Please note: Many on-campus courses incorporate web materials to augment "traditional" methods of instruction. Such courses do not fall into the purview of the guidelines listed below.
While design elements and media elements vary within individual courses, web courses offered through Continuing Education have two basic formats: semester-based web courses ("paced") and guided independent study ("open"). Unlike synchronous instruction in which learners and instructor are connected in real time, these web courses utilize asynchronous instruction in which students determine (within parameters) their instructional time frame and when they gather learning materials. Both semester-based and guided independent study web courses are designed and delivered using WebCT as a courseware environment. Web courses will be conducted almost exclusively online, although print and other ancillary materials will be incorporated as appropriate.
Each web course administered through Continuing Education will be expected to meet the academic standards of the sponsoring department. No course will be offered and no payment will be made until the faculty member authoring the course, the academic department head, and the academic dean of the college have indicated in writing that the course meets the academic standards of the sponsoring department and college.
The initiative for developing a course or program for distance delivery may come from several directions:
In making a determination whether or not to develop a specific course or program, critical considerations will be the need and the market. Key questions that need to be addressed are: "What is the potential audience for the web course or program?" and "Why would students choose to take the course or program at a distance?" In general, courses that meet general education requirements, certification requirements, or courses that can be applied to one or more majors tend to have more appeal than electives.
After a need has been identified and the market evaluated, communication will take place with the appropriate academic department head to establish the willingness of the academic department to sponsor the needed course and to identify a faculty member who is qualified, willing, and able to develop the course.
A meeting will be arranged with the faculty member who has agreed to explore the possibility of developing the course and the instructional developer. At this time factors such as content, format, time frame, and methodology will be discussed. If the faculty member and the instructional developer agree to proceed with the project, a Course Approval form will be completed at this time.
Faculty members teaching web-based guided independent study courses agree to maintain and provide instruction for a course for at least three years unless they leave the university. In the event the primary instructor leaves the university, or is unable to correct lessons for any reason, the academic department agrees to identify another faculty member to allow students the opportunity to complete the course. Continuing Education should be notified of any changes in teaching assignments as soon as they are known. In the event that an instructor leaves the University or chooses not to correct the lessons, Continuing Education reserves the right to continue using the course materials and to pursue another instructor to correct the lessons.
Students completing web courses will be given the opportunity to complete course evaluations. Results from the evaluations will be tabulated and summarized by Continuing Education and reported to the instructor and the appropriate academic department head.
All web courses will be subject to the following guidelines concerning format and content.
Faculty members are responsible for developing the content of the courses, reviewing course content during development of the course and facilitating instruction.
Continuing Education Credit Programs assumes the responsibility of supporting the technical elements of course design and delivery. Instructional support will be provided in the following areas:
Continuing Education Credit Programs will be responsible for promotion and advertising, the administration and maintenance of course/student records, registration and fee collection, and payment of faculty members.
Continuing Education reserves the right to cancel courses that do not get sufficient enrollments. Instructors who wish to teach semester-based courses with insufficient enrollments will be paid 65% of the tuition collected not to exceed the regular pay rates.