Course Descriptions: General Information

BASIC SKILLS ADVISORY SYSTEM

Many courses have a “Basic Skills Advisory” designation. This designation recommends the minimum level needed in reading, writing, and/or mathematics to be successful in the course. .
Basic skill levels are recommended rather than mandatory, but students are strongly encouraged to adhere to them and follow the advice of their counselor. Counselors use placement test results and other information to determine whether a student needs to raise his/her skill levels before enrolling in a target course.

Open Curriculum
Some courses are designated as OPEN CURRICULUM (OC) courses. This designation means that specific levels of reading, writing and/or math are not required for successful course completion. Most OC designated courses are activity courses which do not require students to use reading, writing, and/or math skills. Some OC designated courses are entry level reading, writing, and/or math courses. Specific levels of proficiency for enrollment in these courses are not designated because students may begin at their current instructional levels and proceed to higher levels of performance until they reach exit levels for course completion. Some of these courses, however, such as READ 826, ENGL 826, and MATH 811 may require that placement test results and other information be on file prior to the first day of class.

Recommended Basic Skill Level Summary:
Level 1 students must be eligible for READ 836, and ENGL 836 or ESL 400.
Level 2 students must be eligible for ENGL 100.
Level 3 students must be eligible for ENGL 110. Math 2/3 students must be eligible for MATH 110 or MATH 111.
Math 4 students must be eligible for MATH 120 or MATH 122.

Level 1
If a course has the designation Level: 1, students need to demonstrate ability to read and write at the 9th grade level.

In order to demonstrate proficiency at this level, students may attain appropriate Reading and English Placement Test scores or they may complete successfully the following combinations of reading and writing courses to reach this level:
ENGL 826 (3 units) and READ 826 (3 units) or
ENGL 804 (4 units) or
ESL 844 (4 units) and ESL 864 (4 units)

Level 2
If a course is designated LEVEL: 2, students need to demonstrate ability to read and write at the 11th grade level.

Level 3
If a course is designated LEVEL: 3, students need to demonstrate ability to write at the college level.
In order to demonstrate proficiency at this level must students complete ENGL 100* with a grade of “C” or better.

*If ENGL 100 is a COURSE PREREQUISITE for a particular course, students must take the course. An appropriate English Placement Test score does not apply in this case.

Math 2/3 (M2) (M3)
If a course is designated as MATH 2/3 or M2/M3, students must be eligible for MATH 110 or 111. This means that students need to demonstrate the ability to perform basic arithmetic operations successfully. MATH 110 covers elementary algebra in one semester while MATH 111 and 112 cover elementary algebra offered in two semesters. MATH 111 and 112 are equivalent to MATH 110.
In order to demonstrate proficiency at the M2/3 level, students may attain an appropriate Placement Test score in math or they may complete successfully MATH 811 (Pre-algebra).

Math 4 (M4)
If a course is designated as MATH 4 or M4, students must be eligible for MATH 120 or 122. This means that students need to demonstrate ability to perform basic algebraic operations successfully.
In order to demonstrate proficiency at the M4 level, students may attain an appropriate Placement Test score in math or they may take MATH 110 or MATH 111 and 112.

Note: If any of the math courses specified above are designated as PREREQUISITES for a particular course(s), students must take the courses specified. Appropriate Placement Test scores in Math do not apply in this case.

CREDIT VALUE

The credit value of each course in semester units is indicated just under the title. A semester unit of credit is equivalent to one hour of the student’s time per week in lecture for semester length courses with two hours per week in study and preparation, or three hours per week in laboratory or activity courses.

CALIFORNIA ARTICULATION NUMBER (CAN)

The California Articulation Number (CAN) identifies some of the transfer¬able lower division, introductory courses commonly taught within each academic discipline on college campuses. The system assures students that CAN courses on one participating campus will be accepted in lieu of the comparable CAN course on another participating campus. Counselors will provide interested students with a list of participating institutions.

The CAN system is designed to facilitate student transfer between and among public institutions of higher education in the State of California. CAN numbers are listed parenthetically after the course descriptions in the listing of courses.

COURSE REPETITION

For more information, please see Course Repetition

PREREQUISITES & COREQUISITES

For more information, please see Prerequisites, Corequisites, Recommended Preparation

LIMITATIONS ON SCHEDULING COURSES

All courses and curricula listed in this catalog will not necessarily be offered during 2011-2012. Courses are offered at the College’s discretion in accordance with its determination of educational needs and available resources. Courses may be added, canceled, or combined when circumstances warrant.

Any course may be offered either in day or evening. Additionally, some courses are offered online or as hybrid. Specific information concerning class hours and locations will be found in the current Class Schedule.

Note: Courses listed as transferable may or may not be acceptable to a specific transfer institution to meet the requirements of a major. Consult with a counselor before planning your program.

DEGREE AND NON-DEGREE APPLICABLE COURSES

All courses that apply toward the associate degree require that the Curriculum Committee determine that the coursework is truly at a college level, and that the course incorporates critical thinking, among other standards. All NON-DEGREE applicable courses have the following statement at the end of their course description: “Units do not apply toward AA/AS degree”.

COURSE ARTICULATION

At the end of each course description there are letters that identify how the course applies to your educational goals, or in other words, how the course is articulated.

Courses identified by Cañada College as transferable to California State Universities are indicated at the end of each course description as “CSU.’’ Courses accepted by the University of California are indicated at the end of each course description as “UC’’. A complete list of transferable courses will be found on pages 58-61. Because of changing regulations governing the transferability of courses among the segments of higher education in California, students should consult a counselor for current information about specific items.

In addition to these basic letters, other “attributes” appear that provide information about how the course may meet general education requirements for the California State University General Education pattern, and the Inter-segmental General Education Transfer Curriculum (IGETC) pattern for UC and CSU. The worksheets for both of these patterns are outlined on pages 56-57. In addition, see your counselor and use PROJECT ASSIST (www.assist.org) for a more thorough understanding of articulation and how courses taken at Cañada College apply to transfer lower division general education requirements and lower division major requirements.

COURSE NUMBERING AND TRANSFERABLE CREDIT

The course numbering system in use at Cañada College as part of the San Mateo County Community College District categorizes courses according to the following:
100-599 Courses generally transferable to a four-year college or university.
600-699 Courses varying in content and which are usually transferable.
700-799 Courses that are part of a specific occupational program and which are not generally regarded as transferable.
800-999 Courses that are non-transferable in nature.

From time to time, a department may offer a course which is experimental in nature, covers a special topic, or which consists of independent study tailored to a student’s needs. Because such courses are never exactly the same, you will not find them described in the catalog. They are, however, regular credit courses of the College.

The following special credit courses may be offered in all instructional programs as recommended by the appropriate Division Dean and approved by the Curriculum Committee. See class schedule for specific course descriptions and current semester offerings.

670 COOPERATIVE EDUCATION/WORK EXPERIENCE
(See course description under Cooperative Education section)

672 COOPERATIVE EDUCATION: INTERNSHIP
(See course description under Cooperative Education section)

680-689 SELECTED TOPICS (DEGREE/CERTIFICATE APPLICABLE, TRANSFERABLE)
Units (Grade Option) 0.5-3; Class Hours: By Arrangement; Recommended: Eligibility for READ 836, and ENGL 836 or ESL 400; Prerequisite(s): None. Description: These courses focus on selected topics not covered by regular catalog offerings. Course content and unit credit are determined by the appropriate division in relation to community/student need and available staff. These innovative, experimental courses may be offered as lecture or lab classes. See semester class schedule for particular offerings. Transfer: CSU. See schedule of classes for course description.

690 RESEARCH PROJECTS
Units (Letter grade) 1-3; Class Hours: By Arrangement; Recommended: Eligibility for READ 836, and ENGL 836 or ESL 400; Two previous courses in the discipline, or concurrent enrollment in the second course, and an overall 3.0 GPA in the department; Prerequisite(s): None. Description: Research projects in a particular discipline. Content to be arranged with individual faculty member and approved by appropriate Division Dean. No student may enroll in more than two research courses per semester. May be repeated three times for credit up to 12 units. Transfer: CSU.

695 INDEPENDENT STUDY
Units (Grade Option) 0.5-6 (No more than 3 units per semester); Class Hours: By Arrangement; Recommended: Eligibility for READ 836, and ENGL 836 or ESL 400; Prerequisite(s): None. Description: Designed for students who are interested in furthering their knowledge via self-paced, individualized instruction provided in selected areas or directed study to be arranged with an instructor and approved by the division dean. Varying modes of instruction can be used -- lecture, laboratory, research, skill development, etc. For each unit earned, students are required to devote three hours per week throughout the semester. May be repeated for credit up to 6 units; each semester that a student is enrolled in an independent study section, it is necessary to identify new learning goals and objectives which are clearly specified in a learning contract. Transfer: CSU.

879 SELECTED TOPICS (DEGREE/CERTIFICATE APPLICABLE, NON-TRANSFERABLE)
Units (Grade Option) 0.5-3; Class Hours: By Arrangement; Recommended: Eligibility for READ 836, and ENGL 836 or ESL 400; Prerequisite(s): None. Description: These courses focus on selected topics not covered by regular catalog offerings. Course content and unit credit are determined by the appropriate division in relation to community/student need and available staff. These innovative, experimental courses may be offered as lecture or lab classes. See semester class schedule for particular offerings. Not designed for transfer credit. Units apply toward AA/AS degree or certificate. May be repeated for credit up to 3 units. See schedule of classes for course description.

880 OTHER SELECTED TOPICS (NON-DEGREE/NON-CERTIFICATE APPLICABLE, NON-TRANSFERABLE)
Units (Grade Option) 0.5-3; Class Hours: By Arrangement; Recommended: Eligibility for READ 836, and ENGL 836 or ESL 400; Prerequisite(s): None. Description: Any division may offer 880 courses focusing on selected topics not covered by regular catalog offerings and treating the development of reading and writing skills. Appropriate divisions may also offer non-degree credit experimental courses in reading, writing and/or math skills. Course content and unit credit to be determined by the appropriate division in relation to community/student need and available staff. These innovative, experimental courses may be offered as lecture or lab classes. See semester schedule for particular offerings. Not designed for transfer credit. Units do not apply toward AA/AS degree nor certificate. May be repeated for credit up to 3 units. See schedule of classes for course description.

Updated: 6/30/11