Maintaining Academic Rigor and Standards Online

Historic HumpDay

Maintaining Academic Rigor and Standards Online

The task of the modern educator is not to cut down jungles, but to irrigate deserts. – C. S. Lewis

Historically, universities have regulated themselves outside meeting criteria for their accreditation. No real standards have been published concerning faculty performance due to academic freedom and instructor autonomy. So, no standards are passed along to new faculty other than the requirements of the particular hiring university. This is especially true for online adjuncts. As long as syllabi are posted prior to the class start date, student emails and requests are handled within 48 hours, and scoring of assignments is completed within 2 weeks of the due date, it seems very little else matters other than End-Of-Course Student Surveys. 

So, what is an adjunct to do? How can we determine if our courses are well-designed, follow adult learning theory, and provide adequate rigor?

In reviewing this infographic created by LeanForward.com, developing effective eLearning requires over 200 man hours of expertise in project management, computer-based instructional design, multimedia design, instructional technology, and quality assurance. 

This is for corporate programs. What about online university courses? Yes, we have overloaded IT departments and swamped department chairs we can turn to for help, but as online adjunct instructors, we certainly do not have access to these exceptional resources. It falls to us to do most of these jobs ourselves.

So, in creating and maintaining our courses, I encourage you to follow the success tips offered by Mary Clement in her historically-grounded November article on Faculty Focus entitled Six Things That Make College Teachers Successful. She encourages us all (in our spare time) to:

1. Study the knowledge base of teaching and learning.
2. Accept all who enter the classroom door.
3. Plan for instructional management.
4. Teach with a variety of strategies.
5. Use assessment to inform students of their achievement.
6. Keep the passion.

Do your institutions provide you with additional standards and help in creating and maintaining your online courses? I would love to hear about them!

Please add your voice to our January survey for online and blended-learning adjuncts, and join me tomorrow for Theoretical Thursday!

See you then,

Melynda Conner

@Melynda_Conner

#TCBHigherEd

Reference:

Clement, M. (2014). Six things that make college teachers successful. Faculty Focus. Retrieved from http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/faculty-development/six-things-make-college-teachers-successful/