Tone and Flexibility

This section highlights two important considerations to keep in mind throughout creating your syllabus and, more broadly, designing your course: the tone communicated in your syllabus and the concept of flexibility. For other general suggestions on course and syllabus design, see our related webpages on designing your course and writing a syllabus.

Tone

The syllabus is the first opportunity for you to communicate with your students, including about your course design and expectations.. Your syllabus is an important component of establishing a positive relationship with your students and setting the tone of your course for the semester. We encourage you to consider your syllabus’s tone carefully. Here are some questions to guide your review:

• Are my policies explained and justified? (e.g. have I explained why submitting work on time is crucial for student success? Have I explained why it is important to be present and engaged in the classroom?) 
• Is my language learning-centered? (e.g. I address what the students will do during the course)
• Is my language supportive rather than punitive? (e.g. “students will be eligible for X% of the total grade when work is submitted late” vs “students will lose X points when work is submitted late,” or “A penalty of X points will be applied”) 
• Do I emphasize appropriate behavior rather than negative behavior? (e.g. explanation of what constitutes Academic Integrity is discussed more at length than “cheating” or “dishonesty”) 
• Do I explicitly address ways to reach out for help in unforeseen circumstances? 
• Are my assignments presented in a way that students can understand their purpose in supporting the learning objectives of the course?

Read more about other examples of improving tone in the syllabus in an issue of the Teaching newsletter from the Chronicle. 

Flexibility

CMU encourages faculty to be flexible with students who may be experiencing difficulties completing assignments on time. The balance between offering flexibility and supporting students with deadlines and structure can be difficult to achieve. There are multiple ways to think about flexibility that might help, for example building flexibility into your course design and providing flexible policies to your students. In any case, remember that the appropriate level of flexibility – i.e., what works for you, your students, and ultimately their learning – is likely somewhere between the extremes. Regardless of where you land, a helpful approach is to communicate clearly and regularly with your students and require them to keep communication lines open with you, while you support their efforts to catch up to their assignments or attendance. 

To build flexibility into your course design, 

• Consider the pace of your assignments
  • How much time between assignments do students have? Can this interval be lengthened? 
  • Can students work on some components sooner than you originally planned to provide more flexibility if someone experiences a delay? 
  • Are there completion-based assignments that can be “forgiven” if someone is sick? 
• Revisit the format and timing of participation/attendance in your classroom
  • Can students participate asynchronously in discussions (for instance through a Canvas discussion)? 
  • How can students show you they have reviewed the materials that they missed and engaged with the in-class activities? 
• Think about making available your in-class materials 
  • Can you record your classes? (see our above section “Recording of Class Sessions”) 
  • Do you make your PowerPoint slides available online? Your handouts? Any other important material distributed or made available during in-person class?
• Consider hosting some office hours on Zoom or by appointment 

Providing a flexible policy can look like allowing certain components to be submitted up to a certain number of days late up to a fixed number of times throughout the semester. 

• Review which assignments in your course can be submitted late and offer those specific ones as possible late assignments, while encouraging students to prioritize timeliness on others. 
• If an assignment cannot be submitted late but a student is incapacitated, can they submit a modified version of the assignment? 
• Can you offer make-up exams? Or alternate assignments?