Teaching Essentials

Program Design Guidelines

Principles

• Increase education and skills training offerings and access new markets to generate more revenue.
• Improve space and scheduling efficiency and standardize components of academic program delivery to ensure sustainability and maximize existing resources.
• Provide students with flexible learning options, student pathways and enrollment opportunities in courses across the College’s program array.
• Increase the College’s flexibility to deliver programs and courses (move away from cohort-based delivery).
• Create a digital repository for courses and learning outcomes and course outlines on LEARN, for 24/7 student access to resources and for sustainability reasons.

Guidelines

1. Recommend 25 hours scheduled student full load per week, 5 hours per day
   • Work-integrated learning (WIL) interventions exempted; for example, co-operative education, practicum and clinical placements may require student to be engaged for 40 hours per week (or more)
2. Semester length
   • 15-week semester, final assessments in; 375 hours maximum assigned student contact
   • Programs that do not have final-week assessments may deliver courses the full semester length
3. Number of semesters per year
   • There will be 3 semesters per year: the Fall semester from late August to December end; the Winter from beginning January to April end; and the Spring / Summer semester beginning May to late August
   • The Spring / Summer semester may be divided into two terms; the first running beginning May to June end; the second, beginning July to late August
4. Number of courses per semester
   • Recommend no more than 6 courses per semester (to not overwhelm students)
5. Course length
   • Recommend non work-integrated learning course lengths be either 45 hours (3 CU) or 90 hours (6 CU)
   • Work-integrated learning courses such as co-operative education, practicum and clinical placements will vary in lengths well beyond 90 hours. Credit hours for WIL will be calculated separately from the formula used for non-WIL courses.
6. Work-integrated learning (these interventions will be treated as separate courses, not imbedded within another course)
   • Co-operative education – pass / fail; required to graduate; 3 CU for 2 months; 6 CU for 4 months, or 9 CU for 6 months; charge $$ flat rate per week of co-op
   • Work experience – pass / fail; required to graduate; < 120 hours = 2 CU; 121 – 240 = 4 CU; 241 = 360 = 6 CU; 361 – 480 = 8 CU; 481 + hours = 10 CU; charge $$ flat rate per week of work experience
   • Practicum placement – pass / fail; requirement to graduate; < 120 hours = 2 CU; 121 – 240 = 4 CU; 241 – 360 = 6 CU; 361 – 480 = 8 CU; 481 + hours = 10 CU; charge $$ flat rate per week of placement
   • Clinical placement – pass / fail; required to graduate; < 120 hours = 2 CU; 121 – 240 = 4 CU; 241 – 360 = 6 CU; 361 – 480 = 8 CU; 481 + hours = 10 CU; charge $$ flat rate per week of placement
   • Industry project – pass / fail; required to graduate; 3 CU for < 2 months; or 6 CU for < 4 months; or 9 CU for < 6 months; charge $$ flat rate per week of project
   • International students in work-integrated learning activities – charge $$ international student rate (3X rate of domestic students) for grant-funded programs
7. All courses will be on LEARN and should contain the following elements, minimally:
   1. News: instructor posts course and program announcements using the News tool
   2. Gradebook: instructor posts all grades into LEARN as they are generated
   3. Lectures notes, handouts, and presentations: all relevant and available course content that is displayed or handed out in the classroom is posted in organized modules for students
   4. Getting Started module: instructor completes template (provided by CLPE) with the following links for the Course Introduction – basic course information that should be provided for all courses:
      1. Course Introduction
      2. Instructor Introduction Student Guide (to taking this course)
      3. Course Outline
      4. Course Schedule
      5. Textbook and Course Materials (vi) Course Communication
      6. Discussion Guidelines (if applicable)
      7. Activities and Assignments (including rubrics if available)
   5. Policies, Resources and Support Information: all LEARN courses will have this basic information available to students. This will go into a link in LEARN’s menu and link to a College website for ease of maintenance and updating.
8. To meet RRC Polytech’s communication learning goals, the Math, Science and Communication (MSC) department has developed a Communication Skills Framework in conjunction with academic departments and external stakeholder input. The communication competency framework has been approved by Senior Academic Committee; therefore, these courses will need to be considered and adopted by academic programs in collaboration with MSC. A math competency framework is in the process of being developed. (Please connect with the MSC department Chair for more information.)