Spring Break
Syllabus rubric requirement stumps Faculty Senate
Policy requires syllabi to include rubric outlining grading criteria for subjective assignments
By: Calli Turner
Issue date: 2/5/09 Section: News
The Faculty Senate will vote to remove what has been called a mistake in the Minimum Syllabus Requirements at the
Feb. 9 meeting.
Melinda Grant, chairwoman for the Faculty Senate academic affairs committee, said the senate realized a mistake was made when a student brought forth a grade appeal. She said a sentence regarding a rubric requirement was added to the grading policies section, but the senate is not certain where the sentence came from.
The policy reads: "If a portion of the grade involves qualitative or subjective judgments, include a rubric in the grading scheme that identifies what distinguishes 'A' work from 'B' work from 'C' work, etc."
Core curriculum council Chairman Douglas Slack authored the Minimum Syllabus Requirement and the academic affairs committee passed it in June. The academic affairs committee has gone back to the original document and is proposing that this version be approved. This would strike the above sentence about a rubric.
Grant said there was no deception on anyone's part with the mistake and that the senate is working to fix the issue.
"It was incorrect, and we needed to correct it immediately," she said.
Grant said she was not informed of any faculty who were aware of the mistaken rubric requirement; and therefore, she did not know of any faculty who had enforced it. She said the core curriculum committee did not reject proposed syllabi over the rubric requirement.
"They would not have been looking for a rubric since that is not what we passed," she said.
Courtney Copeland, a junior psychology major, said she thought it was a good idea to require professors to include a rubric.
"It's a good idea, that way you don't go into writing your paper blind sighted. You actually know what to strive for to get that grade," she said.
Copeland said her professors did not include rubrics in syllabi and she is disappointed that the senate is voting to remove the requirement.
"I think that's stupid," she said. "I've never had a rubric in any of my syllabuses, which means it's not been given a chance, and what's so wrong with having good grades?"
Chairman for the Student Senate academic affairs committee Kolin Loveless, a senior mechanical engineering major, is one of the student representatives for the Faculty Senate academic affairs committee.
"[The student representatives] were very much involved in the discussion," he said.
The Student Senate has not passed any legislation on the rubric of grading policies, but Loveless said the senate wants to make sure students understand the grading process.
"The big thing we're looking to do is to make sure students have a fair understanding of how they're graded," he said.
Feb. 9 meeting.
Melinda Grant, chairwoman for the Faculty Senate academic affairs committee, said the senate realized a mistake was made when a student brought forth a grade appeal. She said a sentence regarding a rubric requirement was added to the grading policies section, but the senate is not certain where the sentence came from.
The policy reads: "If a portion of the grade involves qualitative or subjective judgments, include a rubric in the grading scheme that identifies what distinguishes 'A' work from 'B' work from 'C' work, etc."
Core curriculum council Chairman Douglas Slack authored the Minimum Syllabus Requirement and the academic affairs committee passed it in June. The academic affairs committee has gone back to the original document and is proposing that this version be approved. This would strike the above sentence about a rubric.
Grant said there was no deception on anyone's part with the mistake and that the senate is working to fix the issue.
"It was incorrect, and we needed to correct it immediately," she said.
Grant said she was not informed of any faculty who were aware of the mistaken rubric requirement; and therefore, she did not know of any faculty who had enforced it. She said the core curriculum committee did not reject proposed syllabi over the rubric requirement.
"They would not have been looking for a rubric since that is not what we passed," she said.
Courtney Copeland, a junior psychology major, said she thought it was a good idea to require professors to include a rubric.
"It's a good idea, that way you don't go into writing your paper blind sighted. You actually know what to strive for to get that grade," she said.
Copeland said her professors did not include rubrics in syllabi and she is disappointed that the senate is voting to remove the requirement.
"I think that's stupid," she said. "I've never had a rubric in any of my syllabuses, which means it's not been given a chance, and what's so wrong with having good grades?"
Chairman for the Student Senate academic affairs committee Kolin Loveless, a senior mechanical engineering major, is one of the student representatives for the Faculty Senate academic affairs committee.
"[The student representatives] were very much involved in the discussion," he said.
The Student Senate has not passed any legislation on the rubric of grading policies, but Loveless said the senate wants to make sure students understand the grading process.
"The big thing we're looking to do is to make sure students have a fair understanding of how they're graded," he said.
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