A Liquid Syllabus (Pacansky-Brock, 2021, 2017, 2014; Pacansky-Brock et al., 2023, 2021) is a humanizing element that ensures students start a course feeling supported by their instructor. It intentionally provides students with what they need to succeed in week one of a course, including a warm, friendly face. It should be emailed to students the week prior to the start of a course. Rather than a PDF or a page locked inside a learning management system, it is a public, accessible, mobile-friendly website that opens instantly and renders beautifully on a phone. Pacansky-Brock recommends using Google Sites to create such a page: https://sites.google.com/iu.edu/start/home
Students are greeted with a brief, imperfect welcome video at the top; a learning pact that articulates what students can expect from their instructor and what will be expected of them; a list of week one due dates; and tips for success. It is written in a supportive tone and uses asset-based language to encourage growth, cultivate hope, establish expectations for success, and recognize the array of experiences and knowledge students bring to the class as a value that enriches learning. If policies are included, they are written in welcoming, hopeful language.
The Components (from the Liquid Syllabus Course)
The Liquid Syllabus is intended to be emailed to your students the week before instruction begins. The Liquid Syllabus you design should be part of your overarching goal to ensure your students enter a learning environment that is safe, structured, and predictable. These characteristics support traumatized adult learners. While Pacansky-Brock’s Liquid Syllabus idea uses the idea of a website that students don’t have to log in to, you could:
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Also embed the information onto a Page in Canvas,
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Create a Public Syllabus in Canvas that serves as your Liquid Syllabus.
Make a Canvas Syllabus Public
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If you are not ready to go all in on a Liquid Syllabus, consider reviewing this video that takes a new look at the Canvas Syllabus tool:
What does your Liquid Syllabus say to your students?
Your Liquid Syllabus cues students that:
- You are a partner in their learning;
- Diversity is an asset in a learning environment;
- They are valued members of a learning community;
- Success in the course is achievable to all students
What will your Liquid Syllabus include?
A homepage that contains:
- A brief (2-3 minute) welcome video, hosted on YouTube. The video breaks down the hierarchy between you and your students and cues students that there is a live, human on the other side of the screen who is there to support them.
- While there are many workflows for hosting videos, Google Sites will only embed videos from YouTube. The video you embed will need to be shared on YouTube as Unlisted (only those with the link can view it) or Public (is retrievable in web searches and publicly visible on your YouTube channel).
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How This Course Works section that clearly communicates where and when (if applicable) students are expected to participate in your course. This section should clearly describe how the course is organized.
- My Teaching Philosophy section that is student-centered, includes supportive language and promotes confidence while engaging in rigor. Conveys high expectations while incorporating information about how you will support students to achieve academic success.
- A Learning Pact that lists expectations that your students can expect from you and that you will expect from them. The pact cues students that you will play an active role in supporting their learning.
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How to Get Your Questions Answered section. This includes your instructor communication policy that clearly lets students know how they should contact you and what your response time is.
Additional pages that may include:
- Course Essentials (course description, outcomes, textbook, listed of other required materials.)
- Grading – A clear and transparent explanation about how grading works in your course.
- Policies: This page includes your campus policies that are expected to be included in all course syllabi. Often, the language used in our institutional policies often informed by a deficit-based mindset about our students. Read your campus policies critically and ask yourself if they use deficient, intimidating, unwelcoming messages. If you identify these phrases, adapt them with equity-minded language. For example:
- Instead of “Mandatory,” begin with, “To be successful …”
- Instead of “You will be dropped from the course”…, begin with “I will check in on you if you forget to participate.”
- Instead of “Rigorous exceptions”, begin with, “You really want to look out for X, and here’s a strategy so that it doesn’t happen.”
- Instead of “Requirements,” begin with, “Tips for success”
- Instead of “No Excuses,” begin with, “Search for solutions and keep an open line of communication with me”
- Instead of “It is your responsibility to,” begin with “Confusion is normal. Contact me if you have questions.
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Resources. A list of institutional resources available for your students to support their academic success, and mental/physical well-being. This list includes links to each resource webpage so students can easily get more information.
Language Samples (from the Liquid Syllabus Course)
So what do we mean by “welcoming language”? Below are a few examples of common syllabus topics provided in a welcoming and an unwelcoming tone. Please take a few moments to consider these examples. Welcoming language includes contextual cues about why a particular policy or expectation is provided. It also cues students that “taking a course” or “completing a course” is about learning and learning is a process of growth and development.
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Welcoming
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Unwelcoming
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Office Hours
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I will hold an online office hour each week on Thursdays from 4-5pm. I welcome you to contact me outside of that time and will be happy to arrange a different meeting time in Zoom or via phone that accommodates both of our schedules.
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I will hold one online office hour each week. Email me if you have questions but are unable to attend. We can find another time.
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Course Goals
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Below is a list of specific skills this course is designed to guide you towards obtaining. Each assignment you complete in this course will contribute to your growth towards meeting these goals. After this class has ended, it is my hope that you will use these skills in your daily life.
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Below is a list of specific skills you should obtain in this course. If you are motivated enough, you will use the skills in your daily life.
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Participation
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Participation involves logging in to our course, navigating through the content pages in a module, completing the readings and videos, participating in discussions and other activities, and submitting assignments/quizzes/exams. Your participation is not only an important part of your learning, it will also contribute to the learning of your peers. As members of our learning community, each of us has a responsibility to create an environment in which we can all learn from each other.
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Regular participation in this course is required. It is important to engage in our course content in order to do well in this course.
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To learn more about Liquid Syllabus, view this 3 minute video:
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