Information for Adjuncts and New (and Old) Faculty to help you through the semester.
Academic Issues
- Enrollment Rosters are available on-line at https:\\patriotweb.gmu.edu. You are encouraged to access these and make
copies (a) before your class meets, (b) after the Add date at the end of the second week of classes, and (c)
after the Drop date at the end of the fifth week of classes (the Final Official Class Roster). You will not be
able to access this information until the Department has you totally "in" the Mason Human Resources system and
you have been designated as an "instructor". Please help us with any data needed - ASAP. To access your class
roster you will need your George Mason G number (SSAN normally works also) and your six digit PIN.
- A list of student email addresses can be displayed at the bottom of the roster. These can be highlighted, copied and pasted into
an email to contact all (or selected) students in your class. Both from "ease of read" as well as protecting student data you are
encouraged to use the Bcc: (Blind Carbon Copy) line when sending to *all* students in your class.
- If you find a student taking exams, turning in homework, etc, who is not on a roster, ask them about it. A student must be
enrolled in the course in order to attend classes unless some special arrangement has been made with the Department.
- All Lab Sections meet the first week of classes. This is to allow lab administrative and safety issues to be completed. Also,
students are required by ECE policy to show up at the first meeting of a lab or they may be dropped from the course. This is to allow
us to get students out of the labs who have decided to not take the lab but may be waiting until closer to the end of the Drop Period to
Drop and to get students into the labs who really want them and need to Add during the shorter Add Period. This maximizes use of the
limited number of seats in the labs.
- All Recitation Sections meet the first week of classes unless the lecture instructor
has contacted *both* the students *and* the course TA prior to the recitation and
has agreement from the TA that a meeting is not needed.
- During a couple class meetings before exams are administered, the students should be
reminded that late arrivals (10-20 minutes, your prerogative) may not be allowed into the exam.
This prevents students from coming to the exam, checking out the questions, leaving and passing
on information to other "late arriving" students.
- All exams are to be monitored/proctored/etc by the instructor or another faculty
member. (To ensure no cheating.)
- The George Mason University Honor Code requires that "all alleged violations of the
Honor Code" (unauthorized copying,, cheating, plagiarizing, lying) be reported to the GMU
Honor Committee. Bill Sutton has forms. He has had experience. If you have a
"situation," please feel free to talk with him for thoughts, ideas, advice, guidance, help.
The ECE Dept is a strong supporter of the Honor Code as a precursor to Engineering Codes of
Ethics.
- All 1xx and 2xx level classes must have mid-term evaluations (grades) submitted. See
http://registrar.gmu.edu "Calendars" for the
due dates. These grades (like the Final Grades) are submitted via the web at https://patriotweb.gmu.edu. While the procedure is
pretty much self explanatory, the HELP button leads to useful Quick Guides. The mid-term grades are intended to help "alert" the
Freshman and Sophomore students to possible academic problems before the end of the semester. The mid-term grades do not stay on any
permanent record. So the mid-term grades you report should be based on good information, but do not need to include every single
assignment. Often it works to just use the midterm exam(s) you have graded, omitting the homework and lab grades.
- Very Important! For undergraduate ECE and 500 level graduate ECE courses, copies of two students' papers with the
High score, two with the Medium score and two with the Low score on "midterm exams" (as many as you give) and Final exams and Projects
are to be made and kept in a separate folder for accreditation purposes. Copy assistance during the semester is available for adjuncts
from the Department Office so that you can get copies made before returning mid-term exams or projects. Additionally, as part of our
engineering accreditation process, there is a Course Student Outcomes Assessment that needs to be made after final exams are completed
and added to the "Copies Folder." See the Department Chair during the semester for additional information about this. Adjuncts should
drop the folder off with the Department at the end of the semester.
- Final Grades are submitted via the web at https://patriotweb.gmu.edu. It is very
important that your grades be submitted in a timely manner. The Mason "requirement" (ECE Department goal) is "within 48 hours
of the final exam." Contact the Department Chair if this seems to be a problem in your course. While the procedure is pretty much self
explanatory, the HELP button leads to useful Quick Guides. You can submit a subset of the grades, completing the submission at a later
time/date. You can only change a grade on-line up to ~ midnight of the day you enter the grade (after that time grade changes must be
done via paper forms through the Dean's Office. See (Item 21). After you submit all grades for your course you must print a copy of
the Grade Roster to be turned in to the Department.
- Final Exams are not returned to students, but are kept by the Dept for at least a
semester in order to have material in case of a grade appeal. Adjuncts can drop them off
in the Department office for "storage."
- Final Exams are graded by the instructor, not a TA. Again, to ensure that grade
appeals can not be based on "the professor did not even grade my exam."
- Absence from a final exam is only allowed for sickness or reasons approved by the Dean. If a student is given a "delayed" final
exam, it must be accomplished within 10 days. See the Department Chair first if this issue comes up.
- If you have a MW class that starts on the hour (9:00, 12:00, 3:00) then you need to
"advertise" to your class (in your syllabus and announced in class during the week before
finals) that the exam day/time is the one for "a MWF class that starts on the half-hour
*after* your class starts (9:30 for a 9:00 class, 12:30 for a noon class, 3:30 for a 3:00
class). This will ensure that there is no conflicts with other exams students might have
and ensures that you will have your classroom for the full exam period.
- GMU allows, but does not require, the use of some + and - grades. I.e. A+, A, A-, B+, B, B-,
C+, C, D, F for undergraduate classes and A+, A, A-, B+, B, C, F for graduate classes. Note
the grade scale is associated with the class, not the student. An undergrad taking a
graduate class can not be awarded a B- or C+. If you normally would not use the + or - grades, a statement to that effect should be
included in your syllabus. Many undergraduate ECE courses have "Grade of C or better in..." as a prerequisite requirement. A grade of
C- does not satisfy this requirement. A student can repeat any undergraduate course for a new grade regardless of the original grade
earned. A graduate course can be repeated for a new grade only if a grade of B- or less had been earned.
- INcomplete grades are given only when the student has missed a minor part of the
course, can comfortably provide the missing work to the instructor before the 9th week of
the next full semester and whose reason for missing the work is solidly based on an
unforeseen and unavoidable situation/circumstance. The student does not *have* to be given
the full 9 weeks if the instructor feels a shorter period is appropriate. There are forms
in the Dept office for documenting the conditions of an IN grade (material to be
accomplished and period of time allotted), both student and instructor sign the form - this
is strongly encouraged. This protects both the instructor and the student. See ITem 19 for the ECE Department policy on IN grades.
- ECE Department policy is that:
"all IN grade requests or IN extension requests directed to Adjunct professors should
get the Department Chair's approval or the approval of the Associate Chair. Students
should justify their requests in writing. Once the request is approved, there is a form
specifying the conditions and deadlines."
The reason for this is that here in the main office we can more easily check the student's
history and find out if the IN is a pattern in student's work towards a degree, and we can
thus more easily judge whether the request is justifiable. We have had some cases of abuses
of the IN in the past few semesters.
The instructor assigning an IN grade has the responsibility of working with the student
individually in the next semester. In some cases the students who work full time may need
this grade, but in some other cases the IN is just the way to postpone the inevitable 'F'."
- GMU policy does not allow posting grades by Student G number. So, if you want to
provide grade information on-line (or on-door or on-bulletin board) to students, you need
to take another approach. If you are really familiar with UNIX (I'm not) I think you can
set up some forms of file permissions that allow only certain individuals to access the
data, or to set up web pages that require passwords (separate page per student?). Another
route that so far seems acceptable is to request each student to (1) provide you with
permission to post and then (2) provide you with some code/name/alias that you can use for
the posting (you could use a preprinted form to be signed and to submit the alias.) Final
grades do not have to be posted since students can access them from the official GMU data
base via the web within 24 hours of grade turn-in. If you want to just post graphical
representations of overall class performance (histograms, etc), so students keeping track
of their own grades can see how they are doing compared to the whole class, that is OK
since there would be no linking of any specific piece of data to a specific student.
- A change of letter grade requires a stated reason. The only accepted reasons include (a) Computational Error, and (b) Recording
Error. The change is submitted via paper form, through the respective Dean's Office (Graduate or Undergraduate).
- Toward the end of the semester an envelope of Course/Instructor Critique forms will be
put in your box in the Adjunct's Office area, room 3707, Engineering Building. Instructions will be included. The students have to be
given
(an instructor-free) 15-20 minutes during the last week of classes to fill out the forms.
The forms should be distributed (one per student!) and then one student should be given the
empty envelope and asked to collect the filled out forms and deliver them to a "collection
point" as detailed in the instructions. This is important! The numerical data from these forms is provided to
the Chair during the subsequent semester. The actual forms with any student comments are
available for you during the subsequent semester. Let the Department know if you want
to be informed when they are available and how to contact you.
Administrative Issues
- A mailbox will be set up in the Adjuncts Office area, room 3707 in the Engineering Building for you. All notes, papers, etc. will
be left in this box. Students may leave papers for you (with your name on them!) in the Faculty Drop-off Box in the ECE Department
office. These will be put in your box in room 3707. A Student Pick-up Box is located in the ECE Department office which you can use to
leave papers for students to pick up. Note, any paper that shows the Student G number must
be enclosed in an envelope to protect the privacy of the G number.
- Contact the Department Staff for instructions on getting ID card swipe access for room 3707.
- Contact the Department Staff to get Parking Deck "tickets" to pay for your parking. You
may purchase a parking decal if you wish.
- "Large quantity" copies should be made in the Copy Center in the Johnson Center, room 135 if at all possible. You can pick up copy
request forms in the ECE Department office and turn in your printing yourself, or you can fill out the forms and leave the material for
us, and we will turn it in for you. Copies can be made on the copy machine on the 2nd floor of the Engineering Building. You will need
to borrow a key card from the Department office. All exams are handled only by non-students in the Copy Center. The copies are made
and sealed in an envelope and locked up until they are picked up. Please try to give us as much time as possible to obtain copies for
you. Plan on the machine breaking down, or the Copy Center having a major backlog on the day you need copies. Please do not wait until
the last minute. We will turn in your order, pick it up, and put it in your mailbox if you request it.
- Some supplies are kept in the bookcase in the Department Office. If there is something you need that you do not see, please
leave the Department Staff a note with your request and we will do our best to get it for you
as soon as possible.
- If you need information regarding your book, etc. contact the Department Staff.
- You need to provide a hard copy version of your syllabus, your regular office hours
and an email address that can be released to students, to the Department Staff by the middle of the 2nd
week of classes. You can use room 3707 or 3708 to meet with students during your office hours. A
GMU email account can be set up for you shortly after your personnel action paperwork is
processed through Human Resources. You also need to provide a copy of your syllabus or a "link" to a "publically accessible" location
to the ECE Department webmaster (eceweb@ite.gmu.edu).
- To dispose of papers and documents with student G numbers or compilations of email addresses or phone numbers there is a paper
shredder in the ECE Department office. If you have a large quantity of paper to be shredded, just place it in an envelope with a note
to the Department Staff requesting shredding. Protection of student personal data is very important.
- Adjuncts who are not teaching "the following" semester, and who have been using an
@gmu.edu email address, and who are not planning on continuing to check the @gmu.edu email
on a regular (couple times a week) basis after their "teaching semester" is over, should
put a file named .forward (note the "dot" in front of "forward") in their osf1 account root
directory to forward email to the ECE Department email account (ece@gmu.edu). This can be
done by:
1. Login to osf1 using your account name and password.
2. At the osf1 prompt, type pico .forward (Again don't forget the "dot" before the "forward")
3. At the blank screen type ece@gmu.edu
4. Hit Ctrl-x
5. Respond to Yes/No question by typing a y
6. Respond to the "File name to write : .forward" by hitting the Enter key
7. You are done! Now we will get any student requests directed to your account.
When/If you are ready to go back to regularly reading email from your @gmu.edu email
account just login to your osf1 account and remove the .forward file by (at the osf1
prompt) typing rm .forward If you want to see whether you (still) have the .forward file in
your account just type (at the osf1 prompt) ls -a for an appropriate list.
Other information or help:
Kasia Rogawska (703) 993-1569, ENGR room 3100,
Toshiko Uchiyama (703) 993-3810, ENGR room 3300, (for TCOM or CFRS student or Program
information)
Bill Sutton, Assoc. Chair (703) 993-1581, ENGR room 3100, wsutton@gmu.edu
Andre Manitius, Chair (703) 993-1569, ENGR room 3100, amanitiu@gmu.edu
Click the icon to go back to the ECE home page.
Last updated: January 2012