COUNCIL ON CURRICULAR PROGRAMS AND INSTRUCTION

Thursday, 24 January 2008

 

3:30 p.m.

Algonquin Room - University Union

 

A C T I O N   M I N U T E S

 

 

MEMBERS PRESENT: W. Bailey, J. Engel, P. Kornoski, C. Kovacs, A. Melkumian, K. Myers, K. Neumann, N. Parsons, C. Piletic, T. Waldrop

Ex-officio: B. Baily, D. Williams

 

MEMBERS ABSENT: E. Mannion

 

GUESTS: Rori Carson, Rick Carter, Dianne Loyet, Vicki Nicholson, Miriam Satern, Dan Walter

 

I.          Consideration of Minutes

 

            A.         6 December 2007

 

            APPROVED AS DISTRIBUTED

 

II.         Approvals from the President and Associate Provost

 

            A.        Approvals from the President

                        1.         Inactive Courses Policy

 

            B.         Approvals from the Associate Provost

                        1.         AAS 487, African and Black Diaspora Performance Traditions, 3 s.h.

                        2.         ACCT 442, Governmental and Nonprofit Accounting, 3 s.h.

                        3.         DS 305, Applied Data Mining for Business Decision-Making, 3 s.h.

                        4.         SCM 370, Inventory Strategy, 3 s.h.

 

III.       Announcements

 

            Chairperson Parsons informed members that Faculty Senate this week approved the first requests for two new academic categories, two certificates of undergraduate studies and a concentration.

 

IV.       Old Business – None

 

V.        New Business

 

            Motion: To reorder the agenda to consider WESL 065 first (Kovacs/Neumann)

 

            MOTION APPROVED  10 YES – 0 NO – 0 AB

 

            A.        Requests for New Courses

 

                        4.                                 WESL 065, American Culture ESL, 0 s.h. (Reordered)

 

                                    Motion: To approve WESL 065 (Melkumian/Kovacs)

 

                                                              Assistant Director of the WESL Institute, Dianne Loyet, was asked how WESL determined this course was needed for their students.  She responded that feedback has been received from academic departments in which WESL students are enrolled indicating that many display insufficient familiarity with American customs; WESL 065 was developed to meet those needs. 

 

                                    Changes:

·         Remove all CCPI instructions from the completed form.

·         Rewrite course objectives to reflect what students will be able to achieve by the end of the semester.

·         Rewrite “Relationship to Existing Courses within the Department” section to indicate how WESL 065 will relate to existing WESL courses.

·         Rewrite “Relationship to Courses in Other Departments” section to indicate which University courses overlap material to be covered in WESL 065.

·         In “Redistribution of Teaching Load” section, indicate that no new faculty will need to be hired to teach WESL 065.

                                   

                                    MOTION APPROVED WITH CHANGES  10 YES – 0 NO – 0 AB

 

                        1.         KIN 308, Scuba Diving Specialties, 2 s.h. (repeatable for up to 4 s.h.)

 

                                    Motion: To approve KIN 308 (Melkumian/Myers)

 

                                    CCPI discussed whether the course should be two requests rather than one, given that both advanced and basic rescue operations will be included within the class.  Kinesiology professor Dan Walter explained that the rescue portion of the course takes four to six weeks of instruction.  It is envisioned that while students who have taken KIN 308 previously are working on advanced rescue skills, others who are taking it for the first time will be practicing basic rescue.  Kinesiology chair Miriam Satern compared this to a tennis class which could accommodate both those who had been on the high school tennis team and those who had never picked up a racket.  Professor Walter explained that students taking the course can achieve either a basic or more advanced rescue certification; rescue certification must be obtained before students are admitted into KIN 408. 

 

                                    In addition to rescue skills, the course will include instruction on various diving specialties, including deep, night, dry suit, ice, cave, or wreck.  Professor Walter told CCPI students can choose which specialties to concentrate on each semester; at least two specialties will be covered, but the class may be able to learn as many as four or five, although some are season-specific.  He added that students must take a physical exam specifically for scuba every calendar year to participate in the classes. 

 

                                    Changes:

·         Change semester hours to read “2, repeatable to 4.”

·         Change catalog description to read, “Instruction in rescue and at least two other diving specialties (e.g., rescue, deep, night, dry suit, ice, cave, wreck) within the realm of recreational scuba diving.  No less than three specialties will be covered each semester.  Certification is available, but not required.  Must have a current scuba physical exam on file.”

·         Add information regarding KIN 408 to “Relationship to Existing Courses within the Department” section.

·         Change Date of First Offering to Fall 2008.

                                   

                                    MOTION APPROVED WITH CHANGES  9 YES – 0 NO – 1 AB

 

                        2.         KIN 408, Divemaster, 2 s.h.

 

                                    Motion: To approve KIN 408 (Melkumian/Kornoski)

 

                                    Changes:

·         Add 2 s.h. after the course title and number.

·         Add rescue certification to prerequisites.

·         Reduce catalog description to 40 words.

·         Change Date of First Offering to Fall 2008.

 

                                    MOTION APPROVED WITH CHANGES  10 YES – 0 NO – 0 AB

 

                        3.         KIN 490, Honors Thesis in Kinesiology, 3 s.h.

 

                                    Motion: To approve KIN 490 (Melkumian/Kovacs)

 

                                    MOTION APPROVED  10 YES – 0 NO – 0 AB

 

            B.         Request for Change in Course Description

 

                        1.         CS 395, Computer Privacy and Security, 3 s.h.

                                    Current:          Hardware and software security systems of computer facilities and information files.  Data encryption algorithms.

 

                                    Proposed:       Methods of protecting data in computer and communications systems from unauthorized disclosure or modification while maintaining availability for authorized users.  Modern cryptographic methods: Symmetric and Public key cryptography, Message Digests, Digital Software and Certificates.  Secure protocols: firewalls, VPN’s and IDS.

 

                                    Motion: To approve CS 395 (Engel/Kornoski)

 

                                    Changes:

·         Change “…that last decade…” to “…the last decade…” in the first sentence of the Rationale for Change.

·         Remove apostrophe in the abbreviation VPS’s within the proposed catalog description.

 

                                    MOTION APPROVED WITH CHANGES  9 YES – 0 NO – 1 AB

 

            C.         Request for Change in Prerequisites

 

                        1.         TM 321, Local Area Network Management, 3 s.h.

                                    Current:          CS 214.  Prereq or Coreq: CS 350

                                    Proposed:        CS 214.  Prereq or Coreq: CS 350 and STAT 171

 

                                    Motion: To approve TM 321 (Melkumian/Engel)

 

                                    MOTION APPROVED  9 YES – 0 NO – 1 AB

                 

            D.        Requests for Changes in Course Titles, Descriptions, and Prerequisites

 

                        1.         KIN 108, Scuba Diving, 2 s.h.

                                    Current:          Scuba Diving

                                                            No current course description

                                                            Prereq: 400-yard, non-stop swim and a 15-minute non-stop treading water skill test.  A SCUBA physical exam administered by Beu Health Center is required; the date of the exam will be announced by the instructor.  The charge for the exam is $15.00.

 

                                    Proposed:        Open Water Scuba

                                                            Provides classroom and confined water work needed to scuba dive safely in open water.  Certification is available, but not required.  Must be able to swim 250 yards continuously, tread water 10 minutes, and swim underwater 50 feet.  Physical examination required.

                                                            Prereq: None

 

                                    Motion: To approve KIN 108 (Melkumian/Piletic)

 

                                    In response to a question, Professor Walter explained that a 250-yard non-stop swim has been required for the past ten years rather than a 400-yard swim.  Additionally, 250 yards are recommended for certification.

 

                                    Change:  Change Effective Date to Fall 2008.

 

                                    MOTION APPROVED WITH CHANGE  10 YES – 0 NO – 0 AB

 

                        2.         KIN 208, Scuba II, 2 s.h.

                                    Current:          Scuba II

                                                            Intermediate level skills and knowledge.

                                                            Prereq: KIN 108

 

                                    Proposed:        Advanced Open Water Scuba

                                                Open water divers will further their knowledge and experience by learning to navigate underwater, dive deeper, and dive at night.  In addition, each student will choose three scuba specialty areas to gain diving experience.  Certification is available, but not required.  Must have a current scuba physical exam on file.

                                                            Prereq: KIN 108 or permission of instructor

 

                                    Motion: To approve KIN 208 (Melkumian/Kornoski)

 

                                    Changes:

·         Reduce course description to 40 words.

·         Change Effective Date to Fall 2008.

 

                                    MOTION APPROVED WITH CHANGES  10 YES – 0 NO – 0 AB

 

            E.         Request for Change in Minor

 

                        1.         Physical Education

 

                                    Motion: To approve change in minor (Kovacs/Kornoski)

 

                                    Changes:

·         Change title of minor to Physical Education since its proposed name change to Minor in Kinesiology must be accomplished by a letter, approved by the college dean and forwarded to the Provost’s office.

·         Change required lecture courses to 10-11 s.h.

·         Change total existing semester hours to 22.

 

                                    MOTION APPROVED WITH CHANGES  10 YES – 0 NO – 0 AB

 

            F.         Request for New Minor

 

                        1.         Scuba Diving

 

                        Motion: To approve new minor (Engel/Kornoski)

 

                        Bill Bailey told CCPI he questions whether a Scuba Diving Minor is needed at WIU.  He asserted some of the practical applications of such a minor – to operate a scuba resort or become a scuba sales rep – would apply just as well to hunting or archery.  Dr. Bailey noted that a number of external certifications seem to be important to the field, and stated he suspects these would supersede any qualifications from Western.  He predicted that a graduate with a WIU Scuba Diving Minor and no other qualifications might be insufficiently prepared for some employment. 

 

                        Dr. Bailey told CCPI he sees scuba as a “tool to do things,” noting that there are an array of skills it is assumed a graduate in Agriculture should have, such as driving a tractor, but it is not necessary to create a major or minor for them.  Dr. Bailey said he appreciates that scuba diving is important, but cannot recommend taking the next step to require that it become a minor.

 

                        Dr. Satern stated she understands Dr. Bailey’s concerns questioning the academic credibility of the proposed minor but pointed out that WIU already has minors on campus in skill-related fields, such as Photography.  She explained that Kinesiology is proposing a minor that will complement a major and would be as flexible as possible.  Professor Walter added that many students take scuba classes because they realize that scuba certification could make it easier for them get a job after graduation.  He said most scuba students come from LEJA, and many find out about scuba classes late in their academic careers.  Professor Walter stated that while one scuba class may not provide much of a boost for graduates’ careers, the backing of a WIU minor, particularly for LEJA graduates, would be a huge benefit for their job prospects. 

 

                        Dr. Engel asked how the Open Electives were selected.  Professor Walter responded that they reflected areas that he thought Scuba would complement.  He picked the courses that seemed to be most useful to students selecting this minor, contacted department heads for those courses, and in cases where they recommended adding or removing their courses from the list, he followed their recommendations.  Ms. Kornoski asked why the scuba minor includes foreign languages courses in its open electives.  Professor Walter explained that many of the best places in the world to do scuba diving do not have English as their primary language.  Professor Walter told CCPI that while other schools offer scuba majors, none offer a minor with as wide a range and the flexibility to tailor it to the needs of students in various majors. 

 

                        Change:  Change open electives semester hours to 6-8.

 

                        MOTION APPROVED WITH CHANGE  9 YES – 1 NO – 0 AB

 

            G.        Request for Change in Major

 

                        1.         Board of Trustees Bachelor of Arts

 

                                    Motion: To approve the change in major (Kovacs/Melkumian)

 

                                    Non-Traditional Programs Director Rick Carter told CCPI the Board of Trustees Bachelor of Arts (BOT-BA) degree changes were submitted in response to the elimination of the “W” requirement by the University.  Previously, the BOT-BA’s writing requirements enabled students to choose to complete a WID requirement, a “W” course, or a validated, comprehensive writing requirement.  The proposal seeks to replace these choices with:

                                                a.         Associate of Arts degree

                                                b.         Associate of Science degree

                                                c.         WIU General Education requirements

                                                d.         IAI General Education requirements

                                                e.         A WID requirement

                                                f.          University Writing Exam

 

                                    Dr. Carter explained that the Writing Exam possibility was included because some students may still transfer into the program having completed this earlier at Western.  CCPI suggested that in that case, the Gen Ed “W” course should also be retained as a possibility under “g.” in the proposed list since it has similarly been eliminated but could be grandfathered in.

 

                                    Chairperson Parsons pointed out that a., b., c., and d. in the proposed requirements all deal with General Education, which is totally separate from WID except for ENG 180/280.  She explained that WID is a separate issue in that it is a requirement for students who are at the junior level or above and is intended for more writing intensive assignments within their majors.  Dr. Parsons expressed concern with the fact that all WIU students must graduate having completed a WID requirement with the exception of BOT-BA students.

 

                                    Dr. Carter responded that the only reason for adding General Education to the writing requirements for the BOT-BA program was to replace the eliminated “W” requirement.  He stated the only students who would have taken a WID course would be those transferring to the BOT-BA program from another major at WIU.  He explained that “Writing Instruction in the Disciplines” does not apply to BOT-BA majors because they do not have a single discipline or concentration of coursework within a single discipline.   Dr. Carter explained all the request is intended to address is an adjustment of BOT-BA writing requirements to address the removal of “W” classes, and Gen Ed has been stated to address this removal.

                                    Chairperson Parsons asserted that while the writing requirements in traditional programs and the BOT-BA degree program are different, both are getting a degree from WIU, and asked why BOT-BA students do not have to have an advanced course in writing while every other graduate does.  Dr. Carter stated that at one time, the BOT-BA program requested that UNIV 490 be accepted as the WID option for their students, but their request was denied because BOT-BA students don’t have a major.  Dr. Engel pointed out that since BOT-BA students make take ENG 280, they receive instruction in advanced writing skills, but the discipline-oriented writing would be impossible since BOT-BA students do not have a specific discipline.  Chairperson Parsons asserted that whether it is discipline-oriented or not, BOT-BA students are not receiving the advanced extra writing activities required of students in other majors.

 

                                    Associate Provost Baily asked when it was approved that the BOT-BA did not have to require their students to take a WID course, which every other program in the University required.  Dr. Carter responded CCPI approved the BOT-BA writing requirements in 1996.  He said Writing Instruction in the Disciplines was approved in the mid