<< Chapter < Page Chapter >> Page >

The Quality Scorecard for the Administration of Online Education Programs. The most recent study for quality online education is The Quality Scorecard for the Administration of Online Education Programs developed by Shelton in 2010. A six round Delphi study was undertaken with 43 seasoned administrators of online education programs, with the majority of experts having more than nine years of experience in this field. Through a six month research process, they came to consensus on a list of 70 quality indicators that administrators should examine within their programs to evaluate quality. The original set of 24 benchmarks from the IHEP, Quality on the Line: Benchmarks for Success in Internet-Based Distance Education (2000) were used as a starting point and almost all were determined to still be valid in 2010, with modifications. The 70 quality indicators were categorized into nine categories: (1) Institutional Support, (2) Technology Support, (3) Course Development and Instructional Design, (4) Course Structure, (5) Teaching and Learning, (6) Social and Student Engagement, (7) Faculty Support, (8) Student Support, and (9) Evaluation and Assessment. The study’s expert panel suggested a method for quantifying the program evaluation by allowing up to three points for each indicator within each category (0 points - not observed, 1 point - insufficient, 2 points - moderate use, 3 points - completely meets criteria), depending on the level of existence each quality indicator can be demonstrated by the program administrator. A perfect score would equal 210 points. The study resulted in a quality scorecard for the administration of online education programs that administrators may use to identify areas within the online program that demonstrate excellence or are in need of improvement (see Table 3).

Table 3. Summary of The Quality Scorecard for the Administration of Online Education Programs

Because the Sloan Consortium was a gatekeeper in the research study, they offer the Quality Scorecard on their institutional website so that administrators of online education programs may freely use the scorecard tool to demonstrate program evaluation. In an ancillary handbook (published by the Sloan Consortium), each of the 70 quality indicators are defined with more depth and examples; and best practices are provided to better demonstrate the level of quality that may be reached with each indicator. It is important to note that all 70 of the quality indicators on the scorecard fall within the Sloan Consortium’s original Five Pillars of Quality (Learning Effectiveness; Student Satisfaction; Faculty Satisfaction; Scale; and Access).

Quality framework comparison

The 13 different articles and studies presented in this review of quality evaluation for online education programs have many commonalities among their suggested frameworks. The Institutional Commitment, Support, and Leadership themes were by far, the most cited when determining standards for online education programs. At least 12 of the 13 frameworks examined pointed toward the Institutional Commitment, Support, and Leadership themes as being a primary indicator of quality. Teaching and Learning was the second most cited theme for indicating quality. However, the literature as a whole has focused on the quality of teaching and pedagogy far more than that of program quality. Early in the literature, most authors wrote about overall design of the course and the experience of online teaching since individual courses moved online before complete programs.

Get Jobilize Job Search Mobile App in your pocket Now!

Get it on Google Play Download on the App Store Now




Source:  OpenStax, Ncpea handbook of online instruction and programs in education leadership. OpenStax CNX. Mar 06, 2012 Download for free at http://cnx.org/content/col11375/1.24
Google Play and the Google Play logo are trademarks of Google Inc.

Notification Switch

Would you like to follow the 'Ncpea handbook of online instruction and programs in education leadership' conversation and receive update notifications?

Ask