Syllabus Template

What is the syllabus template?

OTC provides a template for you to use as a guide in the development of a syllabus your course(s), regardless of the mode of delivery (hybrid, online and seated) or the campus or location where you teach.

Our syllabus system is embedded into your Canvas course. The menu item in Canvas is labeled as “Course Syllabus.”

How do I use the syllabus template?

To get started, watch this introductory video:

Here is another video showing how to copy a syllabus from one section to another:

Additional Resources

Why is the syllabus important?

You should think of your syllabus as serving three important purposes:

  • the syllabus as a contract

your syllabus should clearly spell out policies and procedures that you will follow in your course

  • the syllabus as a permanent record

often syllabi are used by students seeking to transfer course work to other higher education institutions

  • the syllabus as a learning tool

your syllabus can be a place to share the relevance and importance of your course, and to set a tone for a positive learning environment for the entire semester

adapted from:The Purposes of a Syllabus, Jay Parkes and Mary  B. Harris, Retrieved from: http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~coesyl-p/syllabus_cline_article_2.pdf

Keep up on the latest information and research on syllabus best practices

We have all heard the cry “students don’t read the syllabus”… either from ourselves or colleagues.  But, we also know there is a need to clearly communicate expectations to our students.  How do we bridge that gap?

Well, it turns out there is a large field of both peer-reviewed research and informal data about syllabus best practices.  Here are some of the latest if you’d like to check them out.

Current Peer-Reviewed Research *you will be asked to log in using your OTC username and password to access these some of these articles

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