Quality Matters, Online Quality Assurance Leader, Releases Latest Standards for Online Course Design

Today, Quality Matters launches its newest edition of the leading resource to improve and evaluate online course quality. The Quality Matters Higher Education Rubric, Sixth Edition, will be released to the Quality Matters’ membership, which includes 1,000 colleges and universities in the U.S. and in 8 other countries. This Rubric is the most recent culmination of 14 years of development, reflecting current research and best practices in online learning and is a widely-respected and utilized guidepost for educators in producing quality online experiences for students. Faculty and staff can learn more about applying the Rubric and also retool course design and teaching skills with robust and transformative professional development workshops and courses — joining the more than 60,000 individuals who have taken Quality Matters professional development. With Quality Matters, educators have a partner to work with them to ensure they create well-conceived, well-designed, well-presented courses and programs — a partnership that impacts over half a million learners annually.

Quality Matters assembled a diverse group of professionals (listed below), recognized for their dedication to continuous improvement and expertise in quality online education, to serve on the QM Rubric Committee. Brenda Boyd, Quality Matters Senior Academic Director: Program Services and Co-Chairperson of the Rubric Committee, said, “The sizable QM community understands that continuous improvement is at the heart of quality assurance in online learning. The individuals who served on the Rubric Committee are the standard-bearers for putting educational theory and research into practice with the work they did in creating the Sixth Edition.”

Contributors on the Higher Education Rubric Committee, Sixth Edition:

Eddie Andreo, M.B.A., Associate Vice President of Distance Learning, Cowley College

Brenda Boyd, M.S., Senior Academic Director: Program Services, Quality Matters

Debbi Canavan, M.S., QM Coordinator & Instructional Design Specialist, University of Alaska Anchorage; QM Coordinator, eLearning Instructional Specialist, & Adjunct Faculty, Kodiak College

Kathy Chatfield, Ed.D., Senior Instructional Designer and Affiliate Faculty, Clark College

Loleta Collins, Ph.D., Director, Student Services, Edison State Community College

Yaping Gao, Ed.D., Senior Academic Director: Member Services and Partnerships, Quality Matters

Alyssa Gilston, Psy.D., Professor, Capella University

Kevin Kaatz, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, California State University, East Bay

Karen May, M.S., Instructor, New Mexico State University, Alamogordo

Rajeswari Mohan, M.A., Instructional Designer, Johns Hopkins University; Adjunct Faculty, Cuyahoga Community College and Lakeland Community College

Christopher Ostwinkle, Ph.D., Director of iCampus, Joliet Junior College

Bethany Simunich, Ph.D., Director, Online Pedagogy and Research, Kent State University

Melissa Walter, M.A., M.S., Instructor, Department of Communication, University of South Alabama

Lonni Steven Wilson, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Sport Management, Lees-McRae College

“This Sixth Edition of the Quality Matters Higher Education Rubric represents a fundamental outcome of the ongoing design-based research project that is at the core of Quality Matters. We know the QM community will find the refinement of the new edition of the Rubric useful in their work as they focus on improving learning experiences and outcomes for their students,” said Dr. Deb Adair, Executive Director of Quality Matters.

With the launch of Quality Matters Higher Education Rubric, Sixth Edition, the Specific Review Standards can be viewed online. For QM members, a free Rubric Update is available to learn about the changes to the new Rubric. Additionally, the QM Connect Conference in St. Louis will feature sessions on using the Rubric to further engage students, improve outcomes and create processes for making a quality impact at institutions. Quality Matters is committed to helping educators broaden and develop their skill sets. These updated Standards are a key component for achieving the goal of ensuring quality for learners.

For more information, visit Quality Matters.

About Quality Matters

Grounded in research. Driven by best practices. A community that puts learners first. Quality Matters (QM) 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. When you see QM Recognition and Certification Marks on courses or programs, it means they have met QM Course Design Standards or QM Program Review Criteria in a rigorous review process.