What is a liquid syllabus?

A liquid syllabus is an online syllabus, designed to be visually enticing and dynamic, and one that students can access from their devices quickly and one that allows you to make necessary changes on the fly with fewer disruptions to students’ expectations.

Since a liquid syllabus is a course page or website, it offers you more flexibility to give your students the resources they might need as the course progresses. You can include links, readings, support, and highlight certain portions that are most applicable to the students in your course this semester.

How can you use a liquid syllabus in your course?

Since a liquid syllabus is a course page or website, it offers you more flexibility to give your students the resources they might need as the course progresses. You can include links, readings, support, and highlight certain portions that are most applicable to the students in your course this semester.

Liquid syllabi can allow you to present yourself to your students in an exciting, personalized way and one that allows you to still cover all the necessary information for the course and gives you flexibility to modify dates, assignments, etc. as you pivot to best support your students.

Another useful aspect of a liquid syllabus is your ability to change the course schedule as necessary. Sometimes students need extra time on a concept or module, or sometimes you’ll realize that a certain topic isn’t necessary to the course you’re teaching and can excise it. A liquid syllabus makes this easier to do, as students won’t have a printed-out paper copy that no longer reflects the schedule you’re following.

What results can you expect from incorporating a liquid syllabus into your course?

While it can be hard to quantify the benefits of a liquid syllabus, having space to change your course plan as necessary can be a powerful tool as you modify and improve your course. In Chemistry, as the course progression between their two paired course cycles (Introduction to Chemistry and Principles of Chemistry) has needed to change based on student feedback, discussions with other faculty both within and outside of their department, and based on learners’ needs, they have made modifications to their lesson plans and course trajectories. By keeping their course components agile, it has made it easier to make these modifications as necessary to assist their work.

Who can help if you’re interested in incorporating a liquid syllabus into your course?

If you would like to explore how you could use this in your course, please reach out to the Center for Teaching for assistance and guidance on how best to implement these activities.

For further reading on how and why to use liquid syllabi: https://carnegiemathpathways.org/from-the-network-liquid-syllabus/