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7/2/2008
Peer Reviewers, take note! You've been requesting a spell check feature in the online rubric tool and now it's available. When adding your feedback about a course in the online rubric, you can now spell check your comments prior to sending the report.
Another added feature is an auto-email generated when a final report is submitted. This provides a link to the new post-review survey which provides us (and the review team) with information about the course review process. 4/25/2008
Quality Matters continues to receive recognition as the standard bearer for quality in Distance Education. On April 23rd, 2008, Dr. Ron Legon, Executive Director for Quality Matters, accepted the "Outstanding Leadership by an Individual" Award for Excellence in Distance Learning in 2008 as presented by the USDLA. Please see http://www.qualitymatters.org/Documents/2008%20USDLA%20Awardee%20PR%20Template1.pdf for the award announcement. 4/14/2008Please join us in welcoming new QM staff member, Melissa Poole. With more than eight years in the banking industry and extensive volunteer experience, Melissa brings strong organizational skills to her position as QM Course Review Coordinator. Charged with facilitating all QM-managed reviews, Melissa will work closely with the Team Chairs/Master Reviewers to ensure reviews are conducted according to QM guidelines. This includes responsibility for oversight and/or implementation of the following: course access and other coordination with course institution; obtaining review fees; scheduling of, and payment for, peer reviewers; and provision of all necessary access and tools for the completion of the review.
QM also welcomes Michelle Pierpont to serve as our part-time Office Manager. With five years experience as an Assistant Treasurer for Citizen’s Bank of Maryland, Michelle brings exceptional attention to detail and finely-honed organizational skills to her position. Her area of responsibility includes managing all new subscriber paperwork, database management, shipment of materials, and responding to requests from new and existing QM subscribers. Michelle holds a B.S. from University of Maryland and M.B.A. from Loyola University.
We are excited to have additional personnel in place to better manage and respond to our rapidly growing subscriber community along with subsequent expansion in our Training registrations and Course Review applications.
2/19/2008
Join QM at the New Jersey Community Colleges Best Practices Conferences, hosted by Ocean County College on April 24 and 25, at its main campus in Toms River, N.J.
The Best Practices Conference is sponsored by The College Board, ETS, The New York Times Knowledge Network, and Smarthinking.
Deb Adair, Director of QM, will present "Quality Matters in Course Design: A Blueprint for Faculty Success" on April 25, from 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM. The session will address the following: Quality Matters, as an online course quality assurance program, can mean different things to different people. This session looks at Quality Matters principles, materials and processes from a faculty perspective. What does it mean for faculty and what can faculty gain from participation in Quality Matters as either a faculty course developer or peer reviewer?
1/22/2008
Did you know that some QM training courses may be delivered as a one-day, face-to-face workshop at your institution? Not only does this give you a per person savings over the online option, but it will also save time and provide an opportunity to train a number of your faculty at one time. Below is a list of the courses offered face-to-face, including maximum number of participants and fees.
Peer Reviewer Training - Up to 30 participants; Subscriber Fee is $2,400; Non-Subscriber fee is $3,000
Improving Your Online Course - Up to 20 participants; Subscriber Fee is $1,200; Non-Subscriber fee is $1,500
Building Your Online Course - Up to 20 participants; Subscriber fee is $1,200, Non-Subscriber fee is $1,500
Please visit www.qualitymatters.org to find the full training calendar along with course descriptions and registration information.
1/7/2008
Now it's easier than ever to order Rubric Booklets, Rubric Workbooks, and Peer Reviewer Training Materials. Go to http://www.qualitymatters.org/qm_order.htm, complete the form, and submit it electronically. You will receive a confirmation which should be printed or saved for your records. This new feature will expedite the ordering process and enables you to receive materials more quickly. 12/31/2007
With gratitude to our subscribers and generous supporters, Quality Matters ends the year with tremendous growth and many notable achievements. We look towards 2008 as an even more exciting year of change, progress, and success.
Looking back at 2007:
· Growth from approximately 65 subscribers to over 100 subscribers, including two statewide affiliates
· Staff grew to include 3 FT and 3 PT employees with addition of full time Director and Communications Manager
· Roll out of Building Your Course Online and Improving Your Online Course training courses
· More than 1,400 participants in Quality Matters training programs
· 58 successful course reviews receiving the Quality Matters seal of recognition
· Creation of oversight committees to provide guidance for all functional areas within QM
· Sloan Consortium award winner for “Excellence in Faculty Development for Online Teaching”
Looking forward to 2008…
· Updated Rubric with anticipated roll out in late Spring/early Summer
· New training offerings for Institution Representatives and Course Review Managers
· Development and distribution of QM Users Manual for new and existing subscribers to aid in implementation process
· Automated Peer Reviewer Application/Memo of Understanding
· Automated materials order form for quicker turnaround
· Web portal for our subscribing institutions to serve as an information sharing resource
· Implementation of database to quickly access information about our trainers and subscribers
· Standardized Independent-Managed Course Review Process
The Quality Matters team extends our best wishes for a very Happy New Year! 11/23/2007
If you have sucessfully completed Quality Matters Peer Reviewer Training and are interested in being added to the QM Peer Reviewer pool for possible assignments to a QM-Managed or Subscriber-Managed Peer Review team, please submit your application by going to the link below and submitting BOTH your application information and a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). The MOU will need to be resubmitted every year you wish to remain in the QM reviewer pool.
You will need to "sign" your MOU by typing your last name, followed by the last four digits of your social security number, in the space identified for your Signature Code.
Please note that your application submission does not guarantee your placement on a peer review team, only that you will be added to the available pool for possible assignments.
Note: Quality Matters is no longer accepting emailed or faxed application forms.
Thank you for your support of Quality Matters and congratulations on your achievement! 11/16/2007
In keeping with our model of continuous improvement, we have made a slight change in the appearance of our subscriber's Home Screen and other lists of rubrics for their institution. Icons have been added to the My Rubrics screen to indicate the following:
M = QM-Managed Review
S = Subscriber-Managed Review
I = Internal (unofficial) Review
All other aspects of the online rubric tool remain unchanged for our subscribers. Subscribers should contact Chandra Robinson, Course Review Manager, if they have any questions. 11/9/2007
The Rubric Review Committee has been active since late September. Each of the nine committee members was assigned to update one of the eight General Standards and the Instructor Worksheet, based on the comments that have come to the Committee from the survey carried out earlier in September. Changes under consideration range from clarifying language in the standards and annotations to substantive changes in the focus of particular standards, and more explicit linkage among related standards. The new version of the rubric is likely to place greater emphasis on accessibility issues for both the disabled and mainstream students. And the revised and expanded annotations will provide additional guidance on the application of the standards to different levels of instruction (lower division, undergraduate majors, and graduate education), new instructional technology, etc. Point values may be adjusted as well, to reflect what our data shows about commonly missed standards and also to reflect increased emphasis on certain course elements.
The expanded Instructor Worksheet will also provide instructors the opportunity to more fully describe the nature of their courses and provide course reviewers with a fuller and more explicit picture of the elements and considerations that entered into the original course design. The Committee hopes that this will expedite the work of peer reviewer and move many issues from the realm of speculation to the realm of documented fact.
The committee hopes to finish its first full draft before the end of the calendar year. This will be circulated for comment among subscriber representatives, trainers, and QM master reviewers, and QM’s advisory groups. The committee will take this feedback into consideration in developing its final draft.
The next stage will be sharing the new rubric with the Training and Course Review Committees, so that they can assess the impact of the changes on QM’s training courses and workshops, design appropriate update training for peer reviewers, trainers and course review managers, and evaluate whether the changes affect the mechanics of the course review process. |
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