Chapman makes policy changes to co-taught classes

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Chapman University changed its co-taught class structure beginning fall semester 2024, moving towards a system in which professors split a single salary for classes on which they collaborate. 

According to Chapman professors Joshua Fisher, Ph.D., a professor of environmental science and policy, and Gregory Goldsmith, Ph.D., a professor of biology, who participate in co-teaching, co-taught classes remain beneficial to student growth despite the impact on their salary. 

“Observing Earth from Above” is a current example of a co-taught course. This class uses satellite data from the International Space Station to track disasters worldwide and monitor and analyze Earth's ecosystems.

Taught by Fisher and Goldsmith, the class also includes guest lecturers on subjects ranging from art to journalism. When asked, both professors were not entirely sure of the specifics of the policy change. 

“The class actually was born out of the NASA project that Greg and I proposed to NASA,” shared Fisher, who worked for NASA for 12 years before teaching at Chapman. “Greg was really interested in teaching methods and giving students a voice in identifying climate problems of their own.”

Both Fisher and Goldsmith find the system of co-taught classes to be beneficial to student learning and spreading ideas and thoughts.

“I think the advantage of co-taught classes is that you can provide students with very different perspectives on the same topic,” Goldsmith stated. “You can really see where two people that are working on ostensibly the same issue approach that issue very differently, or have very different opinions on an issue at hand. I think that is an exciting opportunity for students.” 

Fisher discussed how this system also helps to give professors opportunities to divide needed credits among multiple classes. Credits earned in a class are split among the instructors teaching it. 

Students who have taken co-taught classes also appreciate the additional faculty members present, as it leads to better classroom discussions. 

Phillip McClure, a sophomore economics major, took a humanomics class during the interterm and shared some insight into co-taught courses. 

“One (professor) would sit on one side of the room, and the other would sit on the other side of the room. It was a discussion-based class, where they both contributed their thoughts to the discussion. It was very interesting,” said McClure.

Humanomics is the fusion of economics and philosophy, which McCluretook to better understand economic progress and its effects on the human condition. 

Chapman remains enthusiastic from its co-taught classes, and students and faculty share similar excitement for its non-traditional methods. However, with policy changes, the frequency of the class structure could change.