Communication Studies 450, an advanced communications course, earned a Quality Matters (QM) Certification. The course is designed and facilitated by Katherine Rafferty, associate teaching professor in the Department of Psychology.
“This is kind of the ‘Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval’ for online courses,” said Mark Woolley, director of Engineering-LAS Online Learning (ELO). “It’s a serious and rigorous certification process and the courses go through an extensive, very detailed review.”
QM Certification is a faculty-centered, peer-reviewed audit that evaluates online and hybrid courses with a research-based rubric. A review committee analyzes and scores eight standards: course overview and introduction; learning objectives; assessment and measurement; instructional materials; learner activities and interaction; learner support and accessibility; and technology.
Quality Matters is the global organization leading quality assurance in online and innovative digital teaching and learning environments. It provides a scalable quality assurance system for online and blended learning used within and across organizations.