What are Shared Languages Courses?

Shared Language courses allow a student from one GLCA school to take a language course being taught at another GLCA school. The campus offering the course is referred to as the “host campus” and students from other GLCA campuses enrolled in the course are referred to as “home students” from the “home campus”.

Home students synchronously participate in a course during its scheduled meeting time via videoconferencing and will work synchronously and asynchronously with other enrolled students in small group and partner work settings.

Who can take Shared Languages courses?

Enrolled students from any of the 13 GLCA institutions are eligible to take these courses for credit. Course prerequisites apply.

Where do I find Shared Languages courses?

Courses for the current academic year can be found on the Shared Languages Course Offerings page.

How do I register?

A student wishing to register for a Shared Languages course completes the Shared Languages Course Registration Form and submits it to his/her registrar.

The home registrar signs the form and sends an electronic copy to the host registrar.

The host registrar enrolls the student and arranges for the student to have access to the digital resources necessary for the student to participate fully in the course (e.g., email, CMS, online course evaluation system).

The host registrar informs the home registrar when the registration is complete or if there is a problem.

How do I add or drop a Shared Language Course?

The student drops a course by completing the Drop portion of the Registration Form and submitting it to his/her registrar. This must be done with approvals completed by the host campus’ Drop deadline.

The home registrar signs the form and sends an electronic copy to the host registrar.

The host registrar drops the student from the course and informs the home registrar of the result.

Where can I find the add/drop dates for the host campus?

Add and drop dates will be listed on the course syllabus and/or on the registrar’s page of the host campus.

How many credit hours do I receive?

The number of credits that will appear on a student’s transcript is the number of credits awarded by the host campus. This may involve a credit hour conversion if the home and host campuses have different systems of credit hours. These are home institution credits; there is no credit transfer.

A Shared Languages course and its credits exist on the student’s home campus and the campus offering the course, however, only the credits on the student’s home campus transcript will be displayed. The offering campus will hide the class from the transcript. For example, if an Oberlin student takes Arabic 200 offered through Allegheny, Oberlin will essentially add an Arabic 200 course to its system. This is the Oberlin course the Oberlin student will register for and it is the course that will appear on the Oberlin student’s transcript. The Oberlin student will also appear as registered in the Allegheny course, but that class will be hidden from the transcript. The offering institution does not report the student as enrolled and does not offer financial aid, the home institution does both of those things.

What about differences in academic calendar and policy?

Home students follow the syllabus and course requirements (expectations, grading policies, number of credits, attendance) set forth by the instructor. The meeting days and times of the campus hosting the course apply to all students. It is each home student’s responsibility to come to class according to the host institution’s semester schedule. A semester might begin earlier or later than that of the home student’s home institution.

This also applies for institutional policies (academic integrity, absence rules, disability, reporting on sexual assaults, etc.). All enrolled students are bound by the policies of the campus hosting the course.

What does it cost to take a Shared Languages course?

The student will pay his/her fees on the home campus as if the class was taken on their campus. There may be an additional course-specific fee that all students (home and host) pay.

How do I participate in a course offered on another GLCA campus?

Visiting students participate join via videoconferencing by invitation from the host instructor.

Students may connect from anywhere that is quiet, well-lit, and has a reliable network connection. Use a headset with a microphone if connecting from a public lab.

What kind of access to resources will I have?

The instructor will let you know what electronic resources are used for the class. This might be a web page or a course management system, or something else. All students enrolled in the course will have access to these resources.

Required textbooks will be listed on the course syllabus. Visiting students need to contact the instructor to get early access to that information.

 

How do I get a course grade?

The instructor’s grading policies apply to all students, and the instructor will assign a grade for all students in the course. The instructor submits grades to the host registrar who will submit the grades for visiting students to their home institutions.

Can I take a Shared Languages course Pass/Fail?

Check with the instructor. Auditing a course is not allowed.

Whom will I be able to contact about the course on my own campus?

Each student will have a mentor on his/her home campus (in most cases their language faculty) who will communicate regularly with the host professor and check in with the student about his/her progress in the course.