Quality Assurance in Online Education

Concurrent Session 5
Blended Leadership

Brief Abstract

We share our developed quality assurance processes for the development of new online courses, and the review of existing courses, and how we created a process that satisfied key institutional stakeholders including administrators, union leaders, faculty, and staff.

Presenters

Extended Abstract

We are the Champions! Our quest for faculty-led distance ed policy, innovation, and quality assurance. 

The educational landscape has been changing for years now and recent literature tells us that online learning, in various forms, is now a mainstream part of higher education. In tandem with this growth most institutions have adopted quality assurance standards for their online courses and programs. Despite the growing appetite for online learning from both students and institutions, the rapid growth in online technology, advancements in sound pedagogy, and the exigencies of the pandemic have left faculty and administrators scrambling to define and implement quality standards for online courses.    

In this session, Dr.s Jarc and Huizenga share lessons learned from their nearly 2-year experience with the college’s “eLearning Champions” committee. Formed as a joint effort by the provost and faculty union leadership in 2021 the committee is tasked with overseeing distance ed course development, online learning quality assurance for existing courses, setting distance education policy, and facilitating professional learning and development in online education. In this session, we use our experience as a foundation to facilitate discussion about effective structure, processes, documentation, and fostering pedagogical best practices.  Participates will be encouraged to share challenges they’ve overcome, systems they’ve implemented, how to achieve faculty buy-in and create high quality online learning experiences.  Presenters Dr. Steven Huizenga and Dr. James Jarc are co-chairs of the eLearning Champions Committee, and seasoned faculty with an interest in education, technology, and leadership.