How to Articulate Handbook: The Principles of Articulation

When considering how to articulate a course for transfer credit, evaluators are faced with numerous decision points. Fortunately, they can turn to a number of principles to guide them as they try to ensure that courses are articulated fairly and consistently. These can be divided into Foundational Principles, Operating Principles, and Provisional Principles.

Foundational Principles

Foundational principles are those which lie at the core of decisions about all articulation of courses and programs.

Equivalence: Equivalent means "equal in value, amount, importance; corresponding; having the same meaning or result."4 A course submitted for articulation will likely never be identical to the corresponding course at the receiving institution. The assessment of equivalence involves identifying the degree to which it matches in content or outcomes. Discipline and program contexts will dictate the relative importance of the similarity.

In Lieu: This refers to the act of awarding transfer credit implies the acceptance of a course in place of a course offered at the receiving institution, or in place of an institutional or program requirement. Together with the principle of equivalence, this underscores that the course to be transferred does not have to be identical to the course for which transfer credit is granted, but that the degree of match or similarity should ensure that students will have the necessary knowledge and background to be successful in more advanced courses.

Applicability: It is appropriate to award transfer credit for courses that can be used to fulfill the specific or general requirements of a credential or program at the receiving institution.

Fairness: Provisos and restrictions (such as adding a specific grade requirement) should not be placed on equivalent courses unless those same restrictions apply at the institution awarding the transfer credit, or there are clear and defensible reasons for doing so.

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Situational Principles

Situational principles provide useful guidance but are not universally applicable. While they form part of the decision-making toolkit for articulation, situations and contexts create provisos for their application.

Reciprocity: If institution A recognizes institution B's course as equivalent to a course at A, then B should in turn recognize A's course as equivalent. However, reciprocity is not possible in all cases. For example, where there are differences in the level at which the course is taught, the prerequisites, the rigour of the curriculum, or the topics covered, the institution offering the less rigorous course may be willing to award transfer credit to the more rigorous course. However, the institution offering the more rigorous course will be understandably reluctant to award credit for the less rigorous course. Therefore, while best practice entails reciprocity, there are many situations where this is not possible.

Triangulation: If course A is equivalent to course C, and course B is equivalent to course C, is A equivalent to B? While in many cases institutions can rely on such an informal approach to equivalence, a detailed examination of outlines for courses A and B can reveal significant differences. Where a large volume of transfers must be established (e.g. by a new receiving institution), and articulation agreements already exist for many of the courses, triangulation can be an efficient method of avoiding unnecessarily lengthy assessments of equivalence.

Pedagogy: Under some circumstances it is appropriate to consider how a course is taught. Factors such as cultural sensitivity, or opportunities for prac-ticing skills, may be integral to content mastery. See Pedagogy in Assessing an Articulation Request for more on this.

Delivery: BCCAT has taken the position that how a course is delivered is normally immaterial to its articulation, since teaching a course in a distance delivery format (as opposed to face-to-face) should not affect its equivalence. However, there may be occasions where the content is intrinsically linked to delivery, and an alternative mode impacts on equivalence. It may also be relevant whether a course is offered only online, or if an online course is a version of a course normally delivered in a traditional classroom.

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Operational Principles

Operational Principles refer to practices and attitudes that will facilitate articulation.

Comparability: Since it should be possible to compare courses, the elements of the course must be clearly outlined and should be interpretable by faculty in the same or a related field. The best assurance of comparability is a comprehensive course outline that both contains sufficient information to allow for the assessment of equivalence, and conforms broadly or specifically to the norms of course description in BC.

Transparency: Assessment practices should be open to scrutiny. Any individual who assigns transfer credit based on the assessment of a course should be prepared to explain the reasons for the decision, including any influencing factors.

Efficiency: Business processes that are overly time-consuming or complex lessen the likelihood that articulations will be processed in a timely manner. BCCAT has developed efficient online processes for articulation, and can assist any institution wishing to streamline its internal work flow.

Parity of Esteem: Every institution sends and receives students, and students request transfer credit for the courses they have taken. Faculty should treat courses from other institutions as they would like their own courses to be treated. In this context, John Dennison, Professor Emeritus of Higher Education, UBC, and former Council Co-Chair, refers to a "parity of esteem"5 among institutions as "the ideal goal in a diverse galaxy of post-secondary institutions." Promoting parity involves communicating diplomatically, offering constructive suggestions, avoiding dictating terms, and providing justification for an award of "no credit."

The "Golden Guideline" of Articulation:
Treat all courses as you would want your own to be treated.

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