Report of the Academic Planning Committee - July, 1999
I. ACADEMIC RESTRUCTURING
Trent has 25 undergraduate academic units, and awards degrees in 31 majors. It also has six graduate programs awarding eight types of post-graduate degrees. In addition, there are a range of programs leading to diplomas, certificates, emphases and special emphases, some offered jointly with Fleming College, as well as the Queen's/Trent Concurrent Teacher Education Program and the Trent/Queen's Cooperative Graduate Program. Over recent years there have been shifts in student numbers and also changes in faculty complement in all academic units as the result of retirements and resignations on the one hand, and decisions made at the decanal level about where new appointments should be made on the other. At present there is very little flexibility in terms of instructional resources, given our existing mix of programs and curriculum. In many cases the only flexibility available to cover instructional needs has been through part-time appointments, which in many cases supply the expertise necessary to cover particular areas of the curriculum. It is likely that some academic units have already, or will soon, fall below a minimum critical mass in terms of student enrolments and/or faculty complement. In such cases the faculty are over-stretched in terms of their ability to cover the required curriculum for the degree major.
It is also the case that student demand for various types of academic offerings has been changing, and the institution would be well advised to take account of this as it promotes its programs and considers where to invest new resources. One manifestation of this is concern about employment opportunities following graduation. Planning for faculty renewal will be a particular challenge over the next few years if the university continues to experience a shortfall in total student numbers, with attendant budgetary implications. It will be difficult to maintain the size of the overall faculty complement, on both the full-time and part-time side, even with the additional resources available from Fair Funding and the Access to Opportunities Program (ATOP). This means that very careful consideration should be given both to the way we use existing resources, and also to the areas where new appointments should be made.
Recommendation I.1
Every academic unit should carefully review its curriculum and teaching methods with a view to optimizing the use of its full time instructional resources, taking into account any known retirements, perhaps as far ahead as the next seven years. Any case for additional faculty members, including replacements, should be built on a plan which is clearly oriented towards prospects for attracting and retaining good students. All units should take this perspective when preparing their staffing plans in the fall of 1999.
Recommendation I.2
The Dean should require all units to discuss possibilities for changing the structure of their program, including new configurations in relationship to other units. All units must seriously review whether it is still possible to continue to offer a full major program in their discipline, given the patterns in student and faculty numbers. Some disciplines might consider offering only joint major degrees. In some cases it might make sense to consider mergers with other units or amalgamations to form larger new units, for example an International Studies Program. The impetus for changes should come from discussions at the level of the departments themselves, and be guided by the principles of maintaining a teaching and scholarly environment which will continue to attract and retain excellent faculty, enhance the attractiveness of our academic programs to students, and optimize the use of our instructional resources.
Recommendation I.3
Careful consideration should be given to the wide range of ideas that are under discussion for new EMPHASIS programs, which allow opportunities for students to attach a qualifying label to their major. Existing examples include Northern and Polar Studies, Quebec Studies, Conservation Biology, Health Sciences, and International Studies. Examples under discussion presently include Health Studies, Pre-law (or Legal) Studies, Travel Studies, and Text in the Information Age. To reduce confusion in terminology, the committee recommends that a new name be identified for Special Emphasis Programs.
Recommendation I.4
The idea of three-year general arts and science (non-major) degrees should be explored. This might be particularly suitable as a vehicle for accommodating some transfer students from Community Colleges who lack the focused background to achieve assigned credit in many majors. If the general arts and science degree became the norm as the three-year degree, it would also serve to direct students who desired a specific major to pursue a four-year honours degree.
II. SUPPORT OF TEACHING AND RESEARCH
It is essential that Trent support its instructors in both teaching and research. These twin pillars determine the quality of the university and this, in turn, determines the attractiveness of Trent for both students -- undergraduate and graduate -- and new faculty. This support is particularly crucial at the present time for two reasons. (1) Recently Trent has experienced a serious decline in both the numbers and quality of our applicants to undergraduate studies. (2) A high retirement rate of faculty (about 40%) is expected at Trent over the next ten years. This is likely to coincide with similar situations at other Canadian universities which expanded substantially during the late 60's to service the baby boom, resulting in high competition for hiring. The recommendations below under Research and Graduate Studies and Teaching Excellence are designed to address these concerns.
II.A. Research and Graduate Studies
Recommendation II.A.1
Trent should participate as much as possible in the various research fellowship and support programs sponsored through SSHRC, NSERC, MRC, etc. To facilitate this, Trent should consider ways to raise the funds needed to take advantage of matching-fund programs.
Recommendation II.A.2
Many of the other ways in which the university can support the research of its faculty members have implications for the long-term balance between undergraduate and graduate teaching and substantial financial implications for the university, and so require a broader discussion than is possible within the Academic Planning Committee at the present time. The university should establish a broadly based committee to consider the role of graduate studies at Trent. It should include a discussion of at least the following issues.
(1) The role of graduate studies at Trent, including the number, size and mix of programs, and their implications with respect to institutional resources and faculty teaching loads.
(2) Whether graduate teaching should be recognized formally as part of the faculty teaching load, and how this might be accomplished.
(3) Ways of ensuring that new faculty members receive the best possible advice for establishing their research programs, such as finding the appropriate balance between research and other university responsibilities, preparation of grant applications, the best ways to attract graduate students, etc.
(4) If Trent's falling enrolment reaches the top of the enrolment corridor, every new student will bring full government funding to the university. The committee should consider whether the number of graduate students should be increased as a source of income for Trent.
(5) A large fraction of new faculty to Trent expect to supervise graduate students as part of their professional development. In many areas it is nearly impossible to carry out research without the help of graduate students, and both SSHRC and NSERC's criteria for obtaining research grants include evidence of the training of "highly qualified personnel", although this can include undergraduates and technical staff as well as graduate students. The number of Graduate Teaching Assistantships (GTA's) is likely to be insufficient to attract enough graduate students to satisfy the needs of new and established faculty over the next few years. In recognition of this, Faculty Board passed a motion in May 1997 asking the Dean and the Associate Dean of Graduate Studies to bring forward a plan for increasing the number of GTA's, although this has not been done. The committee should develop a plan for the appropriate number of GTA's needed to attract and retain excellent new faculty.
(6) Other universities provide "top-up" funds which are added to the regular GTA, in order to attract outstanding graduate students. It can be argued that this practice may save the university money because these students often bring substantial awards with them which reduces Trent's financial commitment to them. The committee should consider the financial and academic impact of such a policy at Trent.
(7) Possible development of compulsory courses in university pedagogy for Graduate Teaching Assistants, and how they might be mounted.
II.B. Teaching Excellence
Recommendation II.B.1
A short course on teaching effectiveness should be made available in early September for use by faculty on a volunteer basis. It may be necessary to have more than one such course, tailored to different disciplinary interests.
Recommendation II.B.2
New faculty should have access, on a voluntary basis, to a faculty mentor who would give advice on teaching. The mentor would normally visit a class taught by the new faculty member at least once. The Dean should compile a list of faculty interested in being mentors to new faculty, and have the discretion as to who to recommend to the new faculty member.
Recommendation II.B.3
As a department responsibility similar to being the library coordinator, each department should consider giving one faculty member the job of occasionally reviewing the literature on university pedagogy in the discipline and reporting on interesting developments to the rest of the department.
Recommendation II.B.4
The administration should open discussions with TUFA with the goal of making course-faculty evaluations by students compulsory, and available to the Chair of the academic unit as one means of maintaining and improving the quality of teaching at Trent.
Recommendation II.B.5
To be consistent with its claim of providing outstanding undergraduate teaching, Trent should encourage at least some faculty research into pedagogy at the university level. Those participating in this research could be a valuable resource for the rest of the university, as well as being an important component of the new school of education if it is funded. As one means to accomplish this, proposals for projects related to instructional and curriculum development should be considered for sabbatical leaves.
III. FIRST YEAR EXPERIENCE
In view of the University's strategies to strengthen enrolments through attracting new students, retaining them once here and supporting the successful completion of their studies, the first year experience of its students is fundamental. It is important to introduce students, as early as possible, to the skills, languages and methods of their future disciplines and programs and to convince them that this early training merits their continuing allegiance to the university in which they chose to enrol and that it also guarantees them success. In the responses to the Survey on Trent's Future Strategic Directions that the APC received, and in the ensuing Round table discussions, the fear was expressed that a number of promising students entering Trent transfer out of it because they do not find themselves in a University environment where first-rate students predominate.
Recommendation III.1
Trent University should strive to return as soon as possible to rigorous standards for admission to the first year of studies.
As the University tries to recoup its lost student numbers, raising the standards for admission may strike members of the university as not an immediate priority. The more we delay the reintroduction of high standards, the more we endanger our claim to excellence. In view of the conflicting realities facing us, the APC suggests, as an immediate positive step towards improving the quality of the first year experience, the introduction of a small number of innovative programs appealing to high school graduates with exceptionally high academic record. These programs could be developed to address the increasing gap between high school education and University culture. For example Trent could offer an ambitious curriculum aimed at introducing students to the culture of critical thinking and learning across a wide range of fields and disciplines which could be of two year duration in order to prepare students for rigorous intellectual work in the third and fourth year of their chosen disciplines and programs.
Recommendation III.2
Trent University should consider introducing innovative programs catering to high school graduates with top academic records.
Despite the fact that Trent's commitment to small group teaching and individualized learning has evolved and adapted itself to changing circumstances, students and instructors are still committed to forms of interactive learning. Trent should seek to prevent the erosion of interactive teaching and learning, especially in the case of first-year courses.
Recommendation III.3
Whenever feasible, departments and programs should be encouraged to offer small group tutorials, seminars and labs to first-year students.
Recommendation III.4
Academic units should encourage effective lecturing techniques in first-year courses with large lecture sections and engage their best lecturers in their delivery.
Recommendation III.5
Instructors of first-year courses should consider the benefits of various forms of collaborative or independent learning and, where feasible, incorporate them into their teaching methods.
A number of responses to the Survey pointed out that students at Trent become aware of the available research tools, academic help centres and technologies rather late in their studies to be able to take full advantage of them. Even when they become aware of available resources, their knowledge is casual and incomplete.
Recommendation III.6
Academic units should encourage the use of these research tools by students early in their first year.
Recommendation III.7
An advisory system is particularly helpful for first-year students. The responsibility for first-year advising should rest with the Colleges, which should discuss with the academic administration how best to achieve this.
Recommendation III.8
The responsibility for upper-year advising should rest with departments and programs.
Recommendation III.9
In conjunction with the Colleges and the Academic Skills Centre, Trent University must utilize more fully the Introductory Seminar Week and the October Reading Break in an effort to provide mentoring to first-year students and advice in dealing with academic issues during the remainder of the year.
IV. TRENT'S TEACHING MODELS
To facilitate Trent's ability to offer a rich and diverse learning experience, and to allow for the exploration of unique and varied teaching strategies and programs, the institution needs to diversify the format and structure of its offerings. The standard September-to-April twenty-four week teaching model may not always be the best way to deliver some materials. It may not accommodate the schedules of students, make the best use of available facilities, allow for 'experts' from outside of the immediate Trent community to be part of the learning experience, draw on seasonal availability of resources or experiences, nor have the flexibility to integrate a range of pedagogical instruments such as classroom teaching, field trips, experiential learning, computer-based learning, intensive short-term group learning experiences etc. A more diversified range of teaching models could include, for example, summer workshops and field schools, semester-based courses, courses which incorporate intensive classroom experiences interspersed with computer-based learning, and more spring/summer offerings.. Such diversified teaching models have the potential to broaden our student base, assist with enrolment recruitment and retention, further enhance Trent's reputation as a place of high quality teaching and unique learning experiences, and build better links with a variety of local and regional communities. It would also allow some students to obtain a degree in considerably less time than is now the standard.
Recommendation IV.1
The Trent spring/summer offerings should be rationalized to include appropriate upper-year courses, which might be needed by students to complete their degrees.
Recommendation IV.2
Trent should inventory and promote the diversity of field school experiences that it currently offers, and develop more where applicable. If these courses are offered in the spring/summer, students should be able to count these courses as part of their five-course fee for the academic year.
Recommendation IV.3
Trent should develop a series of spring/summer courses which cannot be offered in any other session, due either to their unique seasonal nature or the desirability of an intense learning experience. It would be desirable that these courses have some distinctive pedagogical feature -- a 'cast of stars' who teach or contribute to the course, or a unique interdisciplinary focus not offered in the normal calendar.
Recommendation IV.4
Trent should explore using, where possible, monies which have been previously used for periodic lecture series, to invite notable individuals who could offer at least an interdisciplinary half-course on a topic of particular interest to the Trent community. This course may have to be offered in some form of intensive structure.
Recommendation IV.5
Trent should give consideration, where appropriate, to offering semester-based full-courses (i.e., full year courses taken over four months).
V. TEACHING AND TECHNOLOGY
The use of technology in the classroom is a relatively recent phenomenon and, therefore, one that is not well understood. Complex and rapidly evolving, teaching technology offers promises of significant benefits to Trent's teaching mission at the same time that it introduces potentially serious financial risks. There is no doubt that Trent must embrace technology in the classroom, but these advances must be introduced in a thoughtful and careful manner.
Through the round table discussions and its survey, the Academic Planning Committee found support for the use of technology in the classroom, as long as the technology is driven by pedagogical needs and is not used as a substitute for the student-faculty dialogue that must remain at the heart of Trent's approach. An example of technology that is consistent with the Trent philosophy is interactive software in language instruction that can focus on the "rote-learning" elements and practice so that classroom instruction can be devoted to oral presentations and discussion of course content. Communications facilities that can enhance access to faculty outside the classroom is another example of technology that is not only consistent with the emphasis on the individual student but, indeed, promotes faculty-student contact.
The Committee also found a realistic appreciation of the potential risks involved in introducing new technology, including: the possible debasement of the Trent teaching philosophy if traditional student-faculty contact is displaced, the often hidden costs associated with providing both technical and instructional support, and the potential for wasteful expenditures on ineffective technology.
Trent has already made significant progress in dealing with instructional technology through the PPPSC on Teaching and Technology, TAcTIC, and the establishment of the Senate Committee on Technology for Teaching and Learning (COTTL). The Academic Planning Committee supports COTTL as a centralized body that will provide for the orderly introduction of new teaching technology and be able to conduct proper cost-benefit analyses of new technologies,
assure unnecessary duplication of hardware or software, monitor the impact of technology on teaching effectiveness at Trent, inform the University community about new technologies, and bring together the many different parts of the University that must work together for the successful adoption and deployment of teaching technologies.
Recommendation V.1
COTTL should undertake to identify which elements of computer/communications technology are most useful in enhancing small-group learning so as to develop basic guidelines for introducing computer-based instruction.
Recommendation V.2
In conducting its review, COTTL should be mindful that technology must be considered as a means of enhancing Trent's traditional emphasis on student-faculty dialogue, not as a substitute for it.
Recommendation V.3
In conducting its review, COTTL should undertake a thorough cost-benefit analysis of new technologies, paying particular attention to the need for ongoing technical and instructional support.
Even before such a review is complete, it is clear that Trent must continue the process of installing the infrastructure required to support new learning technologies throughout the University. There must be ready access to technology, from faculty desks to student residences, wherever those residences are located. The Academic Planning committee therefore supports the Learning Technology Targets for the new capital campaign "Beyond Our Walls", particularly those elements which address the potential for overcoming financial barriers to accessing the new technology.
The Academic Planning Committee recognizes that Trent has already made significant progress in the introduction of technology into the classroom, but believes that this technology may currently be under utilized.
Recommendation V.4
The Audio-Visual Department should develop a manual that gives a brief description of the equipment available at Trent, with its location in the case of permanent installations. This list should be ordered by use (video presentation, audio presentation, small group discussions, etc.) for easy access by potential users, and might include the name of a faculty member experienced in the technology who could provide advice on its use in teaching. This list could also be used to provide the rationale for obtaining new equipment if what is currently available does not support a particular pedagogical need.
VI. DIVERSIFYING TRENT'S STUDENT POPULATION
At its very foundation, a university is a community of scholars. The strength and richness of any such community can be measured by the quality, variety, and sophistication of the ideas that are brought to it. An integral part of Trent's community of scholars includes the students who study here. To strengthen Trent's scholarly community, the institution must seek to attract a wide variety of students. Drawing on a wide range of potential student groups also gives Trent a greater resilience to withstand the fluctuation in numbers coming from different groups at any one time.
Recommendation VI.1
In order to attract high quality students, Trent's academic population should reflect the regional, ethnic, and racial diversity of Canada.
Recommendation VI.2
Strong support should be given to Trent's International program in its recruitment work in order to attract full fee-paying students.
Recommendation VI.3
The educational needs of mature students already in the workforce vary from those of the typical full-time student. Degrees need to be obtained in more concentrated periods, and flexible time tabling is required to accommodate work schedules. Trent should develop strategies to accommodate the needs of these students, both in Peterborough and in Oshawa.
Recommendation VI.4
Trent should explore models such as the Canadian Studies Summer Institute to see where they can be applied in other departments and programs. These must be run on a cost recovery basis.
Recommendation VI.5
Trent should explore professional development courses similar to those that have been offered by ERS for MNR employees during the summer months. These must be run on a cost recovery basis.
VII. LINKAGES
The Ontario College-University Degree Completion Accord finalized in late March by the College-University Consortium Council (CUCC) will have an impact on how Trent develops new linkages with colleges in Ontario. This accord specifically focuses on the development of program to program degree completion agreements whereby students who have completed a 2- or 3-yr. diploma in a particular college could attain a baccalaureate degree by taking a specified number of courses at a university with a compatible program. This is essentially the articulation model presented in the APC survey; we currently have programs with Sir Sanford Fleming College in Geographical Information Systems, nursing and museum management. Trent, along with all other Ontario universities is being encouraged to develop more such programs and to have them in place by September, 2000. While there is support within the Trent community, particularly from students, for increasing the number of such programs, there is concern that the integrity of the degree could be compromised if Trent academic standards are not maintained. It is important that the current articulated programs be evaluated carefully in order to ensure that the 'best' aspects of those programs are incorporated into any new ones.
Recommendation VII.1
Trent should explore opportunities for new linkages with SSFC and Durham College as well as other possible partners only when there are clear affinities with the college programs of interest, rigorous admission standards can be set, and major changes to Trent programs will not be required (e.g., extra faculty resources).
Recommendation VII.2
Trent should explore the possibility of articulation agreements for some programs where the process goes the other way. Students who complete a liberal arts and sciences degree at Trent that emphasizes the theoretical, more academic, component of their program may be better prepared for the job force if this is then followed by the more applied perspective of a specific college diploma.
Recommendation VII.3
Where it makes sense and if scheduling allows, articulation agreements could integrate the Trent and college program so that students could take some courses at each institution in each year of the program.
The University Centre at Durham represents a partnership with Durham College and York University whereby the college provides the space and support services for programs offered by the two universities. With four years of guaranteed government funding to support UCD, Trent can build a strong program at Durham that provides students there with learning opportunities comparable to students in Peterborough.
Recommendation VII.4
Trent should rationalize the number of courses and programs being offered at Durham. The choice of course offerings should be based on a) ensuring that program degree requirements can be completed within a three-year time frame, b) student demand for particular courses and programs.
Recommendation VII.5
Departments should try to expand opportunities for UCD students to participate in activities similar to those provided for students in Peterborough (e.g., visiting speakers, workshops).
Recommendation VII.6
Every effort should be made to ensure that Trent students in Oshawa have library, computing and lab facilities comparable to those available in Peterborough.
Recommendation VII.7
The demand for four-year degrees is increasing among students in Oshawa. Departments that offer degrees at UCD cite limited availability of faculty to teach 400-level courses to very small numbers of students at UCD as a reason for not expanding their programs. Trent should explore ways to support 400-level course offerings in Oshawa, including the development of video conference facilities at Durham College which would allow courses to be taught at the same time in Oshawa and Peterborough
VIII. DISTANCE EDUCATION
Trent is developing a capacity to deliver distance education programs through video-conferencing and various multi-media forms of learning. The Academic Planning Committee heard a very mixed response to proposals to use these facilities to "export" full scale programs. While distance education allows Trent the opportunity to expand its reach, there is a real concern that the Trent educational philosophy of interactive learning is inconsistent with physical separation between student and instructor, no matter how hard we try to bridge that gap electronically. As well, Trent is likely to fare poorly in financial terms when faced with competition from larger, well-established distance education institutions. There is considerably more support for the use of distance education technology to enhance the learning experiences of students already being taught by Trent in Oshawa or in Aboriginal and northern communities, collaboration with other institutions and organizations where Trent can make contributions to program content consistent with its specializations, and the development of video-conferencing in selected initiatives where revenue potential exists.
Recommendation VIII.1
Trent should continue to develop expertise and gain experience in the use of video-conferencing and Web-based program enhancements to augment existing programs in Oshawa and in Aboriginal and northern communities, facilitate degree completion at Trent by Trent students, and explore profitable opportunities in the delivery of non-credit training courses.
Recommendation VIII.2
Trent should explore opportunities for partnership in the development of distance education products.
IX. TRANSITION TO WORK/CAREERS
Education in the liberal arts and sciences provides students with a range of capabilities that enhance their career opportunities, including: the ability to articulate ideas clearly, the capacity to reach conclusions based on rigorous research and analysis and to test knowledge and analysis through peer discussion, and the discipline to master new and unfamiliar information. As students move through their university programs, the university should provide assistance to enable them to articulate clearly the capabilities they have acquired; provide guidance for informed career choices; provide, in appropriate conditions, opportunities for them to gain academic credit for work experience related to their areas of study; and provide opportunities for them to acquire particular skills that can help in their transition into the world of work and careers.
Recommendation IX.1
Trent should support the Trent Centre for Community-Based Education that provides opportunities for students to apply their knowledge in a variety of community development activities.
Recommendation IX.2
Trent should develop internships that may be related to community service organizations or to private sector organizations, and may involve placements in Canada or abroad. Student Interns would earn academic credit in their programs of study as part of their work experience, based on guidelines developed by departments and programs in collaboration with the Academic Development Committee.
Recommendation IX.3
Trent should develop Co-op programs in selected areas where opportunities for work placements related to specific programs are sufficient to sustain these operations. Guidelines for these initiatives should be developed by departments and programs in collaboration with the Academic Development Committee.
Recommendation IX.4
Trent should establish a mechanism through which these Internships, Co-ops, and other Work/Study initiatives would be coordinated to ensure that they operate in a complementary manner.
Recommendation IX.5
Trent should support and expand the Champlain College initiative to develop an alumni career mentoring program that brings alumni to the campus to discuss career opportunities with students, and may be supplemented by job-shadowing, alumni networking and other activities.
Recommendation IX.6
Trent should explore the possibility of developing a Student Portfolio system that would document student performance in both academic and extracurricular activities.
Recommendation IX.7
The Career Development office should be supported in efforts to develop projects in collaboration with the Colleges and interested faculty and departments that would provide students with systematic information about career opportunities related to their fields of study and to provide contacts with potential employers. It would be desirable to ensure that the Career Development Office has trained professional staff to carry out these tasks.
