Rethinking Course Development: Competing on Quality

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Rethinking Course Development Competing on
Quality

• Larry Gould
• American Association of State Colleges and
  Universities (AASCU), Academic Affairs Winter
  Meeting, February 9, 2008, Tempe, Arizona

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Where in the World is FHSU?
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About Fort Hays State University

• Founding member of the Higher Learning
  Commissions (HLC/NCA) alternative accreditation
  track known as the Academic Quality Improvement
  Program (AQIP)
• Academic Programming
• 52 undergraduate degree programs
• 19 graduate degree programs
• 25 programs completely accessible off-campus
• General Structure
• Three divisions academic, student affairs,
  admin-finance
• Four academic colleges, graduate school, distance
  education delivery unit called the Virtual
  College

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About Fort Hays State University

• Branding Tagline Affordable Success
• Enrollment The Way We Were (Fall, 1998)
• On-campus 4718
• Off-campus 839
• Grand total 5557
• Enrollment The Way We Are (Fall, 2007)
• On-campus 4449
• Off-campus 5375 (2300 in China)
• Grand total 9824

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Distance Education Course Development at Fort
Hays State University

• Historical Context
• The First Wave Courses
• The Second Wave Programs
• The Third Wave Quality Assurance

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Why Facilitate a Third Wave of Distance
Education Course Development?

• A Changing Competitive Landscape Delivery Mode
  Is No Longer a Niche Growth Opportunity
• A Changing Competitive Landscape Diversity of
  Schools, Programs and Approaches
• A Changing Value Proposition Beyond Convenience,
  Flexibility and the Adult Learner
• Enhancing the Value Proposition Positioning and
  Differentiation Strategies

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Refining the FHSU Message to the Consumer
Perceptions of Quality

• Positioning price, geography, faculty, product,
  performance, etc.
• Differentiation affordable, traditional campus,
  responsive, 26 programs, high student
  satisfaction, etc.
• Using Quality Creating Performance Indicators
  and Transitioning to the Age of Brands

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Facilitating Quality Through Policy and Process

• How do we achieve differentiation and brand
  recognition through performance indicators?
• How do we respond to learner feedback to effect
  perceptions of quality?
• The Answer Rethinking and Recasting the Distance
  Education Course Development Process

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The Process of Rethinking the Process

• Results Management Student Evaluations, NSSE,
  Noel-Levitz, etc.
• Virtual College Advisory Committee
• Center for Teaching Excellence and Learning
  Technologies (CTELT)
• Office of Quality Management
• Provosts Council

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Elements and Implications

• Three pathways to course development
• Incorporates national standards of best
  practices (Quality Matters) to ensure creative
  instructional design through rubric based process
  and modeling
• Authorizing of process driven by department,
  college and institutional needs
• Increases efficient use of scarce resources
  (people and time)

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Elements and Implications

• Linked to academic quality improvement work
  completed during Year of the Department
• Faculty-driven, collegial peer review, and
  team-based
• Designed to improve both on- and off-campus
  courses
• Process includes phases and steps that promote
  faculty enhancement and learning

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Elements and Implications

• Recognition that teaching on-line can be
  overwhelming at first and different from F2F
• Intended to bring a diversity of knowledge about
  course development to the institution and promote
  dissemination and archiving of best practices and
  new thinking
• The new process strives to improve FHSUs
  competitive positioning and differentiation
  through enhanced performance indicators
  (perception of quality, retention and student
  satisfaction)

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Elements and Implications

• Second horizon goals
• Build a cadre and community of on-line quality
  champions
• Develop a culture of collective responsibility
  for high-quality course development

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• To the student When you turn your course on,
  does it return the favor?
• Thanks
• Questions?
• Link to full process and other information
• lthttp//www.fhsu.edu/virtualcollegegt