Program Design Guidelines
Principles
CBR Guidelines Presentation
See the slides from the Course-Based Registration Guidelines presentation.
- 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
- 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)
- 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
- 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
- Number of courses per semester
- Recommend no more than 6 courses per semester (to not overwhelm students)
- 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.
- 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
- All courses will be on LEARN and should contain the following elements, minimally:
- News: instructor posts course and program announcements using the News tool
- Gradebook: instructor posts all grades into LEARN as they are generated
- 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
- 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:
- Course Introduction
- Instructor Introduction Student Guide (to taking this course)
- Course Outline
- Course Schedule
- Textbook and Course Materials (vi) Course Communication
- Discussion Guidelines (if applicable)
- Activities and Assignments (including rubrics if available)
- 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.
- To meet RRC’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.)
Note: While the above-noted CBR guidelines and recommendations remain goals for the College’s academic model, it is acknowledged that some programs may need to phase-in their program revisions over a longer time period in order to achieve the goal. Exceptions to the guidelines may be approved by SAC, with well-documented reasons and recommendation from the Centre of Learning and Program Excellence.