Bringing all of the quality criteria for online course design and teaching together in one pro-active scorecard has helped us improve all aspects of online course design and facilitation. We will present initial data and reactions from the pilot group of instructor participants in fall 2022.
For online course design, there is a multitude of quality criteria listed in different rubrics and scorecards. But not many of them provide clearly stated criteria for observing good teaching/facilitation. Over the past couple of decades, we have done a good job with teaching instructors how to design effective, engaging online courses. But we stop there. A key issue now is teaching instructors how to be an excellent in the online environment. Many say that good teaching is good teaching regardless of the modality, but the application of good teaching principles looks very different in an online/blended course than an face-to-face course.
Recently, we were approached by a chair of an online program about a peer observation protocol of online instructors because of a change in our institution’s student course evaluation and his frustration with reports from students about lack of engagement and classroom management in their online course. We favor the OLC Scorecards because they are developmental in their intent and language. We have combined OSCQR, QCTIP, CAST’s UDL Guidelines, and the Canvas Course Checklist into one tool which we use proactively in our Online Course Design Institute and Teaching Online With Impact workshops. We parred down the QCTIP scorecard to include a manageable set of observable and measurable criteria that focuses more on teaching online than course design. In this presentation and discussion, we will share our story, the tools and protocols, and discuss the ins and outs of engaging faculty in these activities.
As a result of attending this session, participants will:
-
Engage is small group discussion on the benefits and challenges of engaging faculty in teaching observations and course design improvements.
-
Examine the efficacy of the OLC Scorecards for the improvement of practice.
-
Identify possible ways to use the scorecards at their home institution.