Distance Education Committee

Melissa Cardelli
Johanna Duponte
Mario Garcia-Rios
Dana Mayhew
Susan McCourt, ex officio

At the October meeting the committee discussed the possibility of rewriting the definition of a “hybrid” course at Bristol. I was asked to write a blurb addressing the reason for rewriting the “hybrid” course definition. Here is what I sent to April for her preliminary consideration:

We are exploring the possibility of revising the Bristol description of “Hybrid” course. In particular, we hope to include in the description, language that standardizes changes made to the component of the course that meets “face to face”on a per instructor basis, so that the course delivery is more uniform within disciplines. Currently, there is a degree of flexibility in determining the number of hours per month or per semester that students must meet with the instructor face to face. In essence, it is up to the instructor of the course to determine the frequency of face to face meetings. We feel that this flexibility should continue, but within certain boundaries.

I also have the following draft statement, which attempts to give an example of what may happen when there are no guidelines to determine face to face meeting times:

We hope that if a given course must be reassigned after the scheduled has gone public and communication between faculty and students has started, the disruption to students’ expectations are minimized.

Please keep in mind that this is just a draft of an idea that the committee is considering. I imagine that the discussion will continue at the next meeting.

Tuesday, October 16, 2018
From: April Bellafiore, Dean of eLearning

Took me a few extra days to write up the notes but here is the summary of the topics the group would like to discuss this year:

• Hybrid definitions
• The course development process
• OSHA and lab sections for hybrid courses
• How to foster innovation
• Lab sciences online
• How to incorporate more professional development/training/workshops in scheduled Professional Days
• Civility issues online
• Academic dishonesty/integrity

I’d like to propose that at our next meeting on October 29th that we begin a conversation regarding hybrid definitions. Attached is a copy of some national definitions as well as a quick overview of local institution and how they designate eLearning/online/hybrid courses.

Our current definitions are here:
http://www.bristolcc.edu/locations/elearning/courses/

You’ll see that we currently (and historically) have defined hybrids as 50% – 99.9% online and have had a wide variety of models over the years (and within terms). The question is whether or not we should designate/redesignate how we define hybrids. 50% or more? 80% or more? Weekly, a few times a term, every other week? Other?

If I can provide you with any additional information prior to the meeting please let me know – otherwise I look forward to our conversation in a few weeks!

Definitions of eLearning by Gary E. Miller
DefinitionsOfeLearningCourses_090712

Distance Learning Branding
Colleges and Universities - Distance Learning Branding

MOA regarding Course Caps
MOA - DL Course Caps

MOA regarding Term Availability
MOA - DL Term Availability

Memo regarding Distance Education Committees
Distance Ed Committee Memo