Quality Assurance

With any course, it is important to monitor quality. Whether you are in the classroom or online, you need to make sure that your lessons are effective. Because you don't have the in person feedback and the option to read body language, quality assurance for an online course becomes eve more crucial. There are many different ways to test the quality of the content, the site, and how the students are receiving the instruction.

You can follow a formal design, such as the Kirkpatrick Partners' four steps, or go with something like a survey. The Kirkpatrick model focuses on the initial reaction the learners have to the material first. If they have a negative take on the course, they are not as likely to learn well. After the initial reaction, the students' knowledge gained can be tested. They can then see if the information they have is something that they can use to make a change in their life. After the course is completed, it is beneficial to go back and see if the students have actually implemented a behavioral change that lasted. While there is a lot more effort in doing something like this, it is very effective and can be a great way to monitor the quality of any course.