S.98-42
• ?
SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY
Office of the Vice-President, Academic
Memorandum
To: Alison Watt ?
From:
Secretary of Senate
Re: Terms of Reference and Membership Date:
Scum
David GaganZO44/'-$'
AW
Vice-President, Academic
April 17, 1998
The Senate Committee on University Teaching and Learning and I have now
concluded our discussions regarding a revised mandate for the Committee. I attach
Irene Gordon's covering memo and the revised document. It should now be
forwarded to SCAR.
KI
Motion:
That Senate approve the revised terms of reference and membership of the
Senate Committee on University Teaching and Learning as set out in S.98- 42
Attachment
1• ?
/pjS
ss/scutl/2202
SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY
APR A 4 1998
Memorandum ?
/
TO: ?
Dr. David Gagan ?
vcc
Vice-President, Academic ?
o ?
.
FROM: Dr. Irene M. Gordon
Chair, Senate Committee on University Teaching and Learning
SUBJECT: Terms of Reference
DATE: April 9, 1998
- First, on behalf of the Senate Committee on University Teaching and- Learning
[SCUTL], I would like to express our appreciation to you for meeting with us on
Wednesday, March 25th. We realize that it was a busy time for you but the
meeting helped us in our April 3rd discussion of your recommended terms of
reference for SCUTL
I am attaching a copy of the revised terms of reference that have been accepted
unanimously by SCUTL. We have made some changes to the terms. Some of
the changes we discussed with you, but four resulted from SCUTL's April 3rd
meeting. The changes are:
1. The Director of Student Academic Resources is a voting member of
SCUTL.
2.
We have included a sentence stating that student representatives will be
elected for a term of one-year.
3.
We have included item (a) about learning outcomes and prior learning
assessment. However, we have changed the wording to "to provide
advice" and have deleted the words "Vice-President, Academic (or his/her
designate). Our reason for the deletion was to indicate that Senate, the
Vice-President, Academic, or others could ask and be provided advice on
this topic. Also, this wording is consistent with the phrasing of the
remaining seven items.
4.
We have placed a comma after "guidance on" in item (C) and deleted the
comma after "appropriateness or. The comma seemed to be out of place
in the original terms.
5.
In item (d) we deleted the words "support and" from item (d) and added
"sessional instructors and teaching assistants" after the word faculty.
6.
In item (e), we spelled out all of the acronyms for clarity and changed Lohn
Lab to Lohn Lab.
•
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7. We changed the word "efficiency" to "efficacy" in item (g).
8. ?
We added "in May" to "Reports to Senate annually".
I.
We are submitting the attached terms to you for the consideration of Senate and
the appropriate Senate Committees.
?
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The members of SCUTL are quite positive about the process we have gone
through in arriving at the new terms of reference. Thank you for your assistance
throughout this process.
cc: SCUTL members
attachment
.
.
7.
FINAL DRAFT ?
PROPOSED MANDATE
SENATE COMMITTEE ON UNIVERSITY TEACHING AND LEARNING
?
(SCUTL)
A.
?
MEMBERSHIP:
- one faculty member from each Faculty, elected by Senate;
- one graduate student, elected by Senate;
- one undergraduate student, elected by Senate;
- Director, Centre for University Teaching (ex officio, voting)
- Director, Student Academic Resources (ex officio, voting).
The Committee will elect a Chair from among the faculty representatives. Faculty
representatives will be elected for staggered three-year terms. Student
representatives will be elected for a one-year term.
B. TERMS OF REFERENCE:
(a) ?
to provide advice on matters pertaining to Learning Outcomes and
Prior Learning Assessment;
5 ?
(b) ?
to review periodically, and provide advice on, grading practices and
standards in the Faculties;
(C) ?
to review periodically, and to provide advice and guidance on, the
appropriateness of teaching evaluation instruments in use in the
University;
(d)
to review periodically, and to provide advice on, the instructional
development needs of faculty, sessional instructors and teaching
assistants;
(e)
to review and comment on the annual reports of the Centre for
University Teaching, the Instructional Media Centre, the Academic
Computing Services, the Student Academic Resources office and
the LohnLab, and annual undergraduate surveys;
(f)
to provide advice on the annual program of the Centre for
University Teaching;
(g)
to provide advice on the efficacy of various teaching strategies in
relation to changing teaching and learning environments;
(h)
to consider such matters, related to teaching and learning, referred
to the Committee by Senate and its committees.
C.
?
Reports to Senate annually in May.
IN
S
SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY
Office of the Vice-President, Academic
?
Memorandum
Professor
Chair,
SCUTL
Irene
?
Gordon ?
From: David
Vice-President,
Gagan
A
Academic
^t^
07
Re:
SCUTL
Mandate
?
Date: ?
February
6, 1998
Your letter to Dr. Blaney regarding SCUTL's
terms
of
reference was referred to SCAR
and
then
back
to me in the hope that SCUTL
and I could
negotiate new terms of
reference,
or
alternative
ways of pursuing
SCUTL's
business. I must
report
back to
SCAR.
I
attach
for the Committee's consideration a draft mandate,
and some membership
revisions. I would be pleased to discuss them
with
the
Committee, in particular
B (a) which requires a rather lengthy explanation.
I have
discussed
this draft
with Faculty Deans
who
suggested other
possibilities:
(a) creating a standing committee
of
Associate Deans
(Undergraduate
Studies) to
pursue this
agenda; (b)
inviting SCUS
to
assume these responsibilities.
They are,
nevertheless, very
supportive of the idea that some group should be
formally
responsible for
these matters.
I will be happy to meet
with
you
and your Committee
as
soon as
possible.
Attachment
S
/pis
nusc/gordon/scutl/2202
To:
.
DRAFT
I
PROPOSED MANDATE
SENATE COMMIIUEE ON UNIVERSITY TEACHING ?
AND LEARNING (SCUTL)
A.
MEMBERSHIP:
- one faculty member from each Faculty, appointed by Senate;
- one graduate student;
- one undergraduate student;
- Director, CUT (ex officio, voting);
- Director, Student Academic Resources (ex officio, voting).
The Committee will elect a Chair from among the faculty representatives.
Faculty representatives will be appointed for staggered three-year terms.
B.
TERMS OF REFERENCE:
(a)
to advise the Vice-President, Academic (or his/her designate) on
matters pertaining to Learning Outcomes and Prior Learning
Assessment;
(b)
to review periodically, and provide advice on, grading practices and
standards in the Faculties;
(c)
to review periodically, and to provide advice and guidance on the
appropriateness of, teaching evaluation instruments in use in the
University;
(d)
to review periodically, and to provide advice on, the instructional
support and development needs of faculty;
(e)
to review and comment on the annual reports of the CUT, the IMC,
the SAC and the Lohn Lab, and annual undergraduate surveys;
(f)
provide advice on the annual program of the Centre for University
Teaching;
(g)
provide advice on the efficiency of various teaching strategies in
relation to changing teaching and learning environments;
(h)
to consider such matters, related to teaching and learning, referred to
the Committee by Senate and its committees.
rnisc/scutl man/Jan22/98
SUGGESTED REVISED SCUTL TERMS OF REFERENCE ?
•
Background
In a 1997 requested meeting with Dr. D. Gagan, Vice-president Academic,
Senate Committee on University Teaching and Learning [SCUTL] members
outlined problems with Committee's purpose as described in its original
mandate. Dr. Gagan noted that Senate committee's are generally responsible
for policy recommendations. SCUTL's original terms of reference make it an
exception. In particular the first two points outlining SCUTL's purpose have
occupied much of the members' time with only minimal results. As specified in
June. 1996, these purposes are:
1.
To assist departments in the development of methods of evaluating
teaching.
2.
To develop new standard teaching survey instruments and to develop a
policy regarding the regular use of teaching surveys by all course
instructors.
SCUTL'S difficulty with these two purposes arose primarily due to three
factors. First, SCUTL members are generally not experts in teaching evaluation
design. This lack of expertise was compounded by the wide variety of
accepted evaluation instruments and the controversies surrounding the uses of
these instruments. The second difficulty existed because SCUTL. has been
treated like all other Senate committees in terms of budget. A budget was not
established to undertake the purposes outlined. The third factor relates to the
changing membership of the committee. While the infusion of new talents and
ideas is an important component of the revitalization of a committee, it also
can serve as a negative aspect when tasks take more than one year to
complete.
On Dr. Gagan's suggestion, SCUTL's purposes should perhaps be revisited so
that it becomes a committee that recommends policies to Senate. The
following are suggested as SCUTL's revised purposes.
Terms of Reference
1. To report on
policies and practices relating to teaching and learning throughout
the University, and when appropriate and without undermining
academic freedom, make recommendations to Senate concerning:
- teaching practices, including teaching formats (e.g., lecture,
tutorial, laboratory, practicum, supervision of projects and theses,
modes of distance education)
- programs for improving teaching practices and learning
- teaching workload
- methods of evaluating teaching and learning
- uses of media and technology in teaching and learning
- advisement of students
- class size
- grading practices and standards
- patterns of completion and withdrawal from courses and academic
programs
- instructional support for sessional instructors, teaching assistants
and other limitedterminstructional staff
- information and support systems for students.
2.
To help disseminate information about learning methods with the
aim of improving the University's instructional effectiveness.
3.
To review periodically the programs of awards given for excellent
teaching in the University.
.
?
4. To receive annual reports from the Directárs of the Centre for
University Teaching, Student Academic Resources, the Instructional
Media Centre, the LohnLab and other similar units.
5.
To consider matters relating to teaching and learning referred to the
Committee by Senate and its committees [e.g., SCAR, SCAP, SGSC
and SCUS].
6.
To advise the Centre for University Teaching.
Membership:
One faculty member, from each Faculty, elected by Senate. One of these
members will be elected by Senate as Chair of the Committee.
One graduate student
One undergraduate student
Director of the Centre for University Teaching [ex officio, voting]
Director of Student Academic Resources [ex officio, non-voting]
Reports annually to Senate in May.
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