Learning Outcomes Initiative

[George Kirczenow <kirczeno@sfu.ca>]

Having watched the SFUFA panel discussion on the Learning Outcomes 
Initiative at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HkJolYB4Gws
and having read the LOA report prepared for Vice President Academic 
Jon Driver by his Learning Outcomes and Assessment Working Group at
http://www.sfu.ca/content/dam/sfu/vpacademic/files/vp_academic_docs/pdfs/SCUP20121107_Rev20121204.pdf
as well as the background material provided to the SFUFA members 
by Brian Green, in my opinion, LOA might be beneficial for some 
academic programs in the University, detrimental to others and a 
tremendous waste of time and energy for yet others. 

For this reason I think that any decision to implement LOA 
at SFU should be taken by *individual* departments after careful 
assessment *by each department* of the pros and cons of LOA for 
*each* of the academic programs that the department offers. If in the 
judgement of a particular department the pros outweigh the cons 
for a *particular* academic program, then that department should be 
allowed to implement LOA for *that* program *and* given the resources 
to do that.  

However, for the administration to impose LOA on the entire University 
over the objections of those academic units that regard LOA as 
inappropriate for them is a very bad idea. If such a centralized decision 
is made, I think that the administration would lose the confidence of a 
large part of the university faculty, as happened previously after bad
administrative decisions were made at SFU in the 1990's by the then 
President and Vice President Academic of the University. After that fiasco 
faculty confidence in the university administration was not restored until 
that President and Vice President Academic had been replaced and the
next university president had worked long and hard to rebuild that confidence.

I think that the SFUFA executive should bring the very real danger of 
the present administration losing the confidence of the faculty to the 
attention the current President and Vice President Academic as soon 
as possible.

George Kirczenow
Professor of Physics