Distance Learning Standards

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Distance Learning Standards
Quality Matters!
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Quality In Your Online Programs

• Ann Beheler Executive Director and Dean
  Engineering and Emerging Technologies Collin
  County Community College District
• Jim Picquet, Ph.D. Vice President, Instruction
  Lecroy Center for Telecommunications Dallas
  County Community College District
• Kevin Eason, Ph.D. Assistant Director of
  Distance Learning Tarrant County College
  District

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Session Outline

• Overview of Colleges
• Rationale for Quality Standards
• Standards at
• Collin County Community College District
• Dallas County Community College District
• Tarrant County College District
• Discussion and Questions

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Collin County Community College District

• Multi-campus district with 4 campuses plus
  satellites in the greater Collin County area
• Serves 20,000 credit students per semester
• Serves 3000 credit students per semester through
  online
• Distance classes are taught by faculty who, in
  general, also teach in the classroom

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Dallas County Community College District

• Multi-college district with 7 colleges and the
  Dallas TeleCollege serving greater Dallas
• Serves 60,000 credit students per semester
• Serves 18,000 distance learning students per
  semester
• Distance classes are taught by faculty who, in
  general, also teach in the classroom

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Tarrant County College District

• Multi-campus district with four campuses in the
  greater Fort Worth area and a fifth campus being
  built
• Administrative offices in downtown Fort Worth
• Serves 35,000 credit students
• More than 25,000 distance learning enrollments
  each year.
• Distance Learning is a district function

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Rationale for Standards

• Its about supporting the students!
• Exponential Growth in Distance Learning
• SACS and accrediting agency requirements
• Mission and Institutional Goals
• Administrator Support and Faculty Accountability
• To ensure quality teaching and learning
• Challenges vary by college

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CCCCD Online Advisory Board

• We celebrate the early adopters who created the
  first online courses many years ago
• About three years ago, Faculty Online Group was
  created to review online courses before release
• Online Advisory Board created Fall 2005
• Dean approves development
• Peer review board composed of 1 representative
  from each division
• Draft process adopted and evolving
• Collaborative institutional sense of quality is
  developing
• Will review several best practices for quality
  this spring
• OAB recommends and/or requires changes before
  course release
• Plan to review all existing courses on a
  three-year window, pending appropriate staff

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Teaching and Learning Center

• Provides workshops
• Provides technical development
• One to one
• Production

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Dallas County Community College
DistrictNavigation To Standards

• 1997 Introduction of Bb as Platform
• 1998 Some Courses Offered-Some ID Support
• 2000 Search For Standards Documentation
• 2001 First Standards Team and Document
• 2003 Standards Revised into Checklists
• 2004 SACS and THECB DL Planning Docs
• 2005 Reformation of Standards Team
• 2005 Review of Quality Matters/Maryland Online
• 2006 Creation of Draft Standards Document

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Dallas County Community College District
Distance Learning Standards Draft Process

• The Quality Matters Rubric consists of 40
  standards assigned different points (3, 2, or 1)
  depending on their relative importance. Courses
  are reviewed by a team of three (3) reviewers.
• Standards and Points 14 of the standards are
  considered essential in a quality online course
  and have the highest point value of three (3). (A
  course must meet all of these standards to meet
  expectations and attain recognition.) The
  remaining 26 standards are assigned 1 or 2
  points.
• Standards assigned three (3) points
  Essential in a quality online course
• Standards assigned two (2) points Very important
  but not essential
• Standards assigned one (1) point Important but
  not essential
• Rating procedure Each reviewer rates each
  standard by deciding whether or not the course
  meets the standard (i.e., either yes the course
  meets the standard, or no it doesnt.) The
  overall team score for each standard is based on
  its points and majority rule. One score per
  standard based on the majority. If a majority of
  the review team rates yes, the course receives
  full score for that standard depending on its
  points. If a majority of the review team rates
  no, the course receives no points for that
  standard. See example below.

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• Dallas County Community College District
• Distance Learning Standards Draft Process

• In this example, the course received 3 points for
  Standard 1 since 2 out of 3 reviewers
• gave it a YES, and received no points for
  Standard 4 since 2 out of 3 gave it a NO.
• For each of the standards, at least 2 out of 3
  reviewers must rate it as a YES.
• Point system The maximum number of possible
  points is 80.
• To meet expectations and attain recognition, the
  course must receive
• 1) A scoring of "3" on all of the essential
  standards (42 pts total.), and
• A total overall score of 68 points.
• Additional information may be found at
• www.QualityMatters.org

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Process for Standards at TCCD

• Wrote TIF Grant for 492,000
• Developed open source LMS
• Developed Minimum Standards of Excellence
• Paid faculty stipends to
• convert classes to new LMS
• implement standards of excellence
• Provided curriculum and LMS training and
  assistance

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Process for Standards at TCCD

• Benchmarks for Online Learning
• Study prepared by the Institute for Higher
  Education Policy
• Sponsored by the NEA and Blackboard
• Benchmarks adopted by TCCDs Chancellors Cabinet
• Benchmarks used as a basis for developing Minimum
  Standards of Excellence for TCCs online courses
• Three Key Standards course design, presentation
  of course content, and focus on interaction
• Peer and instructional designer reviews

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Questions?
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Quality In Your Online Programs

• Ann Beheler abeheler_at_ccccd.edu
• Jim Picquet, Ph.D. jpicquet_at_dcccd.edu
• Kevin Eason, Ph.D. kevin.eason_at_tccd.edu