. DRAFT UNTIL APPROVED BY SENATE

MINUTES OF A MEETING OF THE SENATE OF SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY HELD

ON MONDAY, JANUARY 9, 1995 IN ROOM 3210 WMX, 7:00 P.M.

OPEN SESSION

Present: ?

Stubbs, J.O., Chair

Alderson, E.

Amason, K.

Barrow, R.

Blaney, J.

Boland, L.

Bullock, D.

Chan, K.

Cina A.

Clayman, B.

Cohen, M.

Crawford, C.

D'Auria, J.

Dhir, A.

Driver, J.

Einstein, D.

Etherington, L.

Hater, L.

Heinrich, K.

Hoeflich, K.

Jones, C.H.W.

Lord, T.

Luk,W.S.

Marteniuk, R.

Mathewes, A.

McInnes, D.

Morrison, T.

Munro, J.

Naef, B.

Osborne, J.

Percival, P.

Perr

, T.

Peterson, L.

Rawicz, A.

Sanghera,. B.

Shapiro, S.

Stewart, M.L.

Swartz, N.

Vining, A.

Wickstrom, N.

Wideen, M.

Winne, P.

Heath, W.R, Secretary

Grant, B., Recording Secretary

Absent:

Bacani,J.

Beattie, S.

Dean,.C.

Dobb, T.

Dunsterville, V.

Eaton, C.

Giffen, K.

LeMare, L.

Mauser, G.

McAskiII, I.

Segal, J.

Warsh, M.

Wu, S.

In attendance:

Cullen, J.

Dutton, P.

Farrell, A.

Roberts, M.

S.M. 09/01/95

Page

Approval of the Agenda

At the request of the Vice-President, Academic, item 5.a).ii) Paper S.95-2 was

withdrawn from the Agenda. The revised Agenda was approved.

Approval of the Minutes of the Open Session of December 5. 1994

Following a request to amend the words "pointed out" to "suggested" (first

sentence of the last paragraph on page 4), the Minutes were approved as

amended.

Business Arising from the Minutes

There was no business arising from the Minutes.

Report of the Chair

The Chair reported that the Government has struck a committee to' decide on

the future of Royal Roads. Deadline for the committee's recommendatiàn is

February 28, 1995.

Report of Committees

a) ?

Senate Committee on Academic Planning

i) ?

Paper S.95-1 - External Review - Department of History - For Information

P. Dutton, Chair, Department of History, was in

attendance in order to respond

to questions. ? . ?

In the brief discussion that took place with respect to Recommendation 15

concerning hiring priorities in East Asian and Women's History, Senate was

informed that the question of when a new position in Women's History will be

authorized has not yet been resolved.

Discussion turned to Recommendation 11 regarding credit for graduate

supervision. It was noted that this issue appears to be a common problem

among Departments across the University, and concern was expressed that

there appeared to be no solution forthcoming from the administration. Senate

was advised that the present faculty workload policy includes a mechanism for

dealing with this issue but it is not widely

useth A revised policy, presently

being circulated in its second draft, attempts 'to address thisissue but it was

pointed out that policy can only be facilitating'

and that this issue has to be

worked out within each department.

. ?

Commenting in general about external reviews, it was noted that the majority of

external reviewers have been Canadian. 'Opinion was, expressed that an

international and somewhat broader perspective of review, would be more

desirable and inquiry was made about using reviewers from the United States

or Great Britain.'Reviewers

from the United States have 'been used but it is not

feasible to bring reviewers from elsewhere.. because of.travel 'costs and other.

factors..History is a large discipline within Canada and it was felt it could be

S.M. 09/01/95

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well reviewed by faculty from other Canadian universities. However, in certain

disciplines where that might not be the case, the University is not bound to limit

itself to Canadian reviewers.

b) ?

Senate Committee on Academic Planning/Senate Committee on

Undergraduate Studies

Paper S.95-3 - Undergraduate Curriculum Revisions - Arts

Moved by J. Munro, seconded by T. Lord

"that Senate approve and recommend approval to the Board of

Governors the curriculum revisions for the Faculty of Arts as set

forth in S.95-3 as follows:

S.95-3a Cognitive Science Program"

Reference was made to the rationale statement, on page 3 referring to MACM

101 replacing MATH 151 as a prerequisite, and it was pointed out that the

proposed changes had no effect on MATH 151 since it was still a hidden

prerequisite for CMPT 201. Brief discussion followed, and the Registrar was

asked to seek clarification and report back should any further adjustments be

necessary.

Question was called, and a vote taken

MOTION CARRIED

Secretary's Note

: At the Senate meeting of December 5, 1994 in S.94-66b, the

prerequisite for CMPT 201 was changed from CMPT 101 or 104, 105, MATH

151 !Q.CMPT 101 (or 104), 105, MACM 101. MATH 151 is no longer a hidden

prerequisite.

ii)

Paper S.95-4 - Undergraduate Curriculum Revisions - Education

Moved by J. Munro, seconded by A. Barrow

"that Senate approve and recommend approval to the Board of

Governors the curriculum revisions for the Faculty of Education as

set forth in S.95-4 as follows:,

New courses:

EDPR 410,411,412,413 - Field Based Studies in

Curriculum Development

EDPR 414,415,416,417 - Field Based Studies in

Educational Practice

ii)

Change of grading for EDUC 452-8"

Discussion ensued with respect to the grading alternatives of pass/fail as

opposed to pass/withdraw. Senate was advised that the grades of P/W show

on a student's transcript but do not get calculated in the GPA, whereas an F

grade will affect the GPA. Courses graded on a P/W basis are subject to the

S.M. 09/01/95

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same Calendar regulation as other courses with regard to. the number of times

they can be repeated.

It was noted that EDUC 452 is a required course in a Minor program and

opinion was expressed that students taking this course as a requirement should

be graded in the normal way.

It was suggested that, since there appeared to be no Calendar regulation with

respect to criteria under which the category of P/W is to be used, the University

should examine this issue and draft a policy specifying under what conditions

this would be an appropriate way of grading courses. It was pointed out that

any course being proposed for a P/W grade has to come to Senate for approval

and be accompanied with a rationale which is acceptable to Senate. Since an

appropriate grading system is ultimately dependent on a particular course

situation, opinion was expressed that it would not be particularly helpful to

attempt to develop a formal policy with respect to criteria.

Moved by J. D'Auria, seconded by K. Amason

"that the motion be divided to allow consideration of item (1) and

item (ii) separately"

Question was called, and a vote taken.

MOTION TO DIVIDE CARRIED

Item(i)

Question was called, and a vote taken.

MOTION CARRIED

Item (ii)

Moved by J. D'Auria, seconded by P. Percival

"that this item be referred back to the Senate Committee on

Academic Planning for further discussion and additional rationale"

Brief discussion ensued with respect to the merits and route of referral.

Question was called, and a vote taken.

MOTION TO REFER FAILED

Question was called on Item (ii),

and a vote taken. ?

MOTION CARRIED

iii) ?

Paper S.95-5 - Undergraduate Curriculum Revisions - Science

It was agreed that the items contained in the covering motion on Paper S.95-5

be considered individually.

S.95-5a - Department of Biological Sciences

Moved by J. Munro, seconded by C. Jones

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"that Senate approve and recommend approval to the Board of

Governors the curriculum revisions for the Faculty of Science as

set forth in S.95-5a - Department of Biological Sciences"

Question was called, and a vote taken.

MOTION CARRIED

S.95-5b - Department of Mathematics and Statistics

Moved by J. Munro, seconded by C. Jones

"that Senate approve and recommend approval to the Board of

Governors the curriculum revisions for the Faculty of Science as

set forth in S.95-5b - Department of Mathematics and Statistics"

Question was called, and a vote taken.

MOTION CARRIED

S.95-5c - Department of Physics

Moved by J. Munro, seconded by C. Jones

"that Senate approve and recommend approval to the Board of

Governors the curriculum revisions for the Faculty of Science as

set forth in S.95-5c - Department of Physics"

Question was called, and a vote taken.

MOTION CARRIED

S.95-5d - Earth Sciences Program

Moved by J. Munro, seconded by C. Jones

"that Senate approve and recommend approval to the Board of

Governors the curriculum revisions for the Faculty of Science as

set forth in S.95-5d - Earth Sciences Program, including new

courses EASC 101,102,201,202,203,204,205,206"

Dr. M. Roberts, Director of the Earth Sciences Program, was in attendance in

order to respond to questions.

Senate was informed that the Earth Sciences program was approved by

Senate and the Board of Governors in 1988. At that time the overall program

structure was presented in detail but the courses to be offered were listed and

described briefly but not approved. Senate is now being asked to approve the

100-200 level courses in order to allow implementation of the program in Fall

1995. The 300-400 level courses will be brought forward at a later time. The

Academic Enhancement Fund and the Faculty of Science will provide base

funding building over a five-year time frame. The Program will be operated by a

Steering Committee chaired by a Director of Earth Sciences.

Opinion was expressed that there was a general perception that Earth Sciences

• programs were declining due to a decline in mining, petroleum and coal

activities around the world. The response was that the curriculum in this

program emphasizes Environmental Geosciences. Concern was expressed

S.M. 09/01/95

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that there appeared to be nothing innovative or different about the lower

division courses in this program. It was pointed out that the core of required

lower division courses within this program is designed to meet the professional

requirements for certification by the Association of Professional Engineers and

Geoscientists of British Columbia, and the innovative nature of the program is

not apparent until the third and fourth year level.

Discussion turned to the course offerings and concerns were expressed with

regard to overlap between courses within the program and others offered by

Chemistry and Physics. It was pointed out that the courses within the Earth

Sciences program have a different thrust. For example, crystal structure is

considered from the practical aspect of identification of minerals, whereas

courses in Physics and Chemistry have a more theoretical approach.

Reference was made to EASC 205 on page 16, and it was suggested that the

prerequisite should read CHEM 118 rather than CHEM 115.

Question was called, and a vote taken.

MOTION CARRIED

S.95-5e - B.Sc. Program in Environmental Science

Moved by J. Munro, seconded by C. Jones

"that Senate approve and recommend approval to the Board of

Governors the curriculum revisions in the Faculty of Science as set

forth in S.95-5e - B.Sc. Program in EnvironñiCnt Science,

including new courses ENPL 100,200"

A. Farrell, Department of Biological Sciences, was in attendance in order to

respond to questions.'

Senate was advised that the two new courses - ENPL 100 and 200 - are, part of

an undergraduate program proposal in the School of Resource and

Environmental Management to be called the Environmental Planning Program.

That program is not yet ready to come forward but the two courses before

Senate are integral to the proposed B.Sc. Program in Environmental Science

and have been brought forward separately so that the B.Sc. program could

proceed in Fall 95-3. It was further pointed out that there has been intensive

consideration of environmental programs within the Faculty of Science, the

Faculty of Applied Sciences, and the Faculty of Arts at the committee level with

a view of working towards an integrated set of

undergraduate programs. It was

hoped that all programs could be brought forward at the same time, but since

this was not possible it was decided to bring forward the Faculty of Science

component because it can be offered largely with existing courses.

In response to a question on the large number of required courses, it was

pointed out that the five streams within the program' offer students a wide

spectrum of choice and provide an in-depth core within the Science discipline.

In addition, they have considerable breadth built into them and, as a

consequence, the streams are relatively rigid and highly structured.

S.M. 09/01/95

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. In response to an inquiry about the course EVSC 401 referred to in the

supporting documentation, Senate was advised that the course proposal would

be brought forward for approval at a later date.

Question was called, and a vote taken.

MOTION CARRIED

iv) ?

Paper S.95-6 - Deletion of Courses Not Offered

Moved by J. Munro, seconded by J. Osborne

"that Senate approve and recommend approval to the Board of

Governors that the following courses be deleted:

ATHL 200

Olympic and Educational Gymnastics

CMNS 301

Communications Network Research Methods

CMPT 350

Information and Public Policy

CMPT 483

Parsing and Interpretation

GERO 405

Aging in Rural Canada

POL 383

Government and Politics: India

POL 482

Comparative Political Elites

PSYC 435

Sensation

PSYC 440

Motivation

SA 469

Symbol, Myth and Meaning

477

Southern Africa

CHEM 005

The Chemistry of Life"

Senate was advised that Gerontology had originally agreed to thedeletion of

GERO 405 because they had not been able to find a suitable instructor.

However, a qualified individual is now available on a continuing basis to teach

the course and they would like to retain it for offering in Summer Semester 95-2.

Amendment moved by E. Alderson, seconded by B. Clayman

"that GERO 405 be removed from the list of courses for deletion"

Question was called, and a vote taken.

AMENDMENT CARRIED

Brief discussion took place with respect to the criteria and procedures followed

with respect to the deletion of courses under this regulation.

Question was called, and a vote taken.

MOTION AS AMENDED CARRIED

c) ?

Senate Committee on Academic Planning/Senate Committee on

Continuing Studies

Paper S.95-7 - Non-Credit Post Baccalaureate Certificate Program in

Employment Communication Skills

Moved by J. Munro, seconded by J. Blaney

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Page 8

"that Senate approve and recommend approval to the Board of

Governors the proposed non-credit post-baccalaureate Certificate

Program in Employment Communication Skills"

J. Cullen, Continuing Studies, was in attendance to respond to questions.

In response to an inquiry about the possibility of offering this program in line

with other Continuing Studies offerings as evening or part-time options, Senate

was advised that although it would take quite some time to complete the

required 140 contact hours on a part-time/weekend basis, there was no reason

why it could not be done that way.

Reference was made to the budgetary implications on page 5, and Senate was

advised that the program will operate on a cost recovery basis. Based on 50

students per course, fees are expected to be at least $1,000 to cover the cost of

salaries and overhead. Request has been made to Employment Canada for

bursary assistance and expectations are reasonably optimistic that some form

of bursary help will be available.

Reference was made to the component on technological skills and concern was

expressed that students graduating from University would not already possess

these skills. Senate was advised that this component has .a very wide range of

skills in terms of students and exemptions will be considered for those not

needing this component.

Opinion was expressed that the title of the Certificate seemed to imply

a much

narrower program than the contents of the program actually indicate, and

Senate was informed that the title may be modified prior to implementation.

Question was called, and a vote taken.

MOTION CARRIED

d), ?

Senate Committee on International Activities

? .

i) ?

Paper S.95-8 - Annual Report - SCINIUSEC - For Information

Clarification was requested with respect to the Development Education

component in the Eastern Indonesia University Development Project. Senate

was advised that it essentially brings into the project components that deal with

environmental and social development, broadens the science-based focus of

the project, and attempts to make the project more instrumental in the

development of Indonesia along sustainable lines. The addition of this

component was instrumental in the positive recommendation of Phase II and

the Committee expects to receive regular reports on the implementation of this

component. A considerable report has already been received and is available

to Senators. Reference was made to the issue of human rights in Indonesia

and inquiry was made as to the University's position on this matter. Senate wasP

advised that the Committee felt the effect of the project on the human rights

situation would be considerably more positive if the project continued than if it

S.M. 09/01/95

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• did not continue, and the Committee is satisfied that the guidelines for

international activities which were approved by Senate are being adhered to

within the project.

Senate was advised that further study has led to the conclusion that a branch

campus in Malaysia is not feasible at this time.

Senate was advised that the number of students placed in other universities

under the exchange agreement is roughly equal to number of students

attending SFU.

Discussion turned to Item #3 and concern was expressed about final approval

of the Kenya Field School being made at the last minute, thus making it difficult

for departments to schedule on-campus courses and teaching assignments a

year in advance because of the possible off-campus involvement of faculty

members. Senate was advised that provided certain conditions are met, the

next Kenya Field School is tentatively scheduled for Spring Semester 1996-1,

and as soon as a final report on the 1994 Field School and a proposal for 1996

have been submitted, final decision can be made.

6. ?

Other Business

There was no other business.

•

7. ?

Information

The date of the next regularly scheduled meeting of Senate is Monday,

February 13, 1995.

The Assembly moved directly into Closed Session at 8:45 p.m.

W.R. Heath

Secretary of Senate