The Otterbein Board of Trustees approved a three-credit hour proposal on Oct. 22, which will go into effect for the 2018-2019 academic year.
The proposal will affect both full-time and part-time faculty, as well as Otterbein students. The proposal will set a three-credit hour standard that will implement either three 50-minute class sessions or two 75-minute class sessions per week. It will also reset the semester hour requirement to 120 credits for all programs with the exception of those that require special approval. This three-credit model is predicted to save funds with an increase of reliance on full-time faculty.
As students, the implementation of the three-credit hour standard has resulted in a number of questions that merit answers so that we may better prepare ourselves in our academic future at Otterbein. In order to be more informed about this three-credit hour system, these are questions that we hope to see answered at the Town Hall.
Q: Certain courses already cover a heavy amount of material in the time frame given to them without the three-credit hour implementation. How will a reduction in class time affect these courses?
Q: The three-credit hour system states that the transfer process will be easier as a result of its implementation. Is this geared more towards students who are transferring out of or into Otterbein?
Q: The proposal states that the three-credit hour system will save funds due to an increased reliance on full-time faculty, but in what ways in particular does a heavier reliance on full-time faculty save funds? Furthermore, how will this affect both full and part-time faculty?
We need more productive political discussions
