when confronted with a religious accommodation situation.
  3. A policy to deal with persons outside the ELL requesting permission to conduct academic experiences involving our students.  Nigel drafted a proposal that will be voted on at a later time. Eventually a policy can be posted on the ELI website that we could refer potential researchers to.

A&E Committee:

  1. Ken Hyde reported that the A&E website is still under construction.
  2. The Committee is working on clarifying the duties and guidelines for trip escorts.  The guidelines have been updated.  One issue is how to make the duties available before the trips.

Promotion and Peer-Review Committee:

Grant reports the only faculty member up for peer review this year is Mary Beth Worrilow. The Committee has finished its recommendation.  It goes now to Scott > Dean > Provost.

Newsletter Committee:

Sarah Petersen

  1. Professional activities, publications to be sent to Randall Pennington.
  2. Alumni news to Grant
  3. Classroom notes to Kendra.  Photos to Scott Duarte.
  4. Special program details to Robbie

College of Arts and Sciences Senate:

Leslie Criston and Ken Cranker

  1.  CAS will be looking at workloads for full-time faculty.
  2. Kathy Vodvarka will be sending e-mail about Provost policy that newly-hired non-tenure-track faculty be given new titles, e.g., “Assistant Professor for Instruction.” There is controversy – Dean Watson is opposed to the Provost’s policy.
  3. Programs that issue certificates need to submit them to the Senate for review.
  4. Ken Cranker reports there is a movement for making UD a tobacco-free campus. Supposedly this applies to UD-rented buildings off campus.  One issue will be enforcement.

 

Old Business

Nigel

  1. Revised Speaking/Pronunciation curriculum is ready for faculty vote.  Nigel will send an e-mail to ask full-time faculty to vote by next Wednesday. If approved, the new curriculum will be adopted Session V.
  2. Listening Curriculum is the project for next year.
  3. Another project this year for the Curriculum Committee has been for BASIC to have a curriculum that is incorporated into our official curriculum document. We are defining BASIC as a separate program. It’s run and graded differently. Students stay in it for two sessions instead of one. This will be ready for an e-vote for Monday.
  4. One change in last year’s Grammar Curriculum — the Passive will be moved from Level III to V.

 

The issue of students using native language was brought up followed by lengthy discussion and opinions.

Ken Hyde feels we should not threaten students but rather use humor, respect, and other methods like relating teachers’ own stories about learning a second language.

One suggestion is to have ELI alumnus tell our students about positive benefits of using English.  Carolina has a video testimony from a former ELI student who met with her class.

Scott – we need to understand, though, the peer pressure ELI students often feel from their group if using English too much.

The challenge is to balance the need to use English with the need to remain with one’s group.

Discussion about making a series of student testimonial videos that cover a variety of issues.

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