{"id":11019,"date":"2025-09-04T16:02:06","date_gmt":"2025-09-04T20:02:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/excellence\/?page_id=11019"},"modified":"2026-09-03T12:34:50","modified_gmt":"2026-09-03T16:34:50","slug":"largecourses","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/excellence\/programs\/largecourses\/","title":{"rendered":"Large Course Initiative"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Large introductory courses present a distinctive teaching challenge: How do you create connection in a room of hundreds? How do faculty know whether students are learning before they fall behind? How do students receive meaningful feedback and support? And how can a large gateway course feel like a learning community rather than an anonymous lecture?<\/p>\n

The Large Course Initiative brings together faculty and the Institute for Excellence in Teaching & Learning to tackle these questions through course redesign. Faculty teams in Biology, Chemistry, and Mathematics & Statistics have examined their courses from the student perspective and introduced novel approaches to active learning, assessment, peer interaction, academic support, inclusive teaching, and technology.<\/p>\n

The goal is not simply to make large courses more manageable. It is to make them better learning environments\u2014places where more students participate, connect, persist, and succeed.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Faculty-Led Course Redesign<\/h1>\n\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\tBiology: Building Connection and Belonging at Scale\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/h3>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n
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In introductory biology, which includes students from nearly every school and college across BU, faculty focus on creating a more connected learning experience in courses that can enroll hundreds of students at a time. The redesign introduces more opportunities for active learning, small-group interaction, peer support, and early academic engagement \u2013 helping students build connections, develop confidence and get the support they need to persist and succeed.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/picture>\n\t<\/div>\n\t<\/article>\n\n\n\n\t\n\t

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\n\t\t\t\tChemistry: Strengthening Engagement and Student Success\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/h3>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n
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Introductory chemistry is an important gateway for students pursuing a wide range of academic and professional paths. Faculty reexamined the course experience with a focus on keeping students actively engaged and providing the support and feedback they need to succeed. Changes to classroom activities, learning support, and opportunities for collaborative problem-solving have created a more participatory environment designed to help students stay engaged and make progress through a demanding course sequence.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/picture>\n\t<\/div>\n\t<\/article>\n\n\n\n\t\n\t

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\n\t\t\t\tMathematics & Statistics: Rethinking Learning and Assessment\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/h3>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n
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Faculty in Mathematics & Statistics have explored new approaches to learning and assessment that give students more opportunities to practice, apply concepts, receive feedback, and demonstrate their understanding. This shifts the emphasis from simply completing coursework to building mastery\u2014creating a learning experience that is more active, supportive, and responsive to student progress.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/picture>\n\t<\/div>\n\t<\/article>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n

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The changes faculty have made are translating into meaningful improvements in the student experience. Across the suite of participating courses, faculty are seeing stronger engagement and persistence, including reductions in course withdrawals, and improvements in measures of student belonging and success.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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A Shared Focus on the Student Experience<\/h1>\n
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Across the large courses participating in this initiative, faculty have focused on four areas that can make a significant difference in the student experience:<\/p>\n