The growth of technology-mediated distance learning has prompted several organizations to develop principles to ensure quality education. The National Education Association and Blackboard, Inc. selected 24 benchmarks to evaluate distance education programs. These criteria are grouped into 7 categories: (1) Institutional support, (2) Course structure, (3) Teaching and learning, (4) Course development, (5) Student support, (6) Faculty Support, and (7) Evaluation and Assessment.
To assess the quality of the George Washington University's School of Public Health and Health Services' distance education program, faculty and students were surveyed with questions derived from the benchmarks. A total of 36 students (out of 75 eligible) responded to a web based survey. Most students reported satisfaction with interaction with faculty and timeliness of assignment feedback. Over 75 percent reported receiving adequate technical support, and 94 percent rated highly the course objectives and course structure. Faculty were interviewed and expressed concerns regarding course development, interaction with students, and adequate technical support to teach in a distance education format.
Recommendations based on the outcome of this survey and other ongoing evaluation activities with students and faculty (course evaluations, evaluation chats, and faculty debriefings) will be presented. They include the need to tailor technical support and preparation to individual faculty needs, create more innovative assignments to spark student interactions, provide students enough time to master course-specific software programs, individualize feedback to students, and provide faculty with adequate time and personnel to teach online. This survey will be incorporated in other evaluation methods to track progress over time.
See www.gwu.edu/~sphlearnLearning Objectives: N/A
Keywords: Distance Education, Evaluation
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: George Washington University
I have a significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.
Relationship: Employed by GWU