Please use one of the following D2L and Simple Syllabus Supported Browsers: Chrome, Safari or Firefox (newest version)

You can run a D2L System check to ensure you have the most current browser here.

Lastly, please ensure your browser settings have cookies enabled for D2L and allow Pop-ups for Simple Syllabus. Please note these are the same browsers and settings students should use to access D2L and Simple Syllabus.

Set-up guide or Set-up Video

It is contained in D2L and accessed there by faculty under Content and typically in the Start Here menu where the old syllabus page would normally exist.  It is best to set-up due dates prior to customizing the syllabus so they populate. 

Please use this document to confirm that your course is using Simple Syllabus.

• If yes, route support ticket to LxD@nl.edu for help
• If no, please inform the faculty they should use the legacy syllabus until they are informed otherwise

This is totally normal since you are not a “student user”, but as long as you have already pushed the “Submit” button at the bottom of the page during set-up, students will be able to see it (you can confirm that by clicking back into the syllabus from your Instructor view).

Create a support ticket by emailing LxD@nl.edu. Include a student's name and ID number (found in the D2L Classlist) from your class so that LxD can troubleshoot.

Once you enter these in D2L, they will appear in Simple Syllabus. Enter due dates in the appropriate place and then refresh Simple Syllabus in D2L for them to populate.

This is the information provided by your college and department and cannot be changed at this time, please contact your Chair or Program Director for more guidance.

Instructor information that is currently not editable is populated from our system of record and cannot be modified without a formal request to Human Resources (with processing time required).  All other required fields are now required by policy.  While we recognize some faculty have preferred to use non NLU email addresses in the past, we ask that this practice be stopped due to privacy and security reasons (which is why the NLU email address is populated).  We also recognize that some faculty have also avoided providing a phone number to their students, but we specifically request that you do so.  Google Voice is a great choice for those not interested in supplying their regular phone numbers.

Please use one of the following D2L and Simple Syllabus Supported Browsers: Chrome, Safari or Firefox (newest version)

You can run a D2L System check to ensure you have the most current browser here.

Lastly, please ensure your browser settings have cookies enabled for D2L and allow Pop-ups for Simple Syllabus. Please note these are the same browsers and settings students should use to access D2L and Simple Syllabus.

Once you click into your course, under content, and in Start Here/Getting Started/Course Introduction module you should see a page for “Simple Syllabus”, you should see a link to Simple Syllabus.  You may be prompted to sign back into D2L if you have been logged in for a while, this is completely normal. 

If this does not remedy, faculty should email LxD@nl.edu

Once you have clicked on the page for Simple Syllabus, you should see a button in the upper righthand corner with a Print icon.

Students may just notice the differences between the old syllabus and Simple Syllabus. Check with continuing students to ensure they can find the parts of the syllabus that they are accustomed to seeing.

Currently, course syllabi are word documents either stored on department drives (or, perhaps even personal drives of Chairs) or in a course D2L template. This means that syllabi are difficult to retrieve for any type of quality assurance or standardization because someone would have to physically access each course to download the syllabi for viewing. 

Furthermore, because they are static documents, universal changes can take several person hours, and faculty can unintentionally provide inaccurate information on them as a result of their manual customization (when it falls out of synch with a course template, for example). 

Summary of Current Challenges

• Cumbersome and hugely manual process updating static Word documents each term, resulting in unnecessary time spent on perfunctory details instead of critical course content details
• Haven’t defined and enforced the core elements of a syllabus to ensure consistency across the University
• No consistent repository of syllabi and difficult to access syllabi
• Difficult to use the syllabus as a communication mode to students, given the manual nature to update and add content (and readability of syllabus on different devices)
• Unable to fully support ADA considerations for students
• No mechanism to manage QA of course syllabi
• No mechanism to manage workflows for syllabi approval
• Inability to track and report overall compliance and tracking of syllabi submissions during terms
• Faculty concerns/issues with course access in D2L, in order to retrieve/review course syllabi
• Inconsistent visual design and poor use of visual design principles (typography, color, space, contrast, scale, framing), which may contribute to accessibility issues; dynamic style updating may cause syllabus content to appear differently on different devices
• Inability to effectively communicate and “push down” curriculum updates to ensure course syllabi are current and reflect the latest course content across multiple course sections

Who is Impacted?

The stakeholders impacted by the challenges associated with the current syllabus system are faculty, students, academic deans and associate deans, accreditation/compliance, scheduling center.

Impact

With no ability to quickly access syllabi, quality control cannot be feasibly achieved (e.g., standardization of content is difficult and/or information can become outdated and inaccurate and presented to students).  Furthermore, the time it takes to physically view every syllabus is unyielding, especially as our student census and section counts continue to grow.  

It is important to fix this problem to ensure our course syllabi are accurate reflections of the course, as well as that they display that most current and accurate information regarding important university policies.  Additionally, the unsustainability of storing static versions of syllabi is unwieldy for programs, Learning Experience Design, and for faculty and staff.

Problem Statement

An electronic syllabus solution would enable us to populate most of a syllabus with official information entered into Banner by the Registrar’s office, allow faculty and administrators easy access for limited customization, and also significantly decrease the time needed to perform pre-term checks.  The solution would also enable us to make timely updates to compliance-oriented language in syllabi with little effort and/or to simply direct students to the official content in the electronic catalog.

Current Challenges

• Cumbersome and hugely manual process updating static Word documents each term, resulting in unnecessary time spent on perfunctory details instead of critical course content details
• Haven’t defined and enforced the core elements of a syllabus to ensure consistency across the University
• No consistent repository of syllabi and difficult to access syllabi
• Difficult to use the syllabus as a communication mode to students, given the manual nature to update and add content (and readability of syllabus on different devices)
• Unable to fully support ADA considerations for students
• No mechanism to manage QA of course syllabi
• No mechanism to manage workflows for syllabi approval
• Inability to track and report overall compliance and tracking of syllabi submissions during terms
• Faculty concerns/issues with course access in D2L, in order to retrieve/review course syllabi
• Inconsistent visual design and poor use of visual design principles (typography, color, space, contrast, scale, framing), which may contribute to accessibility issues; dynamic style updating may cause syllabus content to appear differently on different devices
• Inability to effectively communicate and “push down” curriculum updates to ensure course syllabi are current and reflect the latest course content across multiple course sections

No, the tool isn’t intended to replace staff, but intended to streamline and automate several manual processes that can be cumbersome for faculty and result in several content errors. Additionally, the tool will provide easier access to students and give faculty better insights on how students are engaging with their syllabi.

According to case studies, taking a gradual implementation approach (i.e. piloting on a smaller scale) has allowed colleges to incrementally gather feedback from students and faculty and make modifications – leading to greater adoption rates.

Of the tools reviewed, Simple Syllabus is the most economical, and extremely low-cost, considering the features and ability to use the tool throughout the entire University.

Simple Syllabus is not a M/WBE (Minority or Woman Owned Business). Unfortunately, there are no known M/WBE companies specializing in an electronic syllabus solution. However, Simple Syllabus was asked about their commitment to DEI and here is the Simple Syllabus DEI Response to NLU's concern.

Here is a breakdown of the products that were reviewed for a new syllabus solution.

The Provost’s Office and LITS department performed an environmental scan for leading electronic syllabi projects that integrated with Banner, Watermark (electronic catalog tool), and D2L.  After a series of product demonstrations and a thorough technical review, Simple Syllabus was selected.  

The Provost’s Office previewed the selected tool in Academic Cabinet, Academic Operations Group, LQC, and Faculty Senate, as well as offered product demonstrations directly by Simple Syllabus representatives. You can see their responses to a survey about Simple Syllabus below. After these presentations and a round of Q&A, the contract was signed in Summer of 2022 with implementation activity beginning in earnest in August 2022.