1. Hot Topics in Distance Education
Dolores Davison, Foothill College
Fabiola Torres, Glendale College
Laurie Vasquez, Santa Barbara City College

2. What are the Hot Topics in Distance Education?
Accreditation
Accessibility
Authorization
Online Education Initiative
Regular/Effective/Substantive Contact
Proprietary Publisher Generated Materials
Others?

3. Accreditation: Eligibility Requirements
9. Educational Programs
Substantive Change (more than 50%)
11. Student Learning and Student Achievement
Student Learning Outcomes are the same
15. Student Support Services
ALL students, face-to-face and DE must be equal
17. Information and Learning Support Services

4. Accreditation: ACCJC Policy on DE/CE
Districts must provide…
List of courses, programs, certificates and degrees where 50% or more is offered in DE or CE (Substantive Change)
Means of verification of identity of students registered in distance education or correspondence education classes (Authentication)
College policies on regular and substantive interaction between students and faculty (Regular/Effective/Substantive Contact)
College policies on student privacy (How do we address any privacy issues in light of I.B.6 Disaggregation of SLOs?)

5. Accreditation: Federal Checklist
Policies and procedures for defining and classifying CE/DE in alignment with USDE definitions. (Do you have this?)
There is an accurate and consistent application of the policies and procedures for determining if a course is offered by distance education (How do you
The institution has appropriate means for verifying the identity of a student and for ensuring that student information is protected.
The technology infrastructure is sufficient to maintain and sustain
The institution demonstrates compliance with the Commission Policy on Distance Education and Correspondence Education.

6. Accreditation: Annual Reports
Number of courses offered via distance education
Number of programs offered via distance education
Total unduplicated headcount enrollment in all types of Distance Education

7. Accessibility Online accessibility – LMS first step
Training – underway
Creating accessible online courses (concepts & strategies)
OEI rubric accessibility component
Instructional materials
Captioning, alt tags, reading order (screen reader), powerpoints
Campus scan required – what support exists on your campus
Review board policies and procedures
Program review – allocation of resources
Accessibility is now district wide

8. Accessibility OCR visits to campuses nationwide
Patterns emerging, recommendations provided by OCR and DOJ
Legislative Proposal - focus on accessible instructional materials – guidelines to come out of U.S. Access Board
Textbooks – timeliness and delivery of accessible formats
Online textbooks or publisher platforms
Instructional materials embedded in instructional platforms
Refresh of the 508 Standards and Section 255 guidelines coming in 2016
Applies to electronic and information technology 
Procurement , software, hardware, websites and more
Our obligation and opportunity is now
What do you need to ensure student success
What does support look like

9. Authorization SARA and SB 634 (Block, 2015) Authentication of students
Concerns with the Online Education Initiative Exchange
Who will handle authorization?
No out-of-state students? Currently, yes, but open to change if authorization laws change.

10. Online Education Initiative
Number 1 Intention:  Increase student completion by working together to increase access to quality online courses and support services for students
California Community College (CCC) Chancellor’s Office
Legislatively Funded and sponsored by Governor Brown
Online Course Exchange –for gateway and impacted courses
Focus on ADT (Associate Degree for Transfer) courses
Common Course Management System (CCMS) 
Faculty Professional Development
Provide Student Support Tools

11. Regular, Effective, and Substantive Contact
Essential if any portion of a course is conducted online.
ACCJC requires its inclusion in a Board policy.
Local Curriculum Committees may work with DE Committees and/or Senates to develop policy and guidelines.
Faculty review process ensures the guidelines are followed.
Sources:
Title 5 § 55204, “Instructor Contact.”
CCCCO, “Distance Education Guideline,” Guideline for Title 5 § 55204, pp. 6-7.
ACCJC, “Substantive Change Manual” (2013) and 5.3.
ACCJC, “Guide to Evaluating Distance Education and Correspondence Education” (2012). II.A.1.a.

12. Proprietary Publisher Generated Materials
How much is too much? When are they appropriate?
Should there be a statewide discussion of limits, or a local decision?
Need for instructor generated content.
Not just an issue in online
Instructional Materials Fees
Need for access for specific period of time

13. Thank You! Questions? Please contact us!
Dolores Davison
Fabiola Torres
Laurie Vasquez