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Undergraduate Course Management Policy (HTML)

Reading Guide

Please note the following when reviewing this HTML version of the Policy:

  1. The Table of Contents contain hyperlinks that allow readers to jump to the corresponding section in the document. At the end of each main section, there are hyperlinks in the left margin labelled “back to top” that you can click to return to the top of the document.
  2. Throughout the document, words defined in the Policy are hyperlinked to their corresponding definitions (e.g., “barrier”). Additionally, hyperlinked words in the content lead may to external websites, guidelines, and University departments.
  3. Readers can access a PDF or MS Word version of the Policy by returning to the Policy’s main landing page.

Policy Governance Details

  • Policy Title: Undergraduate Course Management Policy
  • Approved by: Senate
  • Date of Most Recent Approval: June 8, 2020, eff. September 1, 2020
  • Supersedes / Amends Policies Dated: 
    • December 13, 2017, eff. September 1, 2018
    • June 4, 2014
    • Retention of Examination Papers and Other Graded Materials, May 13, 2009
    • Academic Integrity Statement for Course Outlines, April 13, 2005
    • Turnitin.com Guidelines, April 13, 2005
    • Guidelines for Student Evaluation, March 10, 2004
    • Examination Ban, March 1995
    • Senate Resolutions on Course Outlines, June 14, 1995
  • Date(s) of Original Approval: April 9, 2014
  • Responsible Executive: Vice-Provost (Teaching and Learning)
  • Policy-Specific Enquiries: Office of the Vice-Provost (Teaching & Learning)

Table of Contents

Appendix A: Components of a Course Outline

Appendix B: Approved Advisory Statements

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Purpose

  1. This Policy summarizes instructor responsibilities in regard to undergraduate courses. The University expects instructors to clearly communicate their course expectations so students are able to plan ahead and manage their time accordingly. Additionally, undergraduate students should normally be assessed more than once and receive feedback early enough to make decisions.

Course Outlines

  1. A course outline sets the expectations for students and what they can expect in terms of the course experience they will receive, the format in which the course will be delivered and the knowledge and skills that can be gained. The outline introduces the course and the instructor and sets out the expectations of the instructor so that students are aware of how they will learn, what level of participation will be expected and how they will be assessed.
  2. Instructors are responsible for ensuring course outlines are compliant with all policies. As such, Instructors must attach/include the two-page appendix Course Outline – Approved Advisory Statements, located at the end of this Policy.
  3. Since Calendar descriptions of courses are necessarily brief, instructors are required to provide students with a more detailed course outline describing the administrative and academic details of the course.
  4. Course outlines are to be made available to students at the beginning of the course and must be kept on file for 10 years in the department administering the course. Instructors are encouraged to make course outlines available as soon as possible, but at the very least two weeks before the start of classes.
  5. Students will expect the course to unfold as described in the course outline and will plan their time and resources accordingly. As questions or concerns during the course will be referred back to the course outline, instructors are encouraged to anticipate issues that might arise and specify how those issues will be addressed (e.g., late submission of assignments, missed tests).
  6. If it becomes necessary to make changes to some part of the course during the term, reasonable notice and communication between the instructor and students is critical. Students should be provided with an explanation and an opportunity to comment. Instructors are encouraged to use multiple communication methods with students (e.g., class announcements, e-mail message sent to the class through Mosaic, message posted on the course website or Avenue to Learn, etc.).
  7. The arrangement proposed in the course outline should not be interpreted in a way that discourages flexibility in course presentation and organization exclusive of grade weighting. If an instructor wishes to reserve decisions to be made as the course progresses, that intention should be stated in the course outline, for example:

“At certain points in the course it may make good sense to modify the schedule. The instructor may modify elements of the course and will notify students accordingly (in class, on the course website)”].

  1. Any changes related to evaluation must be made in consultation with the Department Chair.
  2. The University reserves the right to change dates and/or deadlines etc. for any or all courses in the case of an extreme circumstance, such as an emergency situation or labour disruption.
  3. Instructors are asked to make announcements encouraging students to discuss the implementation of their accommodations with you as soon as possible.

Due Date Restrictions

  1. The following language is based on the Undergraduate Calendar General Academic Regulations – Due Date Restrictions, and will be revised as required to remain consistent with the calendar:
    1. academic assessments, due dates and evaluations are described in course outlines except where other University policies apply, e.g., Student Accessibility Services (SAS) accommodations, deferred exams, etc. Restrictions are placed on academic obligations to enable students to plan their work schedules;
    2. due dates for all term work must be on or before the final day of classes for courses with a final examination;
    3. for courses with no final examination, academic assessments can be due on or before the final date of examinations;
    4. academic obligations cannot be due during the December holiday break or the fall and winter mid-term recesses, with the exception of deferred exams scheduled by the Office of the Registrar.
    5. the Test and Examination Ban period, is the last 5 days of classes plus the day(s) between the end of classes and the beginning of examinations, and:
      1. tests, quizzes, exams and take-home exams worth more than 10% cannot be assigned or due during this period; or
      2. assignments worth more than 10% that are assigned at the beginning of the course and noted on the course outline can be due during this time period, provided students are given sufficient additional detail to enable them to work on the assignment in advance of the due date.

Academic Assessments

Maximum Value of Academic Assessments

  1. Student learning in undergraduate courses should be assessed on more than one occasion. To that end, no single academic obligation (e.g., essay, test, examination, etc.) should have a value of more than 75% of the final grade without approval from the Department Chair or Associate Dean’s Office. Clinical, placement, thesis and capstone courses are exempt.
  2. For students requiring relief from an academic obligation, it is at the discretion of the instructor to determine the nature of the relief. In cases such as this, students can be offered the choice of another assessment or the option of writing a final examination which may be worth more than 75% of the course grade.

Online Assessments

  1. If students taking online assessments experience technical difficulties, the student must immediately report the difficulty. Reporting may take different forms dependent upon the online platform being used. Options to report difficulties may include emailing the appropriate contact (Instructor or designate as set by the Instructor); accessing a chat function (where available) within the online platform to document any difficulties.

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McMaster University Grading Scale

McMaster University Grading Scale
Letter GradeEquivalent Grade PointEquivalent Percentages
A+1290-100
A1185-89
A-1080-84
B+977-79
B873-76
B-770-72
C+667-69
C563-66
C-460-62
D+357-59
D253-56
D-150-52

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Early Feedback

  1. All students must receive feedback regarding their progress prior to the final date by which a student may cancel the course without failure by default.
  2. For Level I and Level II courses, this feedback must equal a minimum of 20% of the final grade.
  3. For Level III courses and above, this feedback must equal a minimum of 10% of the final grade.
  4. For courses where it is difficult to achieve a numeric grade due to the design of the course (e.g., supervised study, thesis, capstone, inquiry, independent research/study, experiential courses, etc.), clear and early feedback must be provided.
  5. When academic obligations are completed by the due dates in the course outline, early feedback will be received by the final date by which a student can cancel a course without failure by default. Students who use the McMaster Student Absence Form Policy (MSAF Policy) process and other petitionable accommodations may not receive feedback by the early feedback deadline.

Returning Marked Work and the Posting of Grades

  1. It is always preferable to return marked work or grades directly to students either electronically or physically. However, if there is a need to return marked work to students in an indirect manner or to post grades, the work must be returned and the grades posted in a manner designed to protect the anonymity of the students.
  2. All posting of final grades will note that the grades are unofficial until released by the Office of the Registrar.

Retention of Examination Papers & Other Graded Material

  1. Department Chairs (or Director of a School or Program) are responsible for ensuring that final examinations and all other graded material not meant to be returned to students, and the instructor’s record of how the final grades in a course were determined, are:
    1. retained for at least one year after last use; and
    2. remain accessible to the Department Chair for that period.
  2. This applies to all instructors. Sessional lecturers and those retiring or otherwise leaving the service of the University must notify their immediate supervisor of the on-campus storage location of the material.

Authenticity / Plagiarism Detection

  1. McMaster University approves the use of software to check authenticity of academic work for the following reasons:
    1. prevention – if students know their academic work is being checked for plagiarism, they will use proper citation methods;
    2. protection of honest students and their work; and
    3. detection – with the type of technology in common use today, it is necessary to use a detection tool which checks academic work against the internet, scholarly publications and previously submitted assignments to McMaster and other institutions.
  2. Guidelines for the use of Turnitin.com:
    1. papers/assignments submitted via Avenue to Learn or Turnitin.com may be subject to a plagiarism and similarity check using Turnitin.com;
    2. the instructor should indicate that Turnitin.com will be used in the course outline and/or on the assignment details;
    3. the use of Turnitin.com cannot be mandatory. If a student refuses to submit their work to Avenue to Learn or Turnitin.com for plagiarism detection, they cannot be compelled to do so and should not be penalized. Instructors are advised to accept an electronic and/or hard copy of the assignment and grade it as per normal methods. The assignment can be subjected to a Google search or some other kind of detection method if the instructor wishes.
  3. Some students object to the use of Turnitin.com because of ownership issues. All work submitted to Turnitin.com becomes part of their database and is used to check authenticity of other student’s assignments. Some students object to their work being put in the database and others object to their work being used by Turnitin.com.

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Accommodations and Missed Work

  1. Instructors are expected and required to support all McMaster University Policies, including the Academic Accommodation of Students with Disabilities Policy and/or the Policy on Academic Accommodation for Religious, Indigenous and Spiritual Observances (PDF).
  2. A student may be allowed modifications to academic obligations, including deadlines, in compliance with the Academic Accommodation of Students with Disabilities policy and/or the Policy on Academic Accommodation for Religious, Indigenous and Spiritual Observances.
  3. Instructors are encouraged, where possible, to design Academic Obligations (assessments) in a manner that anticipates the need for modifications for some students and that protects the academic integrity of the course. For example, preparing and scheduling a make-up mid-term test, anticipating that deadlines may need to be extended, preparing a deferred exam, etc.
  4. Instructors are encouraged to adopt Universal Design principles and practices to ensure the course is accessible and that assessments are designed with flexibility where possible. The MacPherson Institute located in Mills Library is available to assist instructors.
  5. If a student brings an informal request directly to the instructor, the instructor is encouraged to re-direct the student to the appropriate office. Usually the correct office is the Faculty/Program Office, except in the case of disability related or other human rights- related requests, in which case students should be directed to Student Accessibility Services. Any request to instructors for additional modification beyond what has been formally granted, should be directed back to the appropriate office.

Academic Accommodations of Students with Disabilities

  1. As per the Academic Accommodation of Students with Disabilities Policy students may seek accommodations related to a permanent or temporary disability.
  2. Instructors who are directly approached by students seeking a disability related accommodation, are expected to direct students to contact Student Accessibility Services or the appropriate Faculty Office.
  3. Any request to Instructors for additional modification of accommodations beyond what has been formally granted, should be directed back to the appropriate office.
  4. Instructors are expected to comply with the Academic Accommodation of Students with Disabilities Policy and should be aware that students are not required to reveal the cause of their disability, diagnosis, symptoms, or treatment, in order for their approved accommodations to be implemented.
  5. Accommodations may or may not affect the academic obligations outlined in the course outline. For example, an accommodation may be that the student receive the course material in an alternate format or bring a service animal to class.

Missed Term Work

  1. A student may self-declare an illness or other personal situation requesting relief from academic work under certain conditions using the Policy on Requests for Relief for Missed Academic Term Work.
  2. For all other compelling circumstances, the student is required to request relief from their Faculty Office. If the petition is granted, the Faculty Office will notify the instructor of the time period for which the student has been granted an approved absence.
  3. It is at the discretion of the instructor to determine the nature of the relief, bearing in mind re-weighting one component of the grade to 75% of the final grade or more is discouraged without approval from the Department Chair or Associate Dean’s Office.

Conflict of Interest Guidelines

  1. Faculty members and University officers normally shall not take part in any proceedings at any level which affect the academic standing of an immediate family member (spouse, common-law partner, parent, in-law, sibling, child or step-child). Such proceedings include admission, scholarships, financial assistance and reviewing.
  2. There shall be no restriction against a student registering in a course taught by an immediate family member. In all such cases, however, the instructor must inform their Department Chair who shall ensure that arrangements are made for an appropriate assessment of the student’s performance involving a qualified person or persons other than the instructor.

Protection of Privacy

  1. The Privacy Management Policy applies to all McMaster University faculty, staff and students when handling personal information or personal health information on behalf of the institution. The policy sets out the accountabilities for ensuring that all individuals involved in the planning, management and day-to-day operations of McMaster University are in compliance with the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA), the University’s Notice of Collection, Use and Disclosure Statement, and the privacy policies, procedures and practices set out by the University.
  2. Instructors should take care to protect student names, student numbers, grades and all other personal information at all times. For example, the submission and return of assignments and the posting of grades must be done in a manner that ensures confidentiality.

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Related Policies

  1. This Policy is to be read in conjunction with the following policies, guidelines, and statements. The University reserves the right to amend or add to the University’s policies and statements from time to time (this is not a comprehensive list):

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Appendix A: Components of a Course Outline

Administrative Details

  • Contact information
  • Office hours or how/when available
  • Session and term of the class

If applicable include:

  • TA and/or Course Coordinator contact information
  • Website address or alternative methods of communication

Course and Learning Objectives

  • List of course and learning objectives (by the end of the course, what should the students know, be able to do, value, demonstrate, etc.)

Materials & Fees

  • List of all required materials e.g. textbooks, materials (calculators -use McMaster standard calculator), art supplies, etc.).
  • Any additional expenses which may be required (e.g., digital learning resources, trips)

Course Overview and Assessment

  • A clear breakdown of the course requirements or expectations including the weight given to each and due date (if possible)
  • How work is to be submitted
  • Policy on missed work, extensions, and late penalties

If applicable include:

  • Final exam (specify if a final is included, and whether it tests cumulative knowledge)
  • Weekly breakdown of class topics and readings
  • Attendance requirements
  • Class participation expectations
  • Group work expectations and how group work will be evaluated
  • Grade adjustment techniques
  • Where possible, include the criteria to be used in evaluating a student’s work

Approved Advisory Statements

  • Instructors must attach the Course Outline – Approved Advisory Statements (Appendix B, below)

Additional Statements

  • Reference to Research Ethics
  • Any other policy relevant to the course

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Appendix B: Course Outline – Approved Advisory Statements

Academic Integrity

You are expected to exhibit honesty and use ethical behaviour in all aspects of the learning process. Academic credentials you earn are rooted in principles of honesty and academic integrity. It is your responsibility to understand what constitutes academic dishonesty.

Academic dishonesty is to knowingly act or fail to act in a way that results or could result in unearned academic credit or advantage. This behaviour can result in serious consequences, e.g. the grade of zero on an assignment, loss of credit with a notation on the transcript (notation reads: “Grade of F assigned for academic dishonesty”), and/or suspension or expulsion from the university. For information on the various types of academic dishonesty please refer to the Academic Integrity Policy.

The following illustrates only three forms of academic dishonesty:

  • plagiarism, e.g. the submission of work that is not one’s own or for which other credit has been obtained.
  • improper collaboration in group work.
  • copying or using unauthorized aids in tests and examinations.

Authenticity / Plagiarism Detection

Some courses may use a web-based service (Turnitin.com) to reveal authenticity and ownership of student submitted work. For courses using such software, students will be expected to submit their work electronically either directly to Turnitin.com or via an online learning platform (e.g. Avenue to Learn, etc.) using plagiarism detection (a service supported by Turnitin.com) so it can be checked for academic dishonesty.

Students who do not wish their work to be submitted through the plagiarism detection software must inform the Instructor before the assignment is due. No penalty will be assigned to a student who does not submit work to the plagiarism detection software. All submitted work is subject to normal verification that standards of academic integrity have been upheld (e.g., on-line search, other software, etc.). For more details about McMaster’s use of Turnitin.com  please go to www.mcmaster.ca/academicintegrity.

Courses with an On-Line Element

Some courses may use on-line elements (e.g. e-mail, Avenue to Learn, LearnLink, web pages, capa, Moodle, ThinkingCap, etc.). Students should be aware that, when they access the electronic components of a  course using these elements, private information such as first and last names, user names for the McMaster e-mail accounts, and program affiliation may become apparent to all other students in the same course. The available information is dependent on the technology used. Continuation in a course that uses on-line elements will be deemed consent to this disclosure. If you have any questions or concerns about such disclosure please discuss this with the course instructor.

Online Proctoring

Some courses may use online proctoring software for tests and exams. This software may require students to turn on their video camera, present identification, monitor and record their computer activities, and/or lock/restrict their browser or other applications/software during tests or exams. This software may be required to be installed before the test/exam begins.

Conduct Expectations

As a McMaster student, you have the right to experience, and the responsibility to demonstrate, respectful and dignified interactions within all of our living, learning and working communities. These expectations are described in the Code of Student Rights & Responsibilities (the “Code”). All students share the responsibility of maintaining a positive environment for the academic and personal growth of all McMaster community members, whether in person or online.

It is essential that students be mindful of their interactions online, as the Code remains in effect in virtual learning environments. The Code applies to any interactions that adversely affect, disrupt, or interfere with reasonable participation in University activities. Student disruptions or behaviours that interfere with university functions on online platforms (e.g. use of Avenue 2 Learn, WebEx or Zoom for delivery), will be taken very seriously and will be investigated. Outcomes may include restriction or removal of the involved students’ access to these platforms.

Academic Accommodation of Students With Disabilities

Students with disabilities who require academic accommodation must contact Student Accessibility Services (SAS) at 905-525-9140 ext. 28652 or sas@mcmaster.ca to make arrangements with a Program Coordinator. For further information, consult McMaster University’s Academic Accommodation of Students with Disabilities policy.

Requests For Relief For Missed Academic Term Work

In the event of an absence for medical or other reasons, students should review and follow the McMaster Student Absence Form Policy (MSAF Policy).

Academic Accommodation For Religious, Indigenous Or Spiritual Observances (RISO)

Students requiring academic accommodation based on religious, indigenous or spiritual observances should follow the procedures set out in the RISO policy. Students should submit their request to their Faculty Office normally within 10 working days of the beginning of term in which they anticipate a need for accommodation or to the Registrar’s Office prior to their examinations. Students should also contact their instructors as soon as possible to make alternative arrangements for classes, assignments, and tests.

Copyright and Recording

Students are advised that lectures, demonstrations, performances, and any other course material provided by an instructor include copyright protected works. The Copyright Act and copyright law protect every original literary, dramatic, musical and artistic work, including lectures by University instructors.

The recording of lectures, tutorials, or other methods of instruction may occur during a course. Recording may be done by either the instructor for the purpose of authorized distribution, or by a student for the purpose of personal study. Students should be aware that their voice and/or image may be recorded by others during the class. Please speak with the instructor if this is a concern for you.

Extreme Circumstances

The University reserves the right to change the dates and deadlines for any or all courses in extreme circumstances (e.g., severe weather, labour disruptions, etc.). Changes will be communicated through regular McMaster communication channels, such as McMaster Daily News, Avenue to Learn and/or by McMaster email.

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