Faculty Meeting – III15 2/13/15
Memorial Hall 123, 1:30 p.m. Friday
News and Announcements
- Congratulations to Julie and her team for the “Americans Study Overseas” video series dealing with the problem of intra-cultural bullying. It will be posted on the ELI Facebook page next session.
Agenda
- Confirmation of pilot courses – After reviewing the course descriptions, learning outcomes, syllabi, and student comments on the pilot courses, the Curriculum Committee recommends that these pilot courses be accepted —
Newspapers VI,
History V,
American Culture IV,
EAP Prep VI, and
American Voices VI.
A vote was taken and the pilot courses were approved by the faculty.
- Level III Writing curriculum – the Curriculum Committee revised the Level III writing curriculum after discussions with level III writing teachers. This revision will clarify what should be taught in level III – e.g. paragraph and multi-paragraph writing. There will be a vote in two weeks. Nigel sent the proposal in email yesterday.
- New syllabus template for Levels IV and above – in compliance with the CEA accreditation the Curriculum Committee is recommending a syllabus template for the upper levels that will be consistent in the way course policies are explained. It will have student-friendly language. Nigel sent the Listening/Speaking and Reading/Writing templates in email yesterday. Faculty should look at them and send Nigel the learning outcomes and course policies for their courses. We would like to start using the templates in Session IV. There was some discussion about incompletes.
- Course timelines – each syllabus on the Facbook has to have seven and eight week timelines. Faculty should send them to Lowell.
- Faculty/family outing – Scott asked if there is interest in having a type of outing or trip where faculty could bring family members along. Ken Hyde mentioned Lum’s Pond picnic as an option.
- Friday testing – this Session we will use the Michigan Test on the Friday testing day. Teachers will bring their students to the SALC or Listening Lab. Too many problems with Compass.
- Faculty Senate news – Leslie Criston commented on the Title IX sexual harassment policy. If a teacher hears about an incident of sexual harassment or abuse from a student in an essay, journal, or private conversation, the teacher is required to report it. She recommends we include the policy in the online Student Handbook. Scott said it will be added to the revised online Student Handbook. We should also offer suggested phrasing in the online Facbook that teachers can use if this situation arises.
Ken Cranker mentioned the issue of new titles for full-time faculty controversy. Scott said the Provost has already made these changes in the UD online Faculty Handbook despite the taskforce opposition.
Leslie says there is an issue in the Senate about faculty senators being able to review the budgets in other departments. Scott feels that’s not advisable. An example would be a faculty member in another department asking why the ELI orders 200 buses a year for our students.
- Semester schedule – Mikie asked if there was any recent discussion about the ELI changing to a semester schedule. Scott explained he has talked about this with faculty and administrators. He says the proposal is not tabled but there are a lot of problems. Ohio University has done this and it’s hurting their enrollment. Other IEPs that have adopted a semester schedule are planning to go back to eight-week schedules. Sponsors don’t want to send their students to IEPs that use the semester schedule.
- Readers for 318 – Nicole reports the SALC is making plans for each teacher at 318 to have a set of readers that their students can sign out.