[QCsenate 0071] Re: Change in Pathways policy on contact hours

[George Hendrey]

The message from Chris, about the ³3 contact hour rule² (below) represents
some sanity in an otherwise nutty situation.  This semester SEES is
offering Ensci99, with 1 hour of lecture and 2 hours of lab a week, total
3 contact hours.  The SEES faculty HATES this.  We put it together under
duress and by any standard it is a serious dumbing down of a science
laboratory course, despite our best efforts to include serious content.  I
propose that this format not be approved for future LPS courses.  A more
typical format for a science lab course is 3 hr lecture and 3 hour lab
each week for 4 credits and I propose that this be a standard at QC for
laboratory course LPS designations.
George Hendrey

On 2/5/14, 2:47 PM, "Christopher Vickery"
<Christopher.Vickery at qc.cuny.edu> wrote:

>
>All ‹
>
>As the email below indicates, Pathways courses need no longer adhere to
>the ³3 contact hour rule² that caused so much consternation when the
>whole Pathways initiative was being forged into existence. This has
>particular implications for English composition, foreign language, and
>laboratory science courses. GEAC, the UCC, deans, and most (if not all)
>departments have already received copies of this announcement. But the
>senate at large should be aware of the change so it can start developing
>a coordinated response.
>
>Chris Vickery
>--
>Dr. Christopher Vickery, Director
>Office of General Education
>The College
>http://gened.qc.cuny.edu<http://gened.qc.cuny.edu/>
>
>
>To:                  College Presidents and Deans
>
>As you will recall, the June 2011 Board of Trustees resolution on
>Pathways stipulated that all of the ³Pathways policies and processes,
>including the Common Core, be reviewed and evaluated each year for three
>years beginning in 2013, and every three years thereafter, to modify them
>as necessary to improve them or to meet changing needs.²  This year, we
>did not yet have the data for a full review, but it was possible to
>consider implementation policies.
>
>To that end, we arranged last fall for an informal review involving
>faculty members from the key disciplines of the natural sciences,
>English, and the humanities, as well as representation from the
>University Faculty Senate.  Participants were asked to consider areas in
>which implementation could be improved at this still-early stage in
>Pathways adoption while adhering to the original Board resolution.
>Participants quickly reached consensus on three changes:
>
>1)      The University will no longer specify a limit on course hours in
>Common Core areas.  The Common Core model calls for a 30-credit
>curriculum, and this will remain in place.  However, beginning in fall
>2014, colleges can determine how many hours to allocate to courses in the
>Common Core and will have discretion to allocate hours to courses as they
>choose, in keeping with college practices.
>
>2)      To date, colleges have been able to seek a waiver if a major or
>degree program cannot be accommodated within the Common Core framework.
>Such waivers have been generated by the CUNY Office of Academic Affairs.
>Waivers have been sought in particular in the cases of certain STEM
>programs or licensed programs of various kinds, where it has proven to be
>unusually difficult to accommodate 30 credits of general education spread
>across the eight areas of the Common Core.  In such cases, programs can
>be helped by allowing the designation of particular courses within the
>Common Core areas or the College Option.  This practice will continue;
>efforts will be made to ensure that every college is fully aware of the
>waiver process.
>
>3)      Faculty members serving on the CUNY-wide Common Core Course
>Review Committee (CCCRC) will be chosen through college governance
>processes, beginning with those identified to serve during the 2014-2015
>academic year.
>
>I believe these changes are consistent with conversations we have had
>about Pathways.  Interim Executive Vice Chancellor Julia Wrigley will be
>in touch with your chief academic officers to provide additional guidance
>on implementing these changes.  The ongoing review of Pathways will
>continue next year when more data are available.
>
>William P. Kelly
>Interim Chancellor|The City University of New York
>205 East 42nd Street, 18th floor|New York, NY  10017
>646 664-9100 tel|646 664-3833 fax
>_______________________________________________
>QCsenate mailing list
>QCsenate at lists.qc.cuny.edu
>To unsubscribe or change your preferences goto
>http://lists.qc.cuny.edu/mailman/listinfo/qcsenate