FAR - 2022 IQAP Review of the Bachelor of Arts (French, Literature and Culture) Final assessment Report and Implementation Plan

In accordance with the Royal Military College of Canada’s (RMC) Institutional Quality Assurance Plan (IQAP), this final assessment report synthesizes the external assessment, the internal response and the assessments of the Bachelor of Arts (French, Literature and Culture) provided by the Department of French Studies. This report identifies the significant strengths of the programs, together with opportunities for program improvement, and sets out and prioritizes the recommendations that have been selected for implementation.

This report includes an implementation plan identifying who will be responsible for the following: approving the recommendations contained in the final assessment report; providing the necessary resources to implement those recommendations; making any necessary organizational, policy or governance changes to address the recommendations; following up on the recommendations; and establishing timelines for acting on and monitoring the implementation of those recommendations.

Overview of the review process

The program self-study report was completed in July 2022. For the programs reviewed, the report included degree-level expectations, an analytical assessment, course syllabi, program data, survey data provided by the Office of Quality Assurance, and appendices featuring sample reviews and faculty resumés. Two independent external reviewers (Dr Jane Koustas, Professor, Department of Modern Languages, Literatures and Cultures, Brock University, and Dr Élise Lepage, Associate Professor and Associate Chair of Undergraduate Studies, Department of French Studies, University of Waterloo) and one internal reviewer (William D. E. Allan, Professor, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Royal Military College) were selected from a list of potential reviewers and approved by the dean. They reviewed the self-study documents and conducted a site visit on 12 and 13 December 2022. The visit included interviews with the Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, the Vice-Principal (Academic), the head of the Department of French, Literature and Culture, the head librarian, several civilian and military faculty members of the Department of French, Literature and Culture, as well as several students enrolled in the programs. The External Review Committee (ERC) subsequently drafted a report based on the self-study and site visit. The report was shared with members of the department and discussed with the faculty of the Department of French, Literature and Culture.

In their report, presented on 2 February 2023, the assessors describe how the French, Literature and Culture programs meet the IQAP assessment criteria and the standards of French, Literature and Culture departments elsewhere in Canada.

The departmental report and that of the ERC provide an in-depth analysis of the current situation in the Department of French, Literature and Culture. All stakeholders have taken the opportunity to provide useful and important analysis and recommendations on the current context of the department and its future.

Major strengths and weaknesses of the program

The ERC identified a number of strengths of the French, Literature, and Culture Programs:

• The ERC notes that the curriculum compares very favourably with those offered at civilian universities in Ontario and elsewhere in Canada. The department has the merit of offering a solid, up-to-date academic program as well as a stimulating program of social, cultural and intellectual activities.
• Since the previous cyclical review in 2015, several initiatives have been undertaken and completed within the department (such as changing the department’s name, redesigning the program structure and emphasizing diversity in course content).
• The current program emphasizes diversity. The new multidisciplinary Minor in Culture and Diversity program [trans] “represents a transition from the rather traditional format to a selection that is better aligned with the College’s goals and mission” (2023 ERC).

The ERC identified a number of areas of concern for the French, Literature, and Culture Programs:

• The department is currently in a period of transition following two departures, and it needs to ensure the stabilization of its faculty.
• It is essential that the course catalogue be downsized and streamlined––some courses are outdated and others no longer correspond to the fields of expertise; the dizzying number of courses makes it difficult to rotate them.
• The program needs to strengthen ties with RMC Saint-Jean and with the public affairs officer military branch to optimize resources.

The department head, after consultation with program staff and faculty, formulated a response to the reviewers’ report on 6 March 2023. The Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, in collaboration with the department heads (current and interim), prepared this final assessment report on 17 March 2023. The report contains specific recommendations, action items and a timeline.

Summary of reviewers’ recommendations with respect to the department’s and the dean’s responses

The ERC has identified the following areas of concern or issues requiring particular attention:

Recommendation 1

Make the “MILFAC” position permanent. The self-study report and discussions with the Vice-Rectorate, Academic, the Deanship of the Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities and departmental colleagues revealed the importance of making the military faculty (“MILFAC”) position permanent by fully integrating it into the departmental organization chart. MILFAC professorships are unique to the College, and MILFAC play an extremely important role in students’ perception of the faculty.

Department’s response

The program identified in their self-study report that the program should permanently add a military professor position to the department’s organizational chart and increase ties with the public affairs officer military branch.

Dean’s response

It is true that a military professor position is encouraged. The recent experience of a female military professor was very well received. Such an initiative must continue to be pursued. To that end, learners should be identified and encouraged to continue their studies so that one day they can offer their services in the department.

Recommendation 2

Make the French‑as‑a‑Second‑Language Minor permanent and continue active participation in the Culture and Diversity Minor. For more than five years, five to seven students have been taking part in the French‑as‑a‑Second‑Language Minor program. This program, which exists in all bilingual post-secondary institutions in Canada, has proved its worth, and we recommend that it be made permanent. To facilitate the offering of FLF courses and optimize their teaching, we recommend that one or two teachers from the Language Centre be assigned the task of co-teaching these courses with the French department.

Department’s response

Formalizing the French‑as‑a‑Second‑Language Minor is perfectly in line with the objectives of the FLC department and the College’s bilingualism requirements. Meeting this recommendation will require the support of the Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities and the Vice-Principal, Academic.

Dean’s response

The French‑as‑a‑Second‑Language Minor is an asset for the department. This minor provides tangible encouragement for the practice of French not only within the college environment, but also outside it, since N/OCdts will be able to use it more easily when they are in their respective units. It would therefore be important to formalize this minor and request human resources in order to optimize it. 

Recommendation 3

Downsize and streamline the FRF course catalogue. It is of the utmost importance that the course catalogue be downsized and streamlined. A third or even half of the courses offered in each of the four sections have not been offered since 2014. Some course titles are outdated; others no longer correspond to the current faculty’s areas of expertise; the dizzying number of courses complicates their rotation, forces professors to create specific content for each course (and only teach it again perhaps five years later) and interferes with the readability of the program.

Department’s response

The FLC department is committed to beginning the [trans] “long-term, collaborative work” (p. 15) involved in standardizing course outlines and reducing the number of FRF courses once the faculty has stabilized, as stipulated in the ERC report.

Dean’s response

It is true that this is a long-term job. However, you should not wait too long to set up a committee to update your program. The updating can be done in several stages. Since faculty stabilization can take time, you can start by clearing out the courses that are no longer offered, or almost no longer offered, and then think about what you would like to offer to replace the ones you have removed.  

Recommendation 4

Work towards standardizing the syllabi. A look at the syllabi submitted in the annexes shows that students in the programs concerned are required to produce a variety of written and oral work during the course of their studies. The modes of assessment chosen are correlated with the defined learning objectives. The department would do well to standardize the syllabi format to facilitate comparison.

Department’s response

See response to recommendation 3.

Dean’s response

To follow up on the response to recommendation 3, the department can start working on standardizing syllabi. Again, this standardization may take some time, so we should start to address the question of how this standardization will come about as soon as possible. This initiative could be a good example for other departments to do the same as it was highlighted in other IQAPs.

Recommendation 5

Increase ties with the public affairs officer military branch. The self-study report mentions other worthwhile avenues to explore. In particular, we noted the possibility of increasing ties with the public affairs officer military branch to explore the possibility of specific jobs being associated with the academic programs offered.

Department’s response

See response to recommendation 1.

Dean’s response

The possibility of creating ties with the public affairs officer military branch is a very good idea and goes beyond what is expressed in response 1. In fact, partnering with a particular “military branch” has a great advantage since the department (and perhaps other departments) could count on their support in the event that a military position, for example, becomes available (this refers to recommendation 1). It would be important, wherever possible, to encourage public affairs officers to pursue advanced studies so that they can offer their services to the department when required. Such an initiative takes some time to materialize. Therefore, discussions with the public affairs officer branch should take place as soon as possible to establish specific deadlines for a long-term plan.

Recommendation 6

Strengthen ties with Royal Military College Saint-Jean. The department is showing vision and a good management sense in indicating that it wants to strengthen its ties with Royal Military College Saint-Jean: [trans] “Exchanges of courses offered at both institutions would optimize resources” (self-study). Better collaboration would also facilitate certain administrative procedures (credit transfers, grade recognition, etc).

Department’s response

The recommendation to strengthen ties with RMC Saint-Jean can only be implemented with the support of College management.

Dean’s response

Ties with RMC Saint-Jean are possible provided that the department and RMC Saint-Jean agree on how the exchanges will take place. In addition, it should be noted that certain logistical issues (eg, distribution of scheduled courses) need to be resolved as much as possible before establishing a collaborative relationship. The FLC department is in a position to encourage this kind of exchange, since it could increase the number of learners by offering courses in hybrid format. As mentioned in the recommendation, exchanges of courses would be a good way to optimize resources.  Moreover, such exchanges are also good for collaboration in research, sharing teaching tools and resources, etc… Exchanges could beyond the mere fact of exchanging courses.

Therefore, it is strongly recommended.   

Recommendation 7

Establish two-way collaboration with the library. The students we met mentioned that they sometimes used the library as a workspace but had never really used the resources on offer. Today, the library and faculty have a joint responsibility to ensure that students become familiar with and use the university library. We suggest, for example, that a second‑year course introduce students to the library (librarian’s presentation in class to go over how to do research; assessed project requiring, for example, the creation of a short annotated bibliography, etc).

Department’s response

The FLC department supports the recommendation of establishing two-way collaboration with the library. Department members will work together to determine how to implement this recommendation in order to maximize the benefits for the student population.   

Dean’s response

It is becoming increasingly important to introduce learners to how to conduct rigorous research. In connection with recommendation 3, which calls for a revision of the course catalogue, it seems that two-way collaboration could be part of one of those courses. This collaboration should be seen as a learning tool that will help learners in the short and long terms. In addition, faculty members should encourage the use of the library by assigning to students work that specifically required the use of that facility. Department is encouraged to find ways to incite students at using the library.

Recommendation 8

Increase administrative and support staff in general.

Department’s response

The FLC department supports the recommendation to increase administrative and support staff. This recommendation will require the support of College management. Similarly, the recommendations relating to the permanence of the military professor position and the need to strengthen ties with RMC Saint-Jean and the public affairs officer military branch can only be implemented with the support of College management.

Dean’s response

At present, the FLC and ECC departments share the services of an administrative assistant. To justify expanding an administrative position, it would be necessary to assess current administrative demands and those that might require another administrative assistant. The question is whether not having a full-time administrative assistant has a negative impact on the program. Also, have students commented on the department’s lack of administrative support? Since the IQAP does not mention the number of students enrolled in the program (which is a gap in the report), it is difficult to make an accurate assessment of the department’s needs. Only an assessment of the department’s requirements and needs would inform us as to what action to take.

Implementation Plan

Following the positive ERC report, it is fair to say that the Department of French, Literature and Culture offers its students a rigorous academic program and that the curriculum compares very favourably with those offered at civilian universities, whether in Ontario or elsewhere in Canada. What is more, the current program––following on from the points highlighted in the 2015 IQAP––is in line with the changes regarding diversity and inclusion.

The changes mentioned require ongoing work to bring the FLC program up to date. Although the report mentions the program’s positive achievements, it barely scratches the surface of the issue of [trans] “student recruitment” (p. 14 of the report). The question of how many students will enroll, are enrolled and who have graduated from the FLC program is a crucial one, as it is an issue that needs to be addressed. A study of ways to increase the student population should be carried out to get a better picture of the department’s real (and future) needs.