Departmental and University Teaching Resources and Information

Page Contents. Click on a category to jump directly to those items.

Coursework and Routine: Policies, Procedures, and Recommendations


CNS document from Dr. Laude detailing important academic policies. This one is from 2010-2011 and will be updated as soon as a new version is sent, but they tend to be almost identical year to year.

Quest


Quest is the system used for most general chemistry homework and exam generation. Students should be automatically enrolled in Quest based on their enrollment in your class.
Links for Helpful Quest Information

Classroom Response Systems (iClicker)


Basic Information on Classroom Responses Systems This document provides information on:
  • iClicker and other classroom response systems availabe for use
  • CNS iClicker program that allows upload of iClicker grades into Quest
  • help sheet on assisting students who have forgotten their clicker number

iClicker vs iClicker2
Greg Browning has base units instructors can borrow to test the system. His office can also assist students who cannot read the serial number on the back of their iClicker remote. (More on that in the attached document.)

Plus Minus Grading System: Departmental Recommendations

Evening Exams

For fall and spring CH301 and CH302 courses, evening exams are listed in the course schedule, generally from 7-9 pm. Make-up exams are generally offered the same day from 4-6 pm for students with conflicts and these make-ups are coordinated by the Undergraduate Course Office. To confirm make-up exam times and locations or make alternate arrangements for make-ups, please contact this office.

Make-up Exams: Make-up exams are usually scheduled for 4-6 pm the same day as your regular exams. The Undergraduate Course Office requests that make-ups only be allowed for students with documented reasons for missing an exam (proof of a conflicting class, etc.). They will be happy to help in documenting the conflicts. Have the student see Jeff Daily in this office to show proof of conflict. Jeff will schedule all make up exams with the student. If the student has a documented conflict with this make-up time, Jeff can arrange an alternate time for the student to take the exam in the Undergraduate Office; he will work with the TA or instructor to ensure this meets with the course policies. Students who take an exam in the undergraduate office will leave their exam copy in the office with the scantron. The course TA can pick up the exam and return it to the student

TA Proctors

Some semesters, when needed, general chemistry lecture TAs are each asked to proctor for a few additional general chemistry exams. Due to the longer evening exams being utilized for CH301/302 you may not have the same TA proctor for all 3 or 4 of your semester exams, as we are trying to not overburden the TAs while still covering all exams. The Undergraduate Course Office will make sure the TAs have the schedule for the exams they are assigned to proctor and will work with any TAs who have conflicts. That office will also send reminders to all proctors prior to the exams and will copy you on those reminders.

Syllabi for co-requisite math courses

This page contains links to the general syllabi for math courses your students are likely to be taking. Most students will take either M408C or M408K while taking 301, unless they have placed out. There are some groups of students who take a Statistics and Scientific Computation course in place of calculus.

University's policy on providing and posting course syllabi


The syllabus must contain the following items:
  • The course number and title
  • The instructor's name, office location, and office hours
  • If there are teaching assistants for the class, their names, office locations, and office hours
  • An overview of the class, including prerequisites, and the subject matter of each lecture or discussion
  • Grading policy, including whether attendance is used in determining the class grade, and whether plus/minus grades will be assigned for the final grade
  • A brief descriptive overview of all major course requirements and assignments, along with the dates of exams and assignments that count for 20 percent or more of the class grade
  • Final exam date and time
  • A list of required and recommended materials, such as textbooks, supplies, and packets
  • The class Web site, if any
  • A notice that students with disabilities may request appropriate academic accommodations from the Division of Diversity and Community Engagement, Services for Students with Disabilities, 471-6259.
For additional guidance on writing an effective syllabus, please refer instructors to materials available on the DIIA website: http://www.utexas.edu/academic/cte/

Instructors need to provide an electronic copy of their syllabus for each organized course (or section thereof) they teach to Greg Browning (g.browning@mail.utexas.edu) by the first day of class. These will be posted online in a publicly accessible area to comply with University and state policy. If not fully included in the syllabus or if they change, please also provide a copy of the TA and professor office hours for the course.

Center for Teaching and Learning

This site has information on many teaching resources, including class planning, instructional workshops, and using technology in the classroom. Particularly relevant to many of our classes, the "Teacher to Teacher" link is devoted to methods useful in large classes.

Academic Community Centers in Jester and Kinsolving

This is an initiative of the College of Natural Sciences to set up open areas in campus dormitories for course study in the evening. Each semester the college requests our assistance in making this the place students go to study, meet up with other students in their class, and get course-related assistance from TAs and volunteer tutors. An informational handout on these centers will be sent at a later date.

There are no academic communities during the summer session.

On-Demand Lectures (Lecture Videoing)

Video systems are up and running in five Welch auditoriums: 2.224, 2.246, 3.502, 1.308, and 1.316. New auditoriums are being added, so if you would like to use this system in a different room please let me know and I will check. These systems can do three different things: recording (for later viewing on the web), live streaming (for real time viewing on the web), and audio podcasting (for later downloading to hand-held devices). You can NOT turn off the live streaming or access to the archived lectures, as you could with the previous system. These systems are not turned on without your written permission. If you are interested in utilizing these systems for your class, contact Amy Weidmann at amy.weidmann@mail.utexas.edu. She will need the following information: Room you teach in, your name, full name of the course, and unique number. Please sign the consent form and return it to Amy Weidmann or Susan Thornton at G2500 campus mail. (You only need to fill out one of these; no need to do it every semester.) Amy will then send you information on how to access your lectures. Note that legally you have to tell students we are recording their lecture.

Handling Cases of Scholastic Dishonesy

Student Judicial Services Website
Forms for Student Dishonesty Issues
Note that SJS highly recommends you submit this form even if you and the student agree on a penalty for the dishonesty case. This protects you in case the student later comes back and contests their grade. It also allows SJS to track cases to ensure students are not habitually cheating in many courses.

Information for New Instructors (and those who haven't taught General Chemistry in awhile)

This file includes information on making copies, departmental contacts, obtaining supplies, course instructor surveys, etc.