establishing quality standards for faculty development in teaching online courses
DESCRIPTION
The University of Dubuque (UD) completed its second year of offering online courses to undergraduate students. In this time, UD has learned several valuable lessons in the delivery of quality online courses that include faculty development, support services, quality assurance checks, and 360-assessment. This presentation addresses several of these lessons.TRANSCRIPT
ESTABLISHING QUALITY STANDARDS FOR FACULTY DEVELOPMENT IN TEACHING ONLINE COURSES: LESSONS FROM THE TRENCHES
Gail HodgeAssociate Dean for Academic Affairs
Director of On-line Programming
Jonathan Helmke
Faculty Librarian
WHO WE ARE
University of DubuqueSmall, private, Christian college
1400 undergraduate 123 graduates (MBA and MAC) 136 Seminary
Mission drivenBegan offering undergraduate online
courses in Fall 2007
GOALS OF ONLINE PROGRAM
Accessibility: Provide Students with alternative ways to earn course credits (avoid institutional time conflicts)
Vocation Preparation: Build upon career skills for working in online environments
Revenue Generating: Provide course opportunities to non-traditional students and non-degree seeking students who are new to the University
Presented to Board of Trustees
The goal for online education is
to provide mission-driven,
competitively marketed,
income generating, and clearly
branded undergraduate and
graduate courses, as well as
selected graduate degree
programs, to enhance and
expand educational
opportunities.
Written by Online Advisory Committee
STANDARDS NEED TO REFLECT OUR MISSION: BRANDING What are we best known for? Incorporate these same attributes into the online product
Personal attention Two voice contacts
Learner-centered pedagogy Assignments that help students explore and discover
various concepts/theories (engage in active learning) Students interact with peers, instructors, and others
Serve first-generation students Diverse learning styles Teach to different senses: Text, graphics, audio,
interactive discussions Academically under-prepared when entering college
FRAMEWORK
FRAMEWORK FOR TODAY‘S PRESENTATION
Sloan-C Pillars
Lessons Learned integrated w/ Sloan-C Pillars Gap analysis 360 Assessment Recommendations for next steps
Learning Effectiveness
Cost Effectiveness
Access Faculty Satisfaction
Student Satisfaction
1: IDENTIFY CHAMPIONS – EVEN IF IT MEANS BUYING THEIR AFFECTION
Recruitment of online Faculty Offer course developmental dollars on top of
regular teaching compensation to encourage faculty to come out of the woodwork – our pioneers.
Open Learning Management System (LMS) to face-to-face (F2F) classes Builds faculty skills in authoring content and
knowledge of using LMS Exposes students to LMS
Sloan-C Pillar: Faculty Satisfaction and Cost Effectiveness
2: THE GREAT DIVIDE: DIGITAL IMMIGRANTS VERSUS DIGITAL NATIVES
Faculty nervous about students being ahead of them technologically Unsure if they can field/trouble-shoot technical
questions Digital natives catch-on to the LMS fairly quickly
No surprise as Digital Natives are the same audience who use social networking sites, like FacebookTM
Digital Natives are also the drivers, pushing faculty into adopting the LMS
Techno-phobia reinforces need for strong training program for faculty Beginning, middle, and end of academic year LMS Support Group meetings throughout year (MUG)
Sloan-C Pillars: Cost Effectiveness, Faculty Satisfaction and Student Satisfaction
AFTER YEAR 1
We began developing standards for Faculty Development Established set training requirements Instituted Peer and Self Review for assessment Incorporated course and student support
standards/requirements Common LMS interface
“Wall” consistency First block of content above the fold line
Welcome video to introduce students to course (makes instructor a “real” person)
Two voice contacts with each student All content needed to be developed prior to
start of class
FACULTY TRAINING ON LMS
Online Faculty: Mandatory 9 hours of training 1 hour – Quality standards overview/update 6 hours of LMS training, from intro to advanced
applications 2 hours of resource training (e.g. MediaSite, Skype)
LMS User Group Meets twice a semester Members discuss how-to’s/issues they have with
LMS F2F Faculty: Optional 2 – 6 hours of training
August and May (before and after academic year) 2 hours – introductory 2 -4 hours – advanced applications
TR
AIN
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SC
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FO
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NLIN
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INS
TR
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Offered Between SemestersWeek 1
1 hour of QA tips, morning (repeated in Spring for past instructors)2 hours of Introduction to LMS, afternoon
Week 3, morning2 hours of Intermediate LMS
Week 3, afternoon2 hours of Advanced LMS
Week 5, morning1 hours of training on instructional design tools (MediaSite and Skype)
Week 5, afternoon1 hours of training on library resources (eReserve)
3: PROOF IS IN THE PUDDING: INSIST ON ADHERING TO MILESTONES IN THE COURSE DEVELOPMENT SCHEDULE!
Courses needs to be developed and QA’d (reviewed) before they go public Adherence to standards
Seems like a no-brainer; but was difficult to enforce Some faculty not confident in building whole
course without testing initial modules Procrastination
Some faculty approached course development like their f2f class -- prepped day before, or they think they can wing it
SUGGESTION: Consider developing the online course for delivery in a F2F class before it is offered online
Sloan-C Pillar: Learning Effectiveness; Access
4: BE PREPARED TO THROW-OUT THOSE OLD NOTIONS ABOUT STUDENT LEARNING
Behaviorist vs Constructivist Move from “Sage on the Stage” to “Guide on
the Side” Student-centered learning is putting students in
charge of their learning Role of instructor is to provide resources
Develop content that engages studentsProvide strong resources (e.g. library)
Take advantage of Web 2.0 and interactive media Measure/assess student engagement
Sloan-C Pillar: Learning Effectiveness
ONLINE TEACHING
What direction is communication taking place in your online course?
Instructor StudentStudent InstructorStudent Student
Learning Effectiveness
Cost Effectiveness
Access Faculty Satisfaction
Student Satisfaction
#3 Proof is in the Pudding: Insist on Adhering to Milestones in the Course Development Schedule!
#4 Throwing out old notion about student learning
#2 Training: Digital Immigrants versus Digital Natives
#1 Identify Champions – Even if It Means Buying Their Affection
#2 Training: Digital Immigrants versus Digital Natives
#3 Adhering to Milestones
#1 Identify Champions – Even if It Means Buying Their Affection
#2 Training: Digital Immigrants versus Digital Natives
#2 Training: Digital Immigrants versus Digital Natives
#4 Throwing out old notion about student learning
Applicable Sloan C- Pillars
GAP ANALYSIS
THE FIRST GAP
Faculty training has been primarily focused on learning the LMS “tool”
Shift to assisting faculty on how to develop sound instructional design activities that promote student learning in the online environment that is motivating, engaging, and meaningful.
EXAMPLE – FORUM DISCUSSION Reading: pp. 451-459. Sometimes
the most difficult part of an essay, when writing about an art work or an artist, is to describe it without using the word "masterpiece" or the idea of "the insane".
So, assuming that Starry Night on p. 457 is NOT a masterpiece and is NOT by an insane artist, what is going on in the picture? The internet and resources available in our Library might help you with some alternative ideas, though the picture is discussed in your book.
About 400 words, please.
Starry Night by Van Gogh
Challenge faculty to think of ways to improve upon
this activity
What kind of feedback might the student expect
after answering this question?
ASSESSMENT SHOULD CONNECT TO GOALS
Reminder of our Goals: Accessibility: Provide Students with Alternative
Ways to Enroll in classes (in order to avoid institutional conflicts with other activities/courses)
Vocation Preparation: Building upon career skills for working in online environments
Revenue: Increase new enrollment by attracting new markets
WHAT’S MISSING …
Sloan-C Pillars: Faculty and Student Satisfaction
THE SECOND GAP
What’s missing from our goals are the things we really want to know:
Have student learning outcomes (SLOs) been met, as much if not better, in the online environment as F2F classes? How can we get at direct assessment?
Are students more or less satisfied with taking online courses than taking the F2F courses? How do students measure course satisfaction? Are we asking the right questions of students? Are students answering the questions we are asking
or are they answering the questions we aren’t asking?
Sloan-C Pillars: Learning Effectiveness and Student Satisfaction
ASSESSMENT360 Peer, Self, and Student
360 ASSESSMENT
Peer review (COIL) Boiled down to 10 questions from 50
Self review Used same 10 questions from Peer Review
Student evaluations Separate instrument
Open-ended question on satisfactionQuantitative items on accessibility
Open forum discussion of all Online Faculty Provide lunch Discuss what went well; what didn’t work;
recommended changes for next time
COIL (PEER-SELF QUESTIONS)
1. Presents course content in a manner that hierarchically structures the sequence of information
2. Provides activities that actively engage students in interactions with web-based course content.
3. Provides activities that can engage students in understanding and mastering different learning strategies.
4. Provides clear and adequate guidance on how to navigate the course, engage in course work, and turn in assignments.
5. Clearly delineates institutional policy on cheating and plagiarism at the start of course.
6. Provides rules/expectations for active participation in all online activities.
7. Personalizes communication by/with student-student and student-instructor (e.g., feedback on assignments, replies to discussion forum postings)
8. Provides students with timely, continuous, frequent support, and feedback. (e.g., feedback on assignments came within 1 week after deadline. Feedback was instructional/remedial)
9. Provide opportunities for student to question instructor to insure accuracy of understanding. (e.g., a chat room or discussion forum that encourages students to post questions. Syllabus and site provide instructor contact information and times of availability)
10. Conducts a teleconference (or other “voice” contact) at least twice with each student during the course.
RESULTS OF 360 ASSESSMENT
Hypothesis 1: Do instructors rate themselves similarly to their peers?
T-test run Findings: Instructors tended to rate
themselves lower than their peers 14 cases 12 were lower than peer reviews 2 were higher then peer reviews
1 was within 1 STD below mean1 was outside 2 STD below mean
Second Peer Review reinforced first Peer Reviewers observation
T-TEST
Difference
Mean 0.08Standard Error 0.035019618Median 0.08Mode 0.2Standard Deviation 0.131031411Sample Variance 0.017169231Kurtosis -0.001776348Skewness -0.788888516Range 0.42Minimum -0.2Maximum 0.22Sum 1.12Count 14Largest(1) 0.22Smallest(1) -0.2Confidence Level(95.0%) 0.075655284
1 instructor fell below 2 STD of mean *
*
STUDENT EVALUATION OF ONLINE EXPERIENCE
Open-ended Qualitative Questions Was this class intellectually stimulating? Yes/No, Did this class stretch your thinking? Yes/No
1. Please write a few statements supporting your answer as to why or why not you felt the class was intellectually stimulating, and or stretched your thinking.
2. What aspects of this class contributed most to your learning?
3. What aspects of this class detracted from your learning?
4. What suggestions do you have for improving the class?
STUDENT EVALUATIONS … Quantitative Questions
Scale of 1 – 5 (strongly disagree – strongly agree)1. The online course was more challenging than a similar
face-to-face course.2. I think I learned more by taking this course online than
by taking it face-to-face.3. I felt “more connected” to my online instructors than to
my face-to-face instructor(s).4. Based on my experience with this online course, I
would take another online course.5. Knowing what I know now, I would NOT take this course
ONLINE.6. I interacted more with the other students in this online
course then I did in my face-to-face classes.7. I felt isolated in this online course.
EXAMINING THE OUTLIER TO STUDENT FEEDBACK
No real indication of problems How much weight do we assign student
evaluations? What aspects of a course are most important
to undergraduate students? Time demands Subject Matter Interest Rigor of assignments Developing a connection to the professor
Build in next student evaluation instrument question items that get to the heart of these attributes
WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?
WHAT DID WE LEARN?
Peer evaluation tends to be higher than instructor-self evaluation
Student evaluations had no correlation to peer or instructor evaluation
Student evaluations clustered around the mean
We need to improve our student course evaluation instrument to get feedback on what it is that students are really evaluating.
We need to implement direct assessment of student learning outcomes
NEXT STEPS
Re-write goals to include quality assurance of student learning outcomes, as well as faculty and student satisfaction
Adopt standards for faculty development Adopt assessment strategies for faculty
development. Are we asking the right questions that will help
faculty in their course development and delivery?
Are we providing adequate support for faculty development?
RECOMMENDED STANDARDS FOR FACULTY DEVELOPMENT
Require training on functions of LMS Require participation in faculty development
workshops for developing strong pedagogically student-centered activities that match-up with student learning outcomes
Provide professional development funds so faculty can attend online education conferences/workshops, as well as use as incentives for developing online courses
Include online teaching as a hallmark in faculty promotion and tenure guidelines
Standardize on an assessment tool that provides meaningful feedback to faculty and students that will help shape and improve online course delivery