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Faculty Guide to Teaching

SFU Teaching Context and Curriculum

Reconciliation, Educational Goals, Accreditation, Writing Intensive Courses

Reconciliation

At SFU, we learn, teach, work and live on the unceded traditional lands of the Coast Salish peoples including the xwməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), Səlí̓lwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh), and Kwikwəƛ̓əm (Kwikwetlem) Nations.

Accreditation

  • SFU has been granted formal accreditation by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU). The NWCCU is one of six independent regional agencies recognized by the U.S. Department of Education to evaluate the quality and institutional effectiveness of post-secondary institutions. SFU is accredited by a U.S. agency because Canada doesn’t have a comparable institutional accreditation body.
  • https://www.sfu.ca/vpacademic/accreditation.html

Educational Goals

  • SFU’s educational goals capture the skills and competencies our graduates achieve by the end of their degree program. As an institution, we are dedicated to preparing students for lifelong learning, and to producing community-engaged and responsible citizens who demonstrate integrity and ethical behaviour. We value a community founded on principles of respect for knowledge, truth, and scholarship. Our graduates are critical and creative thinkers, skilled at problem solving and equipped for the challenges of the future.
  • Each department has identified educational goals for their programs, and we have identified a set proposed university wide goals. You can reach more about these here: https://www.sfu.ca/vpacademic/learnteach/educational-goals-initiative.html

WQB Requirements (Writing, Quantitative, Breadth)

  • All students admitted to an undergraduate degree at SFU must complete a minimum of 36 units of courses designated as Writing, Quantitative, or Breadth, with a grade of C- or better to receive the WQB credits.

Our diverse campus community

SFU’s campus community is extremely diverse, students in your classroom will bring a rich variety of linguistic and cultural knowledge to class and represent multiple, complex, intersectional identities.

Of our 30,000 students, 20% of our students are international students, 42% speak an additional language at home, 15% speak a language other than English at home.

SFU is primarily a commuter campus. While over 1200 students live on campus, most students do not live on Burnaby mountain and spend a significant amount of time commuting (and engaging with online and digital learning materials while they are commuting). See infographics about our diversity here: