Covenant & Syllabus

Writing a clear syllabus and covenant for your program or course will give you the foundation for a great teaching experience. At Evergreen we routinely provide students with two documents at the beginning of the quarter: a syllabus and a covenant. Adult students, particularly, need detail and clarity of schedule, assignments and expectations so they can fit their studies into their busy lives.

A syllabus includes information on how to contact you, an elaboration of the program topic, theme or content focus, and a weekly schedule of classes, readings and assignments. It is a good idea to include the learning objectives you will be addressing in evaluating students.

Covenants (some faculty call them constitutions) are written agreements that clarify responsibilities and expectations for both students and faculty. If you are team teaching, the faculty covenant defines expectations agreed upon by team members and clarifies responsibilities that may be divided up—such as budgets or field trips. A program/course covenant clarifies expectations faculty and students have for each other. Topics typically included are listed below. Besides the covenant, there are two policies that govern teaching and learning at Evergreen: the Social Contract and the Student Conduct Code grievance and appeals process. Refer students to the Evergreen Web Page for information (http://www.evergreen.edu/advising/academicpolicies.htm).

At the beginning of the quarter, the academic deans will request a copy of your syllabus and covenant. Please send or upload these documents promptly.

Covenant Topics

• Learning Objectives: Identify the concepts, skills, levels of understanding, or expectations of accomplishment you will help students attain. For example, Students will learn aesthetic theories relevant to photography, learn and apply technical skills in photography, and learn to critically evaluate their own and others’ photographs.
• Student Responsibilities: These typically include attendance at all program activities (with notification of expected absences), preparation for class, respect for divergent opinions or experiences, timely submission of assignments, submitting original work and engagement in seminars, workshops or other collaborative work.
• Requirements for Credit: Indicate whether partial credit is possible, and under what conditions. Remember that we do not use grades or percentages in our evaluations of students.
• Faculty Responsibilities: Typically, we acknowledge that we are responsible for preparing program activities and assignments, attending regularly and on time, and assessing and returning student work in a timely fashion. If you are working with a team, you agree to divide the workload equitably in your faculty covenant. These also include commitments to evaluate students in similar fashion, to participate in faculty seminars and planning meetings, and to evaluate each other for your teaching portfolios.
• Civility: Students and faculty agree to conduct themselves in a civil, respectful fashion. If a member of the program, whether student or faculty member, has a grievance against another, the first step is to discuss the problem with the specific individual. If the matter is unresolved, discuss it with the seminar leader. If the matter is still unresolved, discuss it with the faculty team, and finally the dean, who will consult with all concerned parties. More formal means of resolving problems are spelled out in the college grievance and appeal processes.
• Plagiarism: Define plagiarism and explain that students risk losing credit if you find they have plagiarized. You can refer to the definition on the Advising Web site at http://www.evergreen.edu/advising/academicpolicies.htm. This is particularly important to emphasize now that many students do their research on the web and cutting and pasting is so easy. Our Faculty Reference Librarians, Writing Center Director (Sandy Yannone) and Campus Grievance Officer (Andrea Seabert Olsen) are good sources of assistance regarding plagiarism questions.

Other Best Practices

• Adult students coming in the evening after a day’s work need variety in their class activities. Consider short lectures (20-30 minutes), one hour seminars using a variety of structures, workshops where they can apply their knowledge in some collaborative, experiential ways, quizzes, field trips, guest speakers, in-class writing, collaborative and individual project time, student presentations, and videos or films.
• Remember you are often working with people who have a great deal of experience. Effective adult education incorporates and addresses students’ real-world experiences. Get students to collectively share and examine their experiences in light of the program or course content and issues.
• You will have a wide variety of students, from traditional age to older adults. Some will have attended college previously, some are first-generation college students, and some are community college transfer students. Take advantage of this range by involving students in collaborative work where they can share these varied perspectives and gain a deeper understanding of the many ways to address questions or issues.
• Build collaborative skills in your program and courses. We want students to feel a part of learning communities, so they need ways to work together.
• State your office hours and/or how to contact you for an appointment. If you are teaching a course, having 15 minutes before or after class and responding to inquiries by e-mail is fine.
• Talk with experienced Evening and Weekend Studies faculty members about their experiences and practices with Evergreen students.
• Students of all ages and backgrounds respond to high expectations, truly interdisciplinary questions to explore, and the opportunity to explore an idea in some depth. Make sure you are providing the time and structures to allow for this work.