Creation and Implementation of Policies
Main Policies, like Privacy and Payment, Refund, etc. are already in place and don't change for online courses. Faculty has established their set of policies, which are implemented in the online policies, but are monitored by the individual course teachers. F.e. delivery of homework at a certain date can only be monitored by the teacher that assigned the homework. If the homework is not delivered by that date, the teacher will contact the student and discuss the problem.
Policies are set at both the corporate and course level. Of course, there are too many policies to cover them all; one example is when grades need to be posted. Corporate policy is that they need to be posted no later than 72 hours after the unit closes. However the course instructor is free to make any deadline that he or she wishes with in that 72 hour period.
Since my institution is just now developing online courses, the faculty is greatly involved in developing the policies and procedures for our new online courses this spring.
We are developing our first online program so all hands are on deck to develop the policies
The University Academic Program Committee is ultimately responsible for the creation of all University academic policies. Online policies are often drafted by the online division and then discussed in committees such as the Campus Registrars and the Directors of Education. The Online Registrar is currently editing final academic policy language for the next edition of the catalog as approved by the various subcommittees.
Mark York
I was glad to hear that you are developing online policies with input from "all hands." Many policies have implications for different departments so it is essential to include representatives from across the University or college to ensure not only universal buy-in and ownership but also compliance. For example, many policies have implications for Title IV funding, so it is essential for Student Finance to be involved in what may appear to be "academic" policies. Having Admissions present is important as well because they set expectations for students.
Mark York
Most of our policies are in place for on the ground courses and will remain constant. We have had to adjust our grading percentages a little for online to encourage participation. Stuff like tuition, FA, and other admin policies do not change.
These are a team responsibility including all administration, financial aid, and faculty. I think we would say "student services" if we had a single department.
-Chris
We do not have an online program, yet.
It appears that there would be additional policies to cover specifics of online courses such as when homework is due in, participation requirements, etc. but the existing policies remain unchanged.
We have existing online classes. Policies are created by the Online Program Committee and the Administrators. The online instructor however, have academic freedom in implementing their own policies re: deadlines, extra credits, assignments, exams and forum discussions.
Aime, thanks for sharing how a school can balance overall policies and allow instructors to maintain academic integrity.
We do not as yet offer online courses, but I can see that some of our General Education courses could possibly be adapted to online. I believe the students would really be enthusiastic if we could do so. I would hope that the course instructors would be very involved in developing their own particular courses. I know I would "jump" on the chance to help develop online English Composition classes.
Our corporate office decides those things, and we have On-Campus Liaisons who then pass them on to the students. The liaison on my campus also created checklists that she makes the students go over and sign, as she is discussing what is expected of them. This is after she takes them through an orientation of how to work in eCollege. I have the priviledge of being her assistant with these students.
My institution is just start to developing a online course, we have the faculty and the academic director involved in developing the policies and procedures for the new online course.
In our organization, we are currently looking at developing an online program so, we are using a lot of information that is already in place such as refund policies, attendance policies, grade requirements, and graduation requirements. In other circumstances such as submission of assignments, logged hours on line, and posting requirements, we have investigated what a lot of other schools are doing and look to implement the best policies based upon what our student population may require.
Hi,Chris,
Seeing what works elsewhere is a good idea. Customizing policies to your program and student needs and remaining flexible helps.
The institution that I currently teach at does not offer on line courses. But I am hopeful and interested in going this route someday.
Our program currently exists as an in-house only and all policies regarding grade postings, attendance & FA paperwork should stay the same. After completing this course I hope that all program supervisors will help in the online policies creation as we will be the one responsible for implementation.
What have all of you found to be the most difficult policies to impliment and/or enforce?
Korin, good luck on your journey to online. I agree with tour earlier post that establishing a helpful online personality is key.
I am in the early process of starting online classes here. We are primarily an adult education school and classroom training would be very beneficial to the adult that is trying to juggle his or her time between work and school. I do not see any major hurdles between what we do now and applying it online.
I do or will have plenty of support from all areas of our school when I decide to go forward.
Some policies are company-wide. We do have policies that are set forth by the entire education dept for all schools and then are modified by myself for online. The online team would implement the policies (which includes instructors).
