District Online Evaluation 2015

Quality Online Courses

Quality Online EducationBegins With

Jim Marteney

Distance Education Trainer

Professor EmeritusCommunication Studies

Why Offer Online Courses?

Students Want the classes

Students Need the classes

Students Tell Us

Being busy parent and working full time will not allow me to take traditional classes. I take online classes because of the flexibility and convenience

it provides. — Greta M.Occasionally I travel for work and this is one of those semesters where I'll be gone a week

here and a couple of weeks there. This makes it convenient to get the credit I need.

— Laura O.

I take classes online because I am a breast feeding mom and this is the best way I can care for my daughter and still progress with

my education. — Alejandra H.


I wanted to take this class online because having this option gives me some opportunities I would never of had. One would be to actually graduate. The other

opportunity is that I will be able to participate way more online than face to face. Since I will be

participating more, I will definitely be getting more out of this class than I would have in an

"on ground" class. —- Christina C.

Students Tell Us


Many faculty want teach online

Enjoy the teaching Enjoy the freedom


Online Courses Need to Be of High Quality

Success rates of online courses are generally not as good as face-to-face courses

Often thought of as second rate


“that is the direction education is going”


Is success rate of online courses inherent to online courses or because we have created poor, boring, non-engaging online courses?And let them continue to be taught?


Instead, we need to and can create quality online learning experiences.

Department Chairs In Charge of

Which Online Classes OfferedWho Teaches Which ClassEvaluates the Quality of the Course

Department chairs are not trained in evaluating online

courses

It can be frustrating

Department Chairs In Charge of

Until Today

How Do I Judge the Quality of an Online Course?

How Do I Judge the Quality of an Online Course? Navigation Clear? Expectations Clear? Assessments Aligned with Objectives? Assessments Measure Student Learning? Class Have Variety of Current Materials? Opportunities for Student Participation? Are Learning Materials Accessible? Faculty Actively Participates?

Coaching your instructors towards creating and facilitating a great online learning experience.

Department Chairs Challenge

Your Task

Does the Instructor Make the Course Navigation Clear?

Clear instructions for student to get startedClear instructions on course structure

Does the Student Know What is Expected to Succeed?Are student expectations in class clearly stated?

Expectations for: Participation Discussions Assignments

Does the Student Know What is Expected to Succeed?

Does the Student Know What is Expected to Succeed?

Do Assessments Align With Course Goals and Objectives?

Are learning objectives described in the course?

Are objectives described in the course measurable?

Do the Assessments Really Measure Student Learning?

Course Grading Policy Clearly Stated?

Do Assessments measure the stated goals?

Are there numerous and a variety of assessments?

Are the assessment expectations clearly stated?


Heidi Andrade

“A document that articulates the

expectations for an assignment by listing the criteria, or what counts, and describing levels of quality from excellent to

poor.”


Rubric


Does the Class Have a Variety of Current Materials?

Does the instructional material connect to goals?

Is the course material current?

Is there variety in the course material offered?

Does Instructor Provide Student Opportunities for Class Involvement

Are Expectations for student interaction clearly stated?

Does the instructor state his response times?

Are there multiple opportunities for student involvement?

Is there active learning or are students being passively fed material?

A faculty-centered peer review process for online courses

Introducing

Quality Matters

Looks at Course Design

A set of quality standards for online course design

A faculty-centered peer review process for

online courses

General Standard 5 Learning activities provide

opportunities for interaction that support active learning

Active learning involves learners engaging by ‘doing’ something , such as:

discovering

processing

applying concepts

applying information



Active learning entails guiding learners to increasing levels of

responsibility for their own learning



“Types of interaction include:”

learner-instructor learner-content learner-learner



Activities for learner - instructor interaction might include:

assignment or project submitted for instructor feedback

synchronous or asynchronous discussions

frequently asked questions -FAQ moderated by the instructor

Live Chats



Activities for learner - learner interaction might include:

synchronous or asynchronous discussions

group projects

peer review creating or evaluating



Activities for learner - content interaction might include:

testing multiple times using test pools

lists in discussions

powerpoint or video projects

computer created activities

Levels of Student Engagement

Authentic Engagement

Student will persist even when task is difficult

High AttentionHigh Commitment


Strategic Compliance

Student will persist to obtain extrinsic rewards, like grades

High AttentionLow Commitment


Ritual Compliance

Emphasis is to meet minimum requirements

Low AttentionLow Commitment


Retreatism

Student is not disruptiveNo AttentionNo Commitment

Student does not participate and learns little


Rebellian

Student is disruptive

Diverted AttentionNo Commitment

Student tries to substitute tasks

Student develops negative attitude towards education

Putting It Back Together

Does Instructor Make the Learning Materials Accessible?

Did You Know?

Disability affects 15-20%

of every country's

population

650 million people

worldwide are considered to

have a disability¹

49.7 million people in the

U.S. age 5 and over are

disabled (19%)

7-10 million

Americans are

colorblind

People who benefit from an accessible Online Course:

Blind people who use screen readers

People who cannot hear an audio file (or the audio portion of a video file)

People with seizure disorders whose seizures can be triggered by certain flashing or blinking page elements

People with colorblindness

People with learning disabilities who need to have the text read to them by a screen reader while they read it themselves, in order to be able to understand what's on the page


Pictures – these get alt tags

Videos – these get captions

Audio – these files (such as Podcasts) get transcripts.

Documents & text – use proper headers and label those tables

Links, put the hyperlink on words such as "take quiz" instead of the generic "click here."

Color – don't use color alone to convey information, (Ex: On a test, don't say "Click on the red light for stop and the green light for go." All the choices will look like the same color.)


508 involves:

Don't worry about 'explaining' the visual gag in a silly image.

You're helping a blind or visually-impaired user understand what the picture is all about.

Does Instructor Make Learning Materials Accessible?

Alt. Description Rating

A woman sitting at a desk Poor

A woman sitting at a deskand writing with a pencil Getting There

A woman is at a desk with alarge calculator. She’s writingnote with a humongous pencil that a giant would use.

Yes!

What is Effective Faculty Participation?

“I have disliked online classes in which the instructor is not engaged, who do not timely grade/post grades for assignment, or do not respond to student questions. Classes lead by

Instructors who post and open every test and assignment on the first day

of an online class, with an Announcement that says, "Get it all done by the end of the Semester" (and never check in again with the

students until the end) have not been enjoyable.

Fortunately, those classes have been few and far between, but the memory

lingers.” — Shelli S.


California Education Code:Title 5, Section 55204


According to the California Education Code:Title 5, Section 55204

In addition to the requirements of section 55002 and any locally established requirements applicable to all courses, district governing boards shall ensure that:

Any portion of a course conducted through distance education includes regular effective contact between instructor and students, through group or individual meetings, orientation and review sessions, supplemental seminar or study sessions, field trips, library workshops, telephone contact, correspondence, voice mail, e-mail, or other activities. Regular effective contact is an academic and professional matter pursuant to sections 53200 et seq.

Any portion of a course provided through distance education is conducted consistent with guidelines issued by the Chancellor pursuant to section 409 of the Procedures and Standing Orders of the Board of Governors.


Well that’s Easy

Faculty-Initiated Interactions

Begin class with instructor-guided introductions.

Design daily or weekly assignments and projects that promote collaboration among students.

Pose questions in the discussions which encourage critical thinking skills and promote interaction among all course participants.

Participate regularly in discussion activities with students and ensure that discussions remain on topic.

Monitor the activity meter to ensure that students participate fully.

Create a specific forum for questions regarding course assignments.

Ask students for feedback about the course on a regular basis and revise content as needed.

Include means for varied types of interaction in the course design


Frequent & Timely Interactions

Establish guidelines for frequency of contact

Declare response time for student questions and assignment feedback

Maintain an active presence

Give frequent and substantive feedback throughout the course.


Clear Expectations for Interactions

Specify course policy in the syllabus regarding frequency and timeliness of all contact initiated by the instructor.

Explain course policy regarding student-initiated contact (where to post questions, assignments, etc.) in the syllabus.

Clarify important dates, such as assignment and assessment deadlines, not only in the beginning but also throughout the course


Tools for Regular Effective Contact

Course Announcements (e.g., videos, weekly summary, weekly review)Personalized FeedbackDiscussion Boards (e.g., question and answer forums, VoiceThread)Videoconferencing (e.g., Skype, CCC Confer)Collaborative Projects (e.g., group blogs, group discussions, wikis)Instructor-Created ModulesLectures (e.g., recorded, streaming, slides with audio narration)PodcastsWebinarsScreencastsVirtual Office HoursEmailPrivate MessagingChat


Don't Panic, please. This looks more complicated that it really is. Just don't write your course and abandon your

students. Some instructors have actually done this. Created a course and made it

so automated that they don't have to check in 'til the semester is over. As you

can guess, the students felt totally alone.

Create a course you enjoy and then teach it. It is actually enjoyable and very fulfilling.


Thank you

Now Go Forth and Coach