ClassroomPolicies

SUGGESTED POLICIES

OVERVIEW

The policies listed here (that are not from the student handbook) are suggested... by me (Bill Fischer). They are, however, based on many conversations that I have had with most of you. There will always be logical exceptions, so we don't want to be dogmatic about it. I believe that there will be a significant degree of consensus regarding these policy suggestions. However, disagreements or other ideas are welcome. Please fell free to comment.

INDEPENDENT STUDIES

These often don't work out that well. Students generally don't get as much accomplished and they miss out on group critiques. This has the double negative effect on both the student and the group that would have benefited from their input.

Students often ask for these to make their schedule more convenient. Allowing an Independent Study for this reason undermines the scheduling process in general. It can cause deficiencies in the enrollment of courses that already sometimes suffer from low enrollment.

Instead of Independent Studies, I would recommend, whenever possible, a Special Problem. This is when a student attends one course, but is doing the work for a different course. That way, some group interaction can be had and the teacher can expect the same level of attendance as in a normal class. These should also not be done for convenience sake.

Students can be crafty.. and overstate their problem with attending a class on the scheduled day. Please, press them on the issue.

Adjunct Professors and Term Appointment professors (in Summer) are not allowed to participate in Independent Study with students.

INCOMPLETE GRADES

These have been used in the past to give students extra time to complete projects. This is not an acceptable practice. Here is the official school policy from the student handbook:

Academic Credit: Incomplete Grades (I)

An "Incomplete" ("I") grade is a temporary designation. The intent and use of the "I" grade is not to avoid student probation, dismissal, or unacceptable grades; nor should it be considered as an extended alternative to withdraw ("W") from a class.

The following guidelines must be observed when assigning a grade of "I."

1. The "I" should only be considered for extenuating circumstances, beyond the control of the student, which results in the student's inability to complete course requirements. Extenuating circumstances are generally defined as those situations over which the student has little or no control (e.g., illness, injury, birth of a child, death of a parent/spouse/child, jury duty, military service). Professors may wish to require appropriate documentation.

2. A student should have successfully completed at least 75% of the required coursework, as determined by the professor.

3. In the event a student receives an "I" grade, the student must make arrangements with the professor to complete all required work by an agreed upon date and the professor must supply the Registrar’s Office with a form authorizing the assignment of the incomplete grade and agreed upon completion date that can be no later than the end of the semester following the semester in which the student received the incomplete grade. If the student has not completed all required work by the agreed upon date, the “I” grade will be changed to a grade of “F” by the Registrar’s Office. The professor may provide a written authorization to the Registrar’s Office requesting a time extension. A second registration in the course is not permitted for removal of an "incomplete". However, if the grade becomes an "F", the class may then be repeated according to the procedures listed in the "Academic Credit: Repeating Courses" section of this catalog.

4. When a student completes the requirements for the course, the professor must submit a grade change

form to the Kendall Registrar’s Office for processing and approval.

5. The student cannot register for a new course in any semester as long as the prerequisite(s) for the new

course has an “I” grade.

GRADE CHANGE FOR THE COMPLETION OF UNFINISHED COURSEWORK

These have been used in the past, along with Incomplete grades, to give students extra time to finish projects. We are experiencing a near epidemic of students not finishing projects. If they are given poor grades instead of more time, I guarantee, most of them will not repeat that mistake. We also need to, ourselves, help students not over-reach with their projects. Here is the official school policy from the student handbook:

Academic Credit: Grade Change:

The assignment of grades is a faculty responsibility and only in exceptional circumstances is an original grade subject to change.

ATTENDANCE

There is a reason that Kendall spends hundreds of thousands of dollars on facilities and equipment.. it's called residency. That means that we believe there is value in all being there, in class, at the same time. That students can learn as much from each other as they do from us. That they can collaborate, push, inspire and compete with each other. And, all of that makes for a better learning experience. If students are not coming to class, it undermines the whole idea of residency. It also has the effect of poor attending students monopolizing teacher's time trying to get caught up. I think we need to get strict on attendance.

Attendance is a two way street. When a teacher ends class early, it has the same undermining effect on residency. It is also my opinion, that artists and designers striving for excellence... don't go home early.

STUDENT LAPTOP TECHNOLOGY REQUIREMENTS

Students have been coming to class without the proper technology far too often. I am working with the admissions department to be much more strict regarding laptop approval. Improper hardware and software is not a legitimate reason for not completing coursework. Lost files, that were not backed up, should also not be a legitimate reason for not finishing.

The Student Laptop Software Assumptions can be found on the upper right of the course schedule on this page of the advising website:

https://sites.google.com/site/dmadvising/courseschedule

CLASSROOM 'OPEN LAB' POLICY

We invest quite a bit in equipment and we like to maximize its use. If you have open seats in your classroom, please allow students that are not attending your class, to come in and use it.

ASSESSMENT EVIDENCE & COLLECTING STUDENT WORK

We are required by the accrediting agencies to publicly post student work in a way that allows for ongoing faculty review and assessment. Even if it was not required, we would want to do this. Posting work also acts as a recruiting aid and provides inspiration and examples for our students. It is very important that you collect and submit work for inclusion. We post works in two places:

1. Temporary exhibits in the halls

2. More permanent exhibits on the Kendallweblab.com site.

It is my opinion that we should show only out best work, for the following reasons:

We are, as teachers, in the business of differentiating between good and bad. We need to be able to exercise judgement in order to be effective. This is a place where that can manifest itself publicly.

These venues are where we are judged by other programs... faculty and students. Confidence in our ability as faculty and as a program is gained, or lost, through the quality of this work.

Our students will be entering a highly competitive environment upon graduation. Competition for inclusion in these venues prepares students for this reality.