Teach a new Core capstone one time on an experimental basis

Faculty members proposing a new Core capstone can teach the course once on an experimental basis. After having taught the course once, the faculty member will need to complete a formal Core capstone proposal.

Before you start

You may wish to review the syllabi of these permanent (catalog) Core capstones. As with all matters pertaining to Core capstone design and pedagogy, you are welcome to contact the Assistant Director of Integrative Core Capstones at any point.

Draft a short course proposal in which you indicate explicitly and in sufficient detail how your course:

  1. Promotes the mission of the Elon Core Curriculum.
  2. Promotes the two principles that inform that mission: ethical reasoning and personal & social responsibility. When writing this section, some instructors find it useful to imagine a student audience, explaining in the same ways they’d explain to students how ethical reasoning and personal & social responsibility will be defined and explored in the context of the course.
  3. Promotes the following learning outcomes, which are required in all Core capstones because they help students pursue the Core mission.
    1. Research skills across disciplines.
    2. Communication skills.
    3. Problem-solving.
  4. Is writing intensive and includes two types of writing:
    1. Writing to learn. A common writing-to-learn activity is some form of journaling, such as blog posts or discussion forum posts.
    2. Writing as a citizen, aka writing for civic engagement. Generally, these writing activities involve a public genre and are often folded into the capstone project.
  5. Is clearly not a disciplinary course, even if it is influenced by your disciplinary research.
  6. Please also list a few likely texts (readings, films, and so on) and indicate how these texts promote the above mission, principles, and learning outcomes.
  7. Finally, please sketch the contours of the semester project (aka capstone project) you plan to have students complete. One common genre is a research paper, but other modes are possible and encouraged.

Submitting your proposal

Email your course proposal as a PDF to the Assistant Director of Integrative Core Capstones.

Please also fill out the experimental course form. Details:

  • Under Course Number, enter COR 3000. The Executive Director will assign a real course number later.
  • Where the form asks “Are you seeking approval to apply this course to the Core Curriculum?” mark YES.
  • Note that the form says experimental courses can be offered for three semesters; that’s true for experimental courses in the departments, but not in the Core Curriculum. You’ll need to submit a formal Core capstone application after having taught your experimental capstone one time.

What happens next

The Executive Director of the Elon Core Curriculum, in consultation with the Chair of ECCC and the Assistant Director of Integrative Core Capstones, will review the proposal to make sure it meets the expectations above. If revisions are needed, the Executive Director or the Assistant Director will provide formative commentary within one month.