Syllabus guidelines

See the following resources from the UW Curriculum Office and the Center for Teaching and Learning for guidelines to assist instructors in developing syllabi for new courses and for sample syllabus language and policies.

Syllabus statements

Please feel free to cut-and-paste the following language for inclusion in course syllabi. Information on religious accommodation is required by State law, whereas information on accommodation, conduct, safety and diversity is strongly advised but not required.

Required syllabus language

Religious Accommodation

Washington state law requires that UW develop a policy for accommodation of student absences or significant hardship due to reasons of faith or conscience, or for organized religious activities. The UW’s policy, including more information about how to request an accommodation, is available at Religious Accommodations Policy (https://registrar.washington.edu/staffandfaculty/religious-accommodations-policy/). Accommodations must be requested within the first two weeks of this course using the Religious Accommodations Request Form (https://registrar.washington.edu/students/religious-accommodations-request/).

Optional syllabus language

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

The University of Washington supports an inclusive learning environment where diverse perspectives are recognized, respected, and seen as a source of strength. In this course, I will strive to create welcoming spaces where everyone feels included and engaged regardless of their social and cultural backgrounds.

Disability Access and Accommodation

It is the policy and practice of the University of Washington to create accessible learning environments consistent with federal and state law, including establishing reasonable accommodations for all students. If you have already established accommodations with Disability Resources for Students (DRS), please activate your accommodations via myDRS so that we can discuss how they will be implemented in this course.

If you have not yet established services through DRS, and you have a temporary health condition or permanent disability that requires accommodations, contact DRS directly (disability.uw.edu) to set up an Access Plan. DRS facilitates the interactive process that establishes reasonable accommodations.  Conditions requiring accommodation include but are not limited to: mental health, attention-related, learning, vision, hearing, physical or health impacts.

In assessing whether you require reasonable accommodations through DRS, please note that full participation in this course requires the following types of engagement: [to be described by the instructor. See example here.]

Academic Integrity

The University of Washington Student Conduct Code (WAC 478-121) defines prohibited academic and behavioral conduct and describes how the University holds students accountable. I expect that you will know and follow university policies regarding all forms of academic and other misconduct.

Acts of academic misconduct include:

  • Cheating:
    • unauthorized assistance in person and/or online for assignments, quizzes, tests or exams
    • using another student’s work without permission and instructor authorization
    • allowing anyone to take a course, assignment or exam for you without instructor authorization
  • Falsification: intentional use of falsified data, information or records
  • Plagiarism: representing the work of others as your own without giving appropriate credit to the original author(s)
  • Unauthorized collaboration: working with other students in the course on assignments, quizzes or exams without permission
  • Engaging in behavior prohibited by an instructor
  • Multiple submissions of the same work in different courses without instructor permission
  • Deliberately damaging or destroying student work to gain advantage
  • Unauthorized recording, and/or subsequent dissemination of instructional content
  • Using or uploading course assignments to online platforms like Course Hero, Chegg, etc.

If these definitions are not clear to you, please contact me or your TAs so that we can review them with you.  It is important that you fully understand what is and is not permissible in this course.

Any suspected cases of academic misconduct will be handled according to university regulations, which include:

  1. submission of the case material (description of the incident and supporting documents such as an exam, paper, and any communications about the incident) to the College of the Environment Dean’s Office
  2. suspension of the grade for the quiz, exam, homework, paper or other assignment in question
  3. an X grade for the class in the case of the academic misconduct procedure continuing past the end of the quarter
  4. a reduction, down to a zero, for the quiz, exam, homework, paper or other assignment in question should the academic misconduct hearing officer find you responsible

For more information, see the College of the Environment’s Academic Misconduct Policy and the Community Standards and Student Conduct website.

ARTIFICiAL INTELLIGENCE (ai)

Adapted from Teaching@UW guidance.

For instructors who allow AI use with some restrictions

In this course, students are permitted to use AI-based tools (such as ChatGPT) on some assignments. The instructions for each assignment will include information about whether and how you may use AI-based tools to complete the assignment. All sources, including AI tools, must be properly cited. Use of AI in ways that are inconsistent with the parameters above will be considered academic misconduct and subject to investigation.

Please note that AI results can be biased and inaccurate. It is your responsibility to ensure that the information you use from AI is accurate. Additionally, pay attention to the privacy of your data. Many AI tools will incorporate and use any content you share, so be careful not to unintentionally share copyrighted materials, original work, or personal information.

If you have any questions about citation or about what constitutes academic integrity in this course or at the University of Washington, please feel free to contact me to discuss your concerns.

For instructors who prohibit AI use

All work submitted for this course must be your own. Any use of generative AI tools, such as ChatGPT, when working on assignments is forbidden. Use of generative AI will be considered academic misconduct and subject to investigation. If you have any questions about what constitutes academic integrity in this course or at the University of Washington, please feel free to contact me to discuss your concerns.

For instructors who allow AI use without restriction

Students in this course are encouraged to explore the use of AI-based tools (such as ChatGPT) when completing assignments. All sources, including AI tools, must be properly cited. Use of AI without proper citation will be considered academic misconduct and subject to investigation.

Please note that AI results can be biased and inaccurate. It is your responsibility to ensure that the information you use from AI is accurate. Additionally, pay attention to the privacy of your data. Many AI tools will incorporate and use any content you share, so be careful not to unintentionally share copyrighted materials, original work, or personal information.

If you have any questions about citation or about what constitutes academic integrity in this course or at the University of Washington, please feel free to contact me to discuss your concerns.

POSTING COURSE MATERIALS ONLINE

Do not share any course materials (lectures, lecture notes, recordings, assignments, quizzes, exams) posted to the class Canvas site. These materials are protected by U.S. copyright law and by University policy and may not be reproduced, distributed, displayed, posted or uploaded without written permission from the instructor. If you do so, you may be subject to academic misconduct proceedings under the UW Student Conduct Code.

Honor Code for Exams, Quizzes and Assignments

I understand that I am bound by the Honor Code and the University of Washington Student Conduct Code and by the academic policies and procedures in this course when taking exams or quizzes, or completing assignments.

By entering my name and student number in the space below, I attest that I am in compliance with the conditions specified on this [exam, quiz, assignment] with regards to time and materials permitted. I further attest that I have not received any assistance from others during the [exam, quiz, assignment] period; and also that I have not given any assistance to other students.

ABSENCE POLICY

Excused absences: Our attendance and participation policies are flexible only under specific circumstances. Excused absences are religious holidays, pre-approved professional activities, and injury or illness of a student or immediate family member. Notification of anticipated absences are required by the end of the second week of class.

MISSED EXAM POLICY

If you have a legitimate emergency, please contact the instructor no later than one hour before the start of the exam. Failure to prove adequate notification will result in a zero for the exam.

Alternative sample:

Exams are only offered on the scheduled dates and time, and “make up” exams will not be offered. If you have a legitimate emergency, please contact the instructor as soon as possible.

DROP POLICY

Drop Policy: We will drop – i.e., it will not be considered for your overall score in this class:

  • The lowest grade of your summary sheets
  • The three lowest grades of your pre-class quizzes
  • The three lowest grades of your Poll Everywhere quizzes

Note: The drop policy does not include exams or labs.

Safety

If you feel unsafe or at-risk while taking this or any course, please contact SafeCampus, 206-685-7233 anytime where you can anonymously discuss safety and well-being concerns for yourself or others. SafeCampus can provide individualized support, discuss short- and long-term solutions, and connect you with additional resources when requested.  For a broader range of resources and assistance see the Husky Health & Well-Being website.

STUDENT ACADEMIC GRIEVANCE PROCEDURES

The College of the Environment Student Academic Grievance Procedures provide mechanisms for enrolled students to address academic problems or grievances in an equitable, respectful and timely manner. Academic grievances are defined as those involving conflicts between a student or students and their course instructors (including faculty and teaching assistants) or research mentor(s) with respect to differences arising within credit-bearing work and while the student is registered at the University of Washington.  If you have or are experiencing such a conflict in this class, and have not, cannot, or do not wish to attempt resolution with me, I encourage you to explore additional options open to you by accessing the website above.

Recording Zoom Class Sessions 

This course is scheduled to run synchronously at our scheduled class time via Zoom. These Zoom class sessions will be recorded. The recording will capture the presenter’s audio, video and computer screen. Student audio and video will be recorded if they share their computer audio and video during the recorded session. The recordings will only be accessible to students enrolled in the course to review materials. These recordings will be deleted after the course ends.

The University and Zoom have FERPA compliant agreements in place to protect the security and privacy of UW Zoom accounts. Students who do not wish to give consent to being recorded should:

  1. Choose a Zoom profile name that does not include any personal identifying information like their name or UW Net ID, and not upload a profile picture
  2. Not share their computer audio or video during class Zoom sessions

All students enrolled in this class may use recorded course material stored on the Canvas course page to achieve the learning objectives of this course at any time. However, students may not personally record (including still images, video or audio recordings) lectures or other class activities without written permission from the instructor, except as necessary as part of an approved accommodation plan from the Disability Resources for Students office (DRS). Any approved recordings may only be used for the student’s own academic use, such as for studying or completing assignments. No student may distribute recorded material to others, or upload the recordings to other platforms.