Appendix F3: FTEF Requests
Audience: Administrators, CEMC, PRBC
Purpose: To recommend changes in FTEF allocations for subsequent academic year and guide Deans and
CEMC in the allocation of FTEF to disciplines. For more information, see Article 29 (CEMC) of the Faculty
Contract.
Instructions: In the area below, please list your requested changes in course offerings (and
corresponding request in FTEF) and provide your rationale for these changes. Be sure to analyze
enrollment trends and other relevant data at
http://www.chabotcollege.edu/ProgramReview/Data2012.cfm.
The accounting Faculty will submit a curriculum change effective Fall 2014 to add one lab hour to all
Business 1A (Financial Accounting) sections. The number of units will remain the same to students, but the
total time schedule for the class will change from 4 hours to 5 hours per week (changing from 4CAH to
4.75CAH per section).
We request 0.5 FTEF to cover the additional 10 lab hours ( 10 sections per semester, 10 x 0.75 = 7.5 CAH)
According to the data, the success rate for Bus 1A is at about 50% with a 30% withdrawal rate. Many
students who failed or withdrew will retake the course (about 30% of all students in Bus 1A are repeaters).
So students do not simply give up, they do try to succeed. So how can we help them to succeed?
Over the past few years, the accounting faculty have tried many methods to improve the success rate and
the retention rate of Business 1A, to provide support to get students through, and to create better
accessibility for new and returning students.
The faculty have been using learning assistants in their courses, introduced course project or mini projects
to reinforce difficult accounting concepts (which, of course, added more time pressure on already dense
content), doing more collaborative in-class group work, and created study groups outside the classroom.
While there is some improvement in success rates, the accounting faculty are determined to push it much
higher. What additional pedagogical and methodological tools could be employed? After numerous hours
of discussion among the accounting faculty, time was determined to be the missing piece. We need more
time to effectively cover the course content; a lab hour will provide more hands-on practice exercise for
the students. Provide faculty opportunities to work with student in a small group setting as well as one-onone if needed.
Jas Bhangal revised the course four years ago changing title and content from Principles of Accounting I to
Financial Accounting. Four-year transfer schools drove this change, originated in the industry. The content
was expanded to add such concepts as bonds, their amortization, the statement of cash flows, etc. that
previously were not covered in the class. Later the faculty had to devote more time on the coverage of
ethics and ethical decision making in accounting, which also was driven by sweeping changes in the
accounting profession and its conduct. After the faculty attended the TACTYC conference (Teachers of
Accounting at Two-Year Colleges), they updated the course content to include IFRS (International Financial
Reporting Standards) in addition to the US GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles), again, to
meet the requirements of the industry, four-year schools, and the CPA examination. All of these efforts
have added content and require more time to cover.
Faculty from our sister college, LPC, were also challenged to find ways to improve student success in their
accounting courses. Their Business 1A had moved from 4 hours to 5 hours effective Fall, 2012. Many other
community colleges in the Bay Area (DeAnza, Foothill, Ohlone, College of San Mateo, DVC) either have a
lab hour connected to their 4 unit course (5 hours per week) or have a general accounting lab for students
very much like our Math lab, Communication lab, WRAC center, and etc.
We strongly believe that adding the one lab hour to the course will have a positive impact on student
retention and success. It will also improve student access and, most of all, move students through their
program and pathway to accomplish set educational goals of certificates, two-year degrees, personal
development, employment, and/or transfer.