We Can Help You Build Your Syllabus

A well-designed syllabus helps students understand what to expect from your course, how to communicate with you, how their work will be assessed, and where to find important university resources.

Weber State uses two syllabus tools with different purposes:

Canvas Syllabus
Your complete, student-facing syllabus for the course.
Simple Syllabus
A public-facing syllabus used to meet USHE and state legislative requirements.
Looking for a starting point? View our Sample Syllabus from the Full Course Template available in Canvas Commons.

Canvas Syllabus: Your Student-Facing Syllabus

The Syllabus page in Canvas should be used as your student-facing syllabus that includes all policies, course information, goals of the course, etc.

You can build your syllabus directly on the Canvas Syllabus page or embed a document such as a Word or Google document.

Learn more about the Canvas Syllabus tool

Elements to Include in Your Course Syllabus

  • Course details: CRN, meeting time, location, and course format
  • Instructor details: Name, contact information, office hours, and preferred method of communication
  • Technical support: IT support, Canvas support, and publisher support when applicable
  • Course materials: Textbooks, software, supplies, and other required resources
  • Course description, goals, and expectations
  • Course assessments: Assignments, exams, grading scale, and assignment or category weights
  • Course policies: Attendance, late work, exams, participation, and other course expectations
  • University policies: Accessibility, academic integrity, Disability Services, and other applicable policies

Syllabus Templates

Canvas-Specific Information

Technical Support

We recommend including technical support information in your syllabus and on the home page of Online and Web-Enhanced courses.

For Technical Support:
801-626-7777 or csupport@weber.edu (username, password, or login issues)
801-626-6188 or LMSsupport@weber.edu (Canvas issues)

Canvas support is also available 24/7 by calling 877-215-0831, emailing support@instructure.com, or using the Help menu in Canvas to access Live Chat.

Accommodations for Students with Disabilities

In addition to making your syllabus accessible, include appropriate information directing students to Disability Services.

If you have received an accommodation request from a student to receive extended time on assignments or quizzes, the following links will walk you through the process of providing those in Canvas:

Disability Services can provide additional one-on-one consultation about accommodations in Canvas.

Copyleaks Syllabus Statement

If you plan to use Copyleaks in your course, consider including the following statement in your syllabus:

WSU subscribes to Copyleaks, an electronic service that verifies the originality of student work. Enrollment in this course may require you to submit some or all of your assignments to it this semester, and documents submitted to Copyleaks are retained, anonymously, in their databases. Continued enrollment in this course constitutes an understanding of and agreement with this policy.

Other resources for developing your syllabus

 

Simple Syllabus: Your Public Syllabus

Simple Syllabus is Weber State's public-facing syllabus tool used to meet USHE and state legislative requirements. It is separate from the Canvas Syllabus page and is not intended to replace your complete student-facing syllabus.

Simple Syllabus deadline: For course sections that require a public syllabus, instructors must complete and submit the required information at least five calendar days before the course begins.

Which Courses Require Simple Syllabus?

Departments maintain the list of course sections subject to the public syllabus requirement. If you are unsure whether your course requires a public syllabus, please contact your department.

Independent Study and Concurrent Enrollment courses are not required to publish a public syllabus through Simple Syllabus.

For additional information about the public syllabus requirement, visit WSU Syllabus Requirements .

What to Include in Simple Syllabus

For course sections identified by your department as meeting the public syllabus requirement, use the template provided in Simple Syllabus. At minimum, include:

  • Course Description
  • Course Learning Outcomes
  • Required and Recommended Readings
  • Required Assignments and Grading Methods
  • Required University Policies — these are pre-populated in the template

The template allows additional information to be included when needed. You may use the Additional Information section for relevant information that does not fit within one of the required fields.

Canvas Assignment Sync

Simple Syllabus can automatically pull assignment information from your Canvas course.

  • Only published Canvas assignments are included in the automatic sync.
  • Assignment information is synced once per day. Changes made in Canvas are not immediate and may take up to 24 hours to appear in Simple Syllabus.
  • Use descriptive assignment names in Canvas whenever possible, since assignment information may appear in the publicly available syllabus.
  • If an assignment title does not clearly explain the activity, add additional context to the Topic field in the synced assignments section of Simple Syllabus.
  • If you edit or delete the synced assignment information in Simple Syllabus, that item will no longer update automatically from Canvas. That effectively "breaks" the sync, and Canvas will not overwrite your manual changes.
  • Assignments can be reordered in Simple Syllabus. Click and hold an assignment, then drag it to the desired position in the synced assignments list.

Cross-Listed Courses

If multiple course sections are cross-listed into a single Canvas course, complete the Simple Syllabus for the primary Canvas course.

Clearly note that the syllabus represents a cross-listed course and include the CRNs of the additional sections represented by that syllabus.

If the other sections continue to appear separately in your Simple Syllabus dashboard, you may disregard those entries once the additional sections have been identified on the primary syllabus.

You do not need to recreate assignments for cross-listed sections. Because all cross-listed sections use a single Canvas course, Simple Syllabus may not be able to pull Canvas assignments into the additional section listings. You do not need to manually recreate or import assignments before cross-listing.

Keep Simple Syllabus Simple

Simple Syllabus is intended primarily to satisfy the public syllabus requirement. Detailed instructions, rubrics, files, contact info, and other course materials can remain in Canvas.

We recommend that you:

  • Use the Canvas Syllabus as your complete student-facing syllabus.
  • Use Simple Syllabus to publish the information required for the public syllabus repository.
  • After completing and publishing your Simple Syllabus, hide the Simple Syllabus link from your Canvas course navigation so students are not presented with two different Syllabus options.

Accessibility Checker

Simple Syllabus includes a built-in accessibility checker that reviews your syllabus for common accessibility issues. You will not be able to submit your syllabus until all detected accessibility issues have been resolved.

  • Common issues may include missing alternative text, insufficient color contrast, improperly formatted lists, or inaccessible tables.
  • Use the Accessibility Checker in Simple Syllabus to review detected issues and guidance for correcting them.
  • After resolving the identified issues, you can continue with submission.

Before You Submit

  • Review your syllabus for accuracy and completeness before submitting.
  • Make sure all required fields are complete.
  • Resolve any issues identified by the Accessibility Checker.
  • Use the preview option to review how your syllabus will appear before it is published.

Additional Syllabus Resources