AN INQUIRY INTO THE POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR ONLINE EDUCATION AT ONE U.S. DOCTORAL/RESEARCH-EXTENSIVE UNIVERSITY: A CASE STUDY
Peter A. Bruce
Robert Z. Zheng
University of Utah. USA
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The case study examines the policies and practices for online education at one doctoral/research-extensive university. It uses interview findings from the Chief Information Officer (CIO) as well as key secondary sources to better understand these policies and practices. The context for the study is one of dynamic interest in online education and reduced funding for public higher education nationwide. There were six recurring themes throughout the primary and secondary data. These were: 1) students; 2) technology; 3) teachers; 4) services; 5) resources; and 6) costs. These emergent themes are analyzed using the standards for online programs established by the agencies that accredit all American universities. The participating university was found to be a leader and innovator in the application of online and technology-mediated higher education. The case study methodology is offered as a template for the further study of online higher education. Applications in secondary and transition programs are also noted.
Issues in Online Higher Education
There is currently a lack of evidence-based research to build a well-informed understanding of the critical institutional components and leadership choices that shape the policies and practices for online education at American universities. In 2007, the Commission on Colleges (U.S. Department of Education, 2007) that accredits all U.S. colleges and universities created the components for the document, Best Practices for Electronically Offered Degree and Certificate Programs (Commission on Institutions of Higher Education, 2007). The Commission addressed the need for planning and assessing high standards of quality in U.S. university online programs, and defined the critical areas of concern in U.S. online higher education programs. These consist of: 1) institutional context and commitment, 2) curriculum and instruction, 3) faculty support, 4) student support, and 5) evaluation and assessment. In drawing its conclusion, the Commission called for a reexamination of the online practices of U.S. universities in light of the newly established best practices for quality online higher education programs.
Within an extensive body of research in online education, research on best practices as defined by the Commission on Colleges of the U.S. Department of Education is scarce (Bruce, 2010).This lack of research has increasingly affected program delivery in terms of the quality of the curriculum, pedagogy, and the assessment associated with online education. According to a recent report of more than 2,500 colleges and universities nationwide surveyed (Allen & Seaman, 2008), approximately 3.94 million students were enrolled in at least one online course in fall 2007. The growing number of students needing higher education has also placed increasing pressures on the university community to respond. Statistics indicate that online distance education has grown at all levels. A recent study by Bruce (2010) indicated that almost all higher education institutions described online education as important to their long-term strategic planning. Evidently, the movement of online education has radically redefined higher education in terms of its curricular boundary and student composition. In the meanwhile, it has significantly changed the landscape in higher education with respect to its learning concepts, strategies and application (Dabbagh & Bannan-Ritland, 2005; Zheng, 2009; Zheng & Dahl, 2009). Amidst the rapid growth of online higher education, there is a lack of general knowledge about the existing policies and practices pertaining to online learning in higher education and the reasons behind those policies and practices. Therefore, the study of the existing policies and practices in higher education distance learning is warranted.
SOLUTIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
The case study identified several important areas pertaining to policies and practices related to online education. Table 1 summarizes the characteristics of online learning programs in the participating doctoral/research-extensive university with its policies and practices. These include student services, technology, teachers, services and resources. A comparison between the characteristics of the university online programs and standards for quality set by the Commission on Colleges would enhance our understanding of how a doctoral/research-extensive university performed in compliance with national standards in online education.
| Categories | Characteristics of Online Programs |
| Student services | Institutional commitment to provide students’ support Online academic tracking for students’ progression Admission and retention tracking One of the top wired universities in the country |
| Technology
| An infrastructure for reviewing, purchasing and implementing software and hardware A campus-wide network of tech support that is distributed across centers and individuals on campus Faculty is trusted to make decisions about the equipment and resources for their online instruction |
| Teachers | Dean oversight in programs, not the CIO Faculty members play a part in policy construction Faculty members involved in online teaching go through a formal training program |
| Services | Open content courses and workshops for both teachers and students at the undergraduate and graduate levels Provide collaboration tools and technologies Provide technology assisted curriculum |
| Resources | Technology center establishes and maintains a range of resources Technical and instructional orientation, training, and support A center for excellence in teaching and learning |
Table 1. Characteristics of a doctoral/research-extensive university online program.
The eight regional accrediting agencies recognized by the U.S. Department of Education established the standards for quality online programs in the five areas of institutional activity (Commission on Institutions of Higher Education, 2007). Each area was interviewed in detail, the questionnaire being an abridgement that included all of these standards in question form. The complete wording of the accrediting agency standards in each of the five areas is also critically important for understanding how the participating university reflects these standards in their policies, practices, and initiatives.
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