OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF SENATE
GUIDE TO COURSE OUTLINES AND A SUGGESTED TEMPLATE
Updated September 1, 2015
Below are some important points to consider when creating your course outline, as well as a
suggested template that you are welcome to use and modify for your particular course, subject area,
teaching format, etc. This guide and the suggested template will be updated each year to reflect
changes in policy, and to include helpful suggestions from the Ryerson community.
Ryerson’s Course Management Policy (Policy 145) specifies that students will be provided with a
course outline, either electronically on the University’s course management system (formerly
Blackboard and now D2L Brightspace) or in hard copy, by or at the first meeting of every course.
Electronic versions are typically preferred by students, and of course are more environmentally
friendly. The information in the outline should be discussed at the first class, and may be
supplemented by more detailed information that is provided later in the course.
Please note that a strongly expressed request from students over the past few years is for
outlines and course websites to be available as early as possible before the term starts. I
realize you’re not hearing about this request with a lot of lead time, but if you can manage it, and it
fits with your plan for the course, getting the website up and the course outline posted sooner rather
than later will likely be much appreciated by your students. In distance education courses, the
course outline should be available electronically prior to the start of the course.
WHAT’S INCLUDED BELOW?
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Recent Updates
Assessment and Feedback
Academic Integrity
Exams
Experiential Learning Activities
Other Important Notes
A Suggested Template for Course Outlines
1. RECENT UPDATES
A major revision of Ryerson’s Policy 60, formerly the Student Code of Academic Conduct and now
called the Academic Integrity policy, was approved by Senate in June, 2015 for implementation on
September 1, 2015 (suspicions of academic misconduct for courses taken in the 2015
spring/summer term will be administered under the old Policy 60). The new policy is available
under “What’s New” on the Senate homepage and with the rest of our policies
at http://www.ryerson.ca/senate/PoliciesIndex.html (all policies are listed there in both numerical
and alphabetical order). More information about the revised policy will be available in the fall
term, including a detailed procedures document.
Perhaps the single biggest change to Policy 60 is a new option for faculty members to refer a
suspicion of academic misconduct to a member of the new Designated Decision Makers Council
(DDMC). DDMs are faculty members appointed by the Academic Integrity Office (AIO) to handle
cases of potential academic misconduct that have been forwarded by instructors who do not wish or
are unable to pursue the matter themselves. Please refer to Section 3.4.1.2 on p. 6 of the revised
policy for details. Please note that, in order to gain experience and address any issues that
might arise with the new option, it will only be available to contract lecturers in the fall term,
with full implementation of the option in January 2016. The rest of the new Policy 60, however,
is effective September 1, 2015.
A second important change to Policy 60 is the new penalty option of a course-grade reduction
greater than a grade of zero on the work (see Section 5.2.3 of the new policy). This provides an
option between assigning a zero on a small-value course component, which might not be perceived
as much of a deterrent by students, versus an F in the course, which might be too severe for
misconduct on a small component of the course. Please note that this penalty can only be
applied to course components worth 10% or less, that any additional penalty cannot exceed
10% of the final course grade, and that information explaining that such a penalty will be
assigned must be included on the course outline. I have included this category of penalty in the
course outline template that follows, including the qualifying statements.
2. ASSESSMENT AND FEEDBACK
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Number of Assessments: Each course must have at least two independent assessments per
semester. Where appropriate, assessments should be of different types. No one assessment can
be worth more than 70% of the student’s grade.
Return of graded work:
o Some graded work must be returned prior to the last date to drop a course.
o Student work is considered their personal property and is covered by FIPPA requirements. It
is the responsibility of the Department or School to develop systems or determine
procedures for the confidential return of graded course work.
Posting of Grades:
o All grades on assignments or exams must be posted, and/or made available to students
through the return of their work. Grades on final exams must be posted. However, as there
may be other consideration in the determination of final grades, students will receive their
official final grade in the course only from the Registrar. Final official course grades may
not be posted or disclosed anywhere by an instructor.
o Posting of grades on the course management system (now D2L Brightspace) is preferred. If
grades are posted in hard copy they must be posted numerically, sorted by student
identification number after at least the first four digits have been removed. Instructors must
inform students of the method to be used for posting grades. Students who wish not to have
their grades posted this way must inform the instructor in writing.
Period of Prohibition from Testing (see section 2.4 of Policy 145 for exceptions and
details): In the fall and winter semesters, the last week of classes and the subsequent Saturday
and Sunday before the examination period are to be free of all examinations or major
assignments or other assessments. The same principle applies to Continuing Education courses
and to courses taught in the spring/summer term. Final exams must only be given during the
final exam period.
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Access to Final Exams: Students must be given supervised access to review their final exams.
If an instructor is going to be away, the department/school must be given access to the exams for
this purpose.
3. ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: Details available in the revised version of Policy 60 (Academic
Integrity) that goes into effect on September 1, 2015 and on the Academic Integrity Website.
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Faculty should make a strong statement on enforcement of the Academic Integrity policy, both
on their outlines and in class, and should provide access to the policy and related information.
There may be specific pieces of the policy that faculty wish to highlight, such as:
o Guidelines on the proper forms of citation required for the course.
o Noting to students that the Academic Integrity website is educational, including several
excellent animated tutorials and quizzes. Faculty may download the quizzes onto their
Brightspace site and require students to complete them. There are also a wide variety of
resources available for students and faculty on the site.
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Turnitin is a plagiarism prevention and detection service to which Ryerson subscribes. It is a
tool to assist faculty in determining the similarity between student work and work of other
students who have submitted papers to the site (at any university), internet sources, and a wide
range of journals and other publications. While it does not contain all possible sources, it gives
faculty some assurance that students’ work is their own. No decisions are made by the service; it
simply generates an “originality report,” and faculty must evaluate that report to determine if
something is plagiarized. Turnitin is integrated into D2L Brightspace, the instructions for which
are available at http://ryerson.ca/courses/tutorials/assessment-grades/create-dropboxassignment.html.
o If Turnitin.com is to be used in a course, the following wording is required: “Students
who do not want their work submitted to this plagiarism detection service must, by the end
of the second week of class, consult with the instructor to make alternate arrangements.”
4. EXAMS: Details available in Policy 135 (Examination Policy)
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It is essential that students be informed about the prohibition of unauthorized electronic devices
such as cell phones and personal listening devices in exams. As well, all bags and backpacks
can be left the front of the room. Students must have their Ryerson ID cards. Another form of
photo ID is acceptable, but students must be reminded to get their Ryerson ID card.
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Faculty may choose to include items from this policy, depending upon the format of their
exams, related to:
o Materials allowed to be used in exams (calculators, tables, etc.).
o Specifics related to electronic exams (see the policy for details).
o Student responsibilities in exams (either specify or refer students to the policy on the
website), such as the display of photo identification, signing in, placement of bags and coats,
etc.
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The integrity of the exam process depends in large part on effective invigilation. The policy is
that there be a maximum ratio of 50 students to 1 invigilator for final exams, but there should
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never be just one TA invigilating an exam room, and it is always best to have more than one
invigilator. There are a variety of possible strategies that can help to ensure exam integrity:
o Especially if students are taking exams in cramped spaces, have more than one version of
the exam, especially if it is multiple choice, so that students are not tempted to copy.
o If there are multiple sections of a course, use different versions of the exam, in order to
minimize leakage of specific content from section to section.
o Update exams from term to term.
o Do not pass out the exams until all students are seated.
o Ensure that all students have their photo ID, and verify their identity.
o Ensure that all students actually submit their exam.
5. EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING ACTIVITIES
These activities fall into a variety of categories, and each category is associated with some
requirements based in risk assessment. Please see the Experiential Learning Risk Management
Chart to determine the category of the activity you plan and check to ensure that all of the
requirements have been met for that activity. These range from the need for a formal placement
agreement (e.g., for high risk areas such as nursing and midwifery) to the need for an insurance
waiver form.
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Policy 156 (Removal of Students from Field Placements/ Practicums): While this
information should be in Department/School Handbooks, faculty may choose to make students
aware of pertinent elements of this policy where applicable.
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Out-of-Pocket Expenses: Inform students of any personal expenses they will incur in the
course.
6. OTHER IMPORTANT NOTES
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Departmental/University Policies and Course Practices: Departments/schools may decide
that certain policies should be included on all outlines, including but not limited to:
 University policy: Students should be reminded that they are required to adhere to all
relevant University policies, such as the Academic Integrity policy.
 Research with human subjects: For courses involving research with human
subjects/participants, the guidelines of the Research Ethics Board (REB) concerning
undergraduate students as researchers must be clearly referenced.
 Attendance: It must be decided if points are to be given for attending classes. Normally,
marks are not given for non-academic components.
 Non-academic marks: Bonus points should not be given for such things as completing
the Faculty Course Survey, and points should not be given or deducted for such things as
conduct. Grades are earned for the demonstration of knowledge.
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Group work: Policy 145 states that, “Group work for which a student does not receive an
individual assessment should not constitute more than 30% of a course grade.” You should
carefully consider why you are giving a group assignment, how you will individually assess
each member of the group and whether the group work is part of the objective of the
assignment. It may well be that it would be better for students to work independently.
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Use of Brightspace as a communication tool: It is highly recommended that a Brightspace
shell be created for all courses, even if it is just used for communication with students when
classes are cancelled or there are other matters that need urgent communication. This is
particularly helpful for students with disabilities who may need more advanced warning of
cancellations or changes.
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Academic Accommodation Support (formerly the Access Centre): Students who require
accommodation will have an electronic form sent to you. If you believe that the accommodation
impacts the integrity of your course, you should consult with the Academic Accommodation
Support counselor listed on the accommodation form, and the student, to find a suitable alternate
accommodation. If what the student requires is something that makes the course generally more
accessible to any student, such as provision of a handout in a larger font, or moving the class to
an accessible room, an Academic Accommodation Support form may not be required. You must
not accept or review medical documentation for academic accommodation directly from a
student and must not provide an academic accommodation on your own based on your own
assessment. Students must be referred to the Academic Accommodation Support office for this
purpose. For more information, see section 3.2.6 of Policy 145, and Policy 159: Academic
Accommodation of Students with Disabilities
7. A SUGGESTED TEMPLATE begins on the following page. The first part of the template
describes what you should provide, and the second part is direct wording that you are welcome to
use. If you include everything there, in one format or another, along with extra information specific
to your course, you should be covered in terms of what we are expected to convey to students.
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Faculty of ____________
Department (or School) of _______________
ABC 123: Name of Course
Fall 2015, Section _____
Classroom Number, Class Time(s) and Place(s)
Instructor’s Name:
Office Location:
Office Hours:
Phone: 416.979.5000, ext. ______
Course Web Site: my.ryerson.ca for courses using Brightspace
Instructor’s email Address: __________@ryerson.ca (Include any instructions or limitations
on student use of email for faculty contact, as well as any preference for other means of contact.
You should make it clear that, in accordance with Policy 157, only Ryerson e-mail accounts are
to be used for communication between faculty and students.)
Calendar Description
Copy and paste the course description from the Ryerson Calendar, which typically includes the
course designation (Professional, Professionally-Related or Liberal Studies), hours per week,
pre-requisites, anti-requisites, and any other course exclusions. Course descriptions are available
at http://www.ryerson.ca/calendar/2015-2016/pg3849.html
Course Details
 Information about textbooks, reading lists, and other course materials or equipment.
 A description of the teaching method(s) that will be used (e.g., lecture, laboratory, studio,
cases, problem-based learning, seminar, field work, in-class debates, oral presentations,
un-graded journals, or combinations of these).
 In cases where there are multiple sections of the same course with consequent variations
in course delivery methods, grading and/or methods of evaluation, etc., students will be
provided with at least a brief section/instructor-specific description in addition to the
generic course outline.
 Course objectives and outcomes (although it is not specifically required, as programs
develop more explicit Degree Level Expectations it can be helpful for students to be
made aware of what they can expect to learn if they are successful in the course).
 An indication of any requirement for the submission of work to an electronic plagiarism
detection service. There is a statement which must be included if Turnitin is used (see
below).
 Specific details on any information technology requirements for courses utilizing IT in
course work, assignments or exams.
 A week-by-week schedule of topics and corresponding readings (as well as any field trips
or required activities outside of class time).
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Evaluation
It is preferable to post grades electronically using Brightspace. If a hard copy system is used
instead, there are specific requirements described in Section 2.2.11 of Policy 145. Otherwise,
this section should include:
 A list and (at least tentative) schedule of all assignments, exams, and other work to be
graded, and general descriptions of these.
 The weighting of each assignment, exam, and/or other unit of evaluation.
 A notice if any unscheduled evaluations will be used part of the grading scheme.
 An indication of approximately when the first exam results or other grades will be
returned to students (this should be before the last date to drop the class.)
 A statement regarding how late work will be evaluated.
[You can directly insert everything that follows, except for the section re. Turnitin.com]
Missed Classes and/or Evaluations
Students are required to inform their instructors of any situation which arises during the semester
which may have an adverse effect upon their academic performance, and must request any
considerations and accommodations according to the relevant policies and well in advance.
Failure to do so will jeopardize any academic appeals.
 Medical certificates – If a student misses the deadline for submitting an assignment, or
the date of an exam or other evaluation component because of illness, he or she must
submit a Ryerson Student Medical Certificate AND an Academic Consideration form
within 3 working days of the missed date. Both documents are available at
www.ryerson.ca/senate/forms/medical.pdf. If you are a full-time or part-time degree
student, then you submit your forms to your own program department or school. If
you are a certificate or non-certificate student, then you submit your forms to the
staff at the front desk of the Chang School.
 Religious observance – If a student needs accommodation because of religious
observance, he or she must submit a Request for Accommodation of Student Religious,
Aboriginal and Spiritual Observance AND an Academic Consideration form within the
first 2 weeks of the class or, for a final examination, within 2 weeks of the posting of the
examination schedule. If the required absence occurs within the first 2 weeks of classes,
or the dates are not known well in advance as they are linked to other conditions, these
forms should be submitted with as much lead time as possible in advance of the required
absence. Both documents are available at
http://www.ryerson.ca/senate/forms/relobservforminstr.pdf. If you are a full-time or
part-time degree student, then you submit the forms to your own program
department or school. If you are a certificate or non-certificate student, then you
submit the forms to the staff at the front desk of the Chang School.
 Students who need academic accommodation support should register with the Academic
Accommodation Support office (formerly called the Access Centre). Before the first
graded work is due, registered students should inform their instructors through an
“Accommodation Form for Professors” that they are registered with Academic
Accommodation Support and what accommodations are required.
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Academic Integrity and Plagiarism
Ryerson’s Policy 60 (now called the Academic Integrity policy) applies to all students at the
University. The policy and its procedures are triggered in the event that the there is a suspicion
that a student has engaged in a form of academic misconduct.
Forms of academic misconduct include plagiarism, cheating, supplying false information to the
University, and other acts. The most common form of academic misconduct is plagiarism.
Plagiarism is a serious academic offence and penalties can be severe. In any academic exercise,
plagiarism occurs when one offers as one’s own work the words, data, ideas, arguments,
calculations, designs or productions of another without appropriate attribution or when one
allows one’s work to be copied.
All academic work must be submitted using the citation style approved by the instructor.
Students may refer to the Ryerson Library’s list of Citations and Style Guides for more
information.
It is assumed that all examinations and work submitted for evaluation and course credit
will be the product of individual effort, except in the case of group projects arranged for
and approved by the course instructor. Submitting the same work to more than one
course, without instructor approval, is also considered a form of plagiarism.
Students are advised that suspicions of academic misconduct may be referred to the Academic
Integrity Office (AIO). Students who are found to have committed academic misconduct will
have a Disciplinary Notation (DN) placed on their academic record (not on their transcript) and
will be assigned one or more of the following penalties:
 A grade reduction for the work, include a grade of zero for the work.
 A grade reduction in the course greater than a zero on the work. (Note that this penalty
can only be applied to course components worth 10% or less, that any additional penalty
cannot exceed 10% of the final course grade, and that information explaining that such a
penalty will be assigned must be included on the course outline.)
 An F in the course
 More serious penalties up to and including expulsion from the University
For more detailed information on these issues, please refer to the full online text for the
Academic Integrity policy and to the Academic Integrity website.
[If Turnitin.com is to be used in the course, the following wording is required] Students
who do not want their work submitted to this plagiarism detection service must, by the end of the
second week of class, consult with the instructor to make alternate arrangements.
[A further description of the service is also suggested] Turnitin.com is a plagiarism
prevention and detection service to which Ryerson subscribes. It is a tool to assist faculty
members in determining the similarity between students’ work and the work of other students
who have submitted papers to the site (at any university), internet sources, and a wide range of
journals and other publications. While it does not contain all possible sources, it gives faculty
some assurance that students’ work is their own. No decisions are made by the service; it simply
generates an “originality report,” and faculty must evaluate that report to determine if something
is plagiarized.
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Important Resources Available at Ryerson
o The Library provides research workshops and individual assistance. Inquire at
the Reference Desk on the second floor of the library, or go to
www.ryerson.ca/library/info/workshops.html
o Student Learning Support offers group-based and individual help with writing,
math, study skills and transition support, and other issues.
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