[OACRAO] Determining if an updated course needs a new course number or not

[Ron Napoli]

Alex,

Is there a course outline upon which the course was approved? If the course
outline (or whatever document that was considered when the course was
originally approved) clearly states that the content is limited to wars of
the 20th century, then this document should be amended to include conflicts
of the the Post 9/11 era. But I don't believe there is significant change
to require it to be a new course (with a new number).

Ron

Ron Napoli, Registrar

Antioch College
One Morgan Place
Yellow Springs, Ohio 45387
Phone: 937.319.6139 ext. 3210

On Wed, Mar 7, 2018 at 10:48 AM, Alex Siebert <asiebert at artacademy.edu>
wrote:

> Colleagues,
>
>
> I would like your professional opinion on whether an updated course would
> need a new course number or if the original would still be appropriate.
>
>
> This is in regards to a history class (closer to modern day) that we are
> bringing back after a hiatus.
>
>
> The original course content covers 20th century wars that the US was
> involved in (both World Wars, Vietnam, Korean wars) focusing on the concept
> of "Total War" and how that impacts the countries' societies in many ways.
>
>
> The new description updates it to also include the Post 9/11 era of modern
> warfare, and updated technology/teaching styles used in the classroom,
> still keeping the core concept of "Total War" and its impacts.
>
>
> I am of the opinion that this would not constitute creating a new course
> number because the core focus of the class has not changed, only the range
> of events and tech used has been changed. I can see that this could create
> a problem if this conversation were to come up again in 5-10 years time
> with small changes over time changing it to where it does not accurately
> reflect the original anymore. I don't think that we are at that point just
> yet though.
>
>
> I think it comes down to valuing a somewhat finite number of available
> course numbers and clearly defining what constitutes a significant enough
> change in a course description/curriculum that necessitates a new course
> number entirely.
>
>
> To use a metaphor (because I was recently in the market for purchasing a
> car), I can see parallels in car models and their different generations.
> There's the new generation of a car (significant body change and styling
> and bigger under the hood changes), which would be our new course number
> scenario. There's also the mid-cycle refreshes, or annual updates (updating
> the entertainment system, tweaking the suspension, adding the latest tech
> like Apple Carplay and wireless charging) but you can't see really any
> changes from the outside--that would be like a course description update
> that does not mandate a new course number.
>
>
> Thanks for your thoughts on this--I appreciate it!
>
>
>
> *Alex Siebert*
> Director of Registrar Services
>
> *Make Art, Make a Difference*
>
> asiebert at artacademy.edu
> *O* 513-562-8749 <(513)%20562-8749>
>
> 1212 Jackson Street
> Cincinnati, OH 45202
>
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>
>
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