2021-22 Unit Plan
Philosophy

Mission Statement

Butte College Philosophy introduces students to the intellectual and religious traditions that shape global cultures while fostering skills in logical thinking, clear writing, sound argumentation and the thoughtful consideration of diverse world views.

Program Description

Butte Philosophy supports student success in meeting General Education transfer and diversity education requirements, strengthens student ability to think logically and write well while studying the rich intellectual traditions of global cultures. 
PHIL-006, Introduction to Logic and PHIL-008, Methods of Argument meet the CSU and IGETC Critical thinking requirements. Philosophy courses also meet requirements for the Sustainability and Peace and Conflict Resolution Certificates.

Student Learning/Administrative Unit Outcomes

SLO Report - PHILOSOPHY | Successes and Challenges | PHIL-002 | Introduction To Philosophy

Upon successful completion of this course, the student will be able to: A. Discuss and explain, using philosophical methods, some representative philosophical problems and the major alternative ways in which these problems have been addressed. B. Analyze and evaluate philosophical viewpoints, including methods, arguments, and assumptions, in terms of relevance, consistency, and truth. C. Formulate, construct and articulate their own position on a number of philosophical problems in light of what great philosophers have written.

The easiest of the SLOs for students transitioning to online is "C. Formulate, construct and articulate their own position on a number of philosophical problems in light of what great philosophers have written." Every discussion and interaction with fellow students entails this and they are able to formulate their own positions with greater or lesser degrees of understanding of what past philosophers have written. The hardest of the SLOs for students transitioning to online is: "B. Analyze and evaluate philosophical viewpoints, including methods, arguments, and assumptions, in terms of relevance, consistency, and truth." To begin with, many are not sure what it means for there to be "truth" beyond opinion. To do this SLO well requires years of practice in most cases, developing critical thinking habits. In the future, to help them do this, ever-greater effort through instructor responses will help students seek the relevance of their views, and weed out the inconsistency of their views, while seeking the truth.

PHIL-018 | Eastern Religions

Upon successful completion of this course, the student will be able to: A. Recognize and distinguish between various world views of the major Eastern religions. B. Analyze and evaluate complex elements of religious phenomena. C. Compare, appraise and evaluate the interrelationships between particular cultures and religious expressions. D. Analyze and explain how ideas and practice from various Eastern religions address important questions in life, and assess their applicability to the human condition.

A key feature of Eastern Religions (offered online) is the journal, created to address SLO D, and a weekly reflection. The prompts are meant to spur self-assessment, and audio comments on each journal are intended to encourage good work or to push students to dig deeper into identifying their own perspectives (even prejudices) as they consider Eastern traditions. Perhaps most difficult is A, which requires a certain amount of remembering what has been studied from one week to the next. Emphasis is not only for students to recognize and 4 differentiate certain teachings from Hinduism and Buddhism, for example, but to apply their understanding to some of the readings in the course textbook anthology.

Standards/Goals for Student Achievement (Instruction Departments)

Talk about FTES here

Students retnetion rates have histoically been steady. However, the Campfire and then the Covid stay-at-home orders have affected enrollemts, particlarly in courses that are traditionally face-to-face but have been forced to move to a remote modality. As the Covid number scontinue to decrease, it is the hope of the department that courses will be offered face-to-face once more and with the new approval of an AA-t degree in Philosophy, enrollments will rise once more.

Since there are no degree awards yet, there is nothing to report about this at this time.

Standards/Goals for Student Achievement (All Other Departments)

N/A

Strategic Direction

Enhancing a Culture of Completion and Goal Achievement: The PHIL department offers many courses online as well as "on ground" (during non stay-at-home orders) to meet the braod range of studeny scheduling needs. Additionally, a newly aprpoved AA-T degree will help students meet their goals of completion within the perameters of student pathway choice.

Program Review

The Philosophy Department is scheduled for Curriculum Review in 2021-22 and to complete its self study in 2021-22.

We have completed all of the recommendations from last Program Review.

Department Goals

The department goals include:

Hire a full time faculty member before retirement considerations are made to help new faculty successfully transition into a lead role with the AA-T degree and student transfer goals.

Commercial advertising outreach for enrollment retention and AA-T announcement campaign targeted toward students seeking completion in this area.

Future Development Strategies

Strategy 1 - Develop Student-Centric Schedule

Strategic scheduling analysis - identify optimal day/times/locations for face-to-face courses
Develop more online courses to meet student demand
Schedule and publicize late-start courses to meet demand of Butte College and Chico State students who may need additional units or a critical thinking course
Analyze Philosophy offerings for Winter and Summer terms in light of student needs
Strategically open new online sections to relieve waitlist pressure

Initiatives

Enhancing a Culture of Completion and Goal Achievement
Supporting Student, Faculty and Staff Success
Using Data-Informed Processes for Continuous Improvement

Supporting Rationale

Provide a variety of options to meet student needs

Supporting Rationale Alignment
Supports the College's Strategic Direction and Priorities: Yes
Supports Program Review Recommendations: No
Supports Course level SLOs: No
Supports PLOs: No
Supports ILO - Think Critically: No
Supports ILO - Communicate Competently: No
Supports ILO - Engage Collaboratively: No
Supports ILO - Work Effectively: No
Supports Meeting Vision for Success Goal - Credentials: No
Supports Meeting Vision for Success Goal - Transfer: Yes
Supports Meeting Vision for Success Goal - Time to Degree: No
Supports Meeting Vision for Success Goal - Employment in field of Study: No
Supports Meeting Vision for Success Goal - Reducing Equity Gaps: Yes

Strategy 2 - Use Active Learning Strategies to Increase PHIL-006 Success

PHIL-006 (Introduction to Logic) introduces deductive, inductive, and scientific argumentation and proves to be a challenge for many students.

A focus on active learning strategies should improve the success rate. Such strategies include:

Reduction of the face-to-face PED cap of 45 to 38 to (a) reflect the decrease in the overall student population from which to draw in Butte and Glenn Counties and (b) promote a higher degree of individualized attention to students
Implementation (especially in online sections) of ConferZoom video chat office hours
Experimentation with "flipped classroom" models in face-to-face sections
Development of "hands-on" classroom activities or projects
Experimentation with the gamification of content

Initiatives

Enhancing a Culture of Completion and Goal Achievement
Supporting Student, Faculty and Staff Success
Maximizing Resources to Support Student Learning
Enhancing a Culture of Equity and Inclusiveness

Supporting Rationale

This strategy aims directly at increasing student success

Supporting Rationale Alignment
Supports the College's Strategic Direction and Priorities: Yes
Supports Program Review Recommendations: No
Supports Course level SLOs: Yes
Supports PLOs: No
Supports ILO - Think Critically: Yes
Supports ILO - Communicate Competently: Yes
Supports ILO - Engage Collaboratively: Yes
Supports ILO - Work Effectively: Yes
Supports Meeting Vision for Success Goal - Credentials: No
Supports Meeting Vision for Success Goal - Transfer: Yes
Supports Meeting Vision for Success Goal - Time to Degree: No
Supports Meeting Vision for Success Goal - Employment in field of Study: No
Supports Meeting Vision for Success Goal - Reducing Equity Gaps: Yes

Strategy 3 - Develop Curriculum for AA-T in Philosophy

The Philosophy Department at Chico State supports the need and development of the AA-T Philosophy major at Butte College. Philosophy courses sharpen student thinking, writing and oral skills, preparing students for careers in education, law, medicine, business, journalism, ministry, and government.

Determine shape of the AA-T, including possible courses making up the 18-unit transfer degree, in conversations with the SBS Dean, SBS Chair, Butte College articulation officer, related discipline Chairs (including Political Science, History, Humanities), and the Curriculum Committee Tech Review committee
Develop PHIL-004 (C-ID PHIL-120), "Introduction to Ethics and the Good Life"
Replace PHIL-005 (Environmental Ethics) with PHIL-004 in the schedule
Add PHIL-008 (IGETC), "Methods of Argument" to the schedule as needed

Initiatives

Enhancing a Culture of Completion and Goal Achievement
Supporting Student, Faculty and Staff Success
Using Data-Informed Processes for Continuous Improvement
Maximizing Resources to Support Student Learning

Supporting Rationale

Development of the AA-T in Philosophy helps meet institutional goals by increasing the degrees offered and fitting into the Guided Pathways schema, as well as offering students a more consistent and directed Philosophy experience at Butte College.

Supporting Rationale Alignment
Supports the College's Strategic Direction and Priorities: Yes
Supports Program Review Recommendations: Yes
Supports Course level SLOs: Yes
Supports PLOs: No
Supports ILO - Think Critically: Yes
Supports ILO - Communicate Competently: Yes
Supports ILO - Engage Collaboratively: Yes
Supports ILO - Work Effectively: Yes
Supports Meeting Vision for Success Goal - Credentials: No
Supports Meeting Vision for Success Goal - Transfer: Yes
Supports Meeting Vision for Success Goal - Time to Degree: Yes
Supports Meeting Vision for Success Goal - Employment in field of Study: No
Supports Meeting Vision for Success Goal - Reducing Equity Gaps: No

Strategy 4 - Align Online Philosophy Courses With CVC-OEI Rubric

Though the success rate for online sections of PHIL-006 (Introduction to Logic) exceeds that of the face-to-face sections, the success rate for online sections fo PHIL-002 (Introduction to Philosophy) and PHIL-018 (Eastern Religions) is lower than comparable face-to-face sections.

The CVC-OEI (California Virtual Campus/Online Education Initiative) has found that student success improves when online courses are "fully resourced" (e.g., with online tutoring, counseling, proctoring, video chat sessions) and aligned to the CVC-OEI rubric.

CVC-OEI Rubric: http://onlinenetworkofeducators.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/CVC-OEI-Course-Design-Rubric-rev.2.14.2019.pdf

Accordingly, strategies for improving student success in online Philosophy courses include:

Participation in local POCR (Peer Onine Course Review) groups (see http://onlinenetworkofeducators.org/course-design-academy/pocr-resources/)
Review of courses in light of the Online Equity Rubric (http://web.peralta.edu/de/equity-initiative/equity/) developed by the Peralta Community College District
Provision of professional development workshops and stipends to enable online Philosophy instructors to bring their courses into alignment with the CVC-OEI rubric
Submission of aligned courses for a final review by the statewide CVC-OEI standards group

Initiatives

Enhancing a Culture of Completion and Goal Achievement
Supporting Student, Faculty and Staff Success
Using Data-Informed Processes for Continuous Improvement
Maximizing Resources to Support Student Learning
Enhancing a Culture of Equity and Inclusiveness

Supporting Rationale

Alignment of online Philosophy courses not only raises the quality of such courses but helps meet equity goals determined by the institution.

Supporting Rationale Alignment
Supports the College's Strategic Direction and Priorities: Yes
Supports Program Review Recommendations: No
Supports Course level SLOs: Yes
Supports PLOs: No
Supports ILO - Think Critically: Yes
Supports ILO - Communicate Competently: Yes
Supports ILO - Engage Collaboratively: Yes
Supports ILO - Work Effectively: Yes
Supports Meeting Vision for Success Goal - Credentials: No
Supports Meeting Vision for Success Goal - Transfer: Yes
Supports Meeting Vision for Success Goal - Time to Degree: Yes
Supports Meeting Vision for Success Goal - Employment in field of Study: No
Supports Meeting Vision for Success Goal - Reducing Equity Gaps: Yes

Strategy 5 - Hire a Full Time Faculty

· Hire a full time faculty member before retirement considerations are made to help new faculty successfully transition into a lead role with the AA-T degree and student transfer goals.

Initiatives

Enhancing a Culture of Completion and Goal Achievement
Supporting Student, Faculty and Staff Success

Supporting Rationale

Supporting Rationale Alignment
Supports the College's Strategic Direction and Priorities: Yes
Supports Program Review Recommendations: Yes
Supports Course level SLOs: No
Supports PLOs: No
Supports ILO - Think Critically: No
Supports ILO - Communicate Competently: No
Supports ILO - Engage Collaboratively: No
Supports ILO - Work Effectively: No
Supports Meeting Vision for Success Goal - Credentials: No
Supports Meeting Vision for Success Goal - Transfer: Yes
Supports Meeting Vision for Success Goal - Time to Degree: No
Supports Meeting Vision for Success Goal - Employment in field of Study: No
Supports Meeting Vision for Success Goal - Reducing Equity Gaps: No

Requested Non-Financial Resources

N/A

Current Financial Resources

N/A