Borderless Access to Training and Education (BATE)
Questions for Collaborative Program Planners

Funded by the Learning Anytime Anywhere Partnership program
Fund for Improvement of Post Secondary Education.
U.S. Department of Education

BATE Questions for Collaborative Programs:
When planning multi-institutional collaborative programs involving utilization and acceptance of courses from varying colleges and universities there are many questions that need to be addressed prior to design and implementation. The BATE project has drafted the following list of questions which have provided the process with guidance. Please feel free to use our list for non-profit educational fair use application and credit us accordingly. The questions are broken down into: Department/College; Institution; and Student

Institution Questions:

I1: Is distance learning regarded as a high priority at your institution by administrators and supported?

I2: How does your legislature and governing body (Board of Regents, etc.) value distance learning?

I3: How does your technology infrastructure support distance learning?

I4: How does the student records process transfer information to and from institutions and note credit?

I5: 4. Is there an admission process for BATE certification programs or non-degree grad status?

I6: What is the admission process?

I7: Is the admission process clearly delineated and accessible to students?

I8: What is the process for a non-degree student seeking certification only?

I9: Can non-degree students change their status if they decide to enter a graduate program and apply the BATE courses to the degree?

I10: What is the limit on transfer courses into a program?

I11: Who determines transferability of Extended Studies or Continuing Education courses into degree programs if desired?

I12: Is this information available online as well as the procedures and policies?

I13: Under current policies what are fee structures for residents and nonresidents?

I14: What are specific ancillary admission requirements such as?

~inoculations
~”unique fees” such as technology fees, distance learning fees, admission fees, etc.
~admission exams
~other

I15: What are the required contact hours per credit hour of instruction?

I16: What online student support exists?

~technical support
~advising
~virtual office hours
~bookstore

I17: What are the required contact hours per credit hour of instruction?

I18: Is there a specified BATE scheduling and rotation system?

I19: Is the schedule available to students?

I20: What online library resources are available?

~electronic reserves
~interlibrary loan
~librarian assistance
~proxy server or other access to licensed library resources
~other

I21: Do the institutions have academic integrity policies?

I22: Are these policies advertised widely to students?

I23: Are these policies and penalties for violation required to be in course syllabi?

I24: How are the matters of student credit hour (SCH) production and (FTE) handled?

~SCH
~FTE

I25: How are distance education courses calculated for faculty load reporting purposes?

I26: Who owns the content of the online courses taught in the BATE project?

I27: What is the curricular approval process for new online courses?

I28: Is the process different for courses taught through Extended Studies or Continuing Education? If so, please explain.

I29: What faculty incentives exist on your campus for developing and teaching online courses?

I30: Do faculty incentives exist on your campus for revising online courses after they have been developed? If so, what are they?

I31: How are matters concerning the development and teaching of online courses considered in tenure, promotion, and merit decisions at your institution? Are online courses regarded differently? If so, please explain.

I32: Will contractual issues be a factor when developing and teaching online courses?

I33: Is there extra compensation for teaching online courses?

I34: Is there extra compensation for courses that exceed a certain enrollment (for example a per capita bonus)?

I35: Are there summer stipends for developing online courses?

I36: Will there be any regulation for collaboratively developed courses?

I37: Is there an institutional commitment for?

~distance learning
~collaborative efforts

I38: Is there a campus acceptable use policy for electronic resources use by students and faculty?

I39: Are there policies at your campus unique to online course approval?

I40: Are there assessment procedures in place to ascertain if an online course is ready for delivery?

I41: Is there ongoing faculty development or support available for online instructors (whether adjunct or not)?

Department / College Questions:

D1: Is there acceptance and easy transferability of BATE courses into certification programs even if courses are offered through Extended Studies or Continuing Education?

D2: Can students elect to transfer credits into a graduate program and what is the process?

D3: How are time frames for classes communicated to BATE students?
Note: Remember that time frames are also important for financial aid purposes, as are loads.

D4: Is there flexibility for course scheduling?

D5: Will regional information, content, and local culture be considered in BATE courses?

D6: Are hardware and software requirements for online courses clearly delineated for faculty?

D7: Is there a specified BATE scheduling and rotation system?

D8: Is the schedule available to students?

D9: How are credit differences for comparable courses from BATE institutions handled?

D10: Are BATE courses standards based?

D11:How are BATE courses evaluated?

~formatively
~summatively

D12: Are BATE course evaluations standardized?

D13: Do departments receive a percent of revenues from fees generated by online courses?

D14: What ways are revenues shared with respect to online courses?

D15: How will enrollment in courses be apportioned among collaborating programs?

D16: Are there class and program limits for the BATE programs?

D17: If so, what are they?

Student Questions:

S1: Is there a way for students to assess their skills, software, and hardware to be a successful online participant?

S2: Have accessibility issues for students with disabilities been addressed?

S3: Are hardware and software requirements for online courses clearly delineated for students?

S4: Have financial aid requirements been made available to students and application procedures?

S5: Are acceptable use and academic integrity policies available to students as well as the penalties?

S6: What online student support exists?

~technical support
~advising
~virtual office hours
~bookstore
~registration and fee payment

S7: What online library resources are available?

~electronic reserves
~interlibrary loan
~librarian assistance
~proxy server or other access to licensed library resources
~other

S8: Is the BATE course schedule available to students?

S9: Is registration available and payment by credit card possible by phone if not online?

S10: Is information concerning admission procedures, registration, and fees clearly available at the BATE and departmental websites for each of the partner institutions so that students may select a “home” institution?

S11: Is transferability of course information available to students at the website?

S12: Is contact with program representatives available to students easily?

S13: Are students provided with an opportunity to evaluate the BATE courses and service?

S14: Are students provided with timely feedback to questions?

Resources:

Asking Really Tough Questions: Policy Issues for Distance Learning
By Barbara Gellmen-Danley and Marie J. Fetzner
http://www.westga.edu/~distance/danley11.html

Collaboration Benefits
By Moxley, V.M. and S.C. Maes (2003)
Continuing Higher Education Review, 67.
http://www.gpidea.org/alliance/ResourceCenter/Benefits.html

Memorandum of Agreement (MOA):
This Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) for the BATE project is provided to assist others in drafting similar agreements. Our agreement is an example of one that is operational. All parties signed this agreement. Please note that the fee portion may now be difficult to negotiate in an era of rising tuition costs.

We've provided the document in a printable Microsoft word document for PC users, and a printable Word for Macintosh version.

PRINTABLE VERSION (PC)
PRINTABLE VERSION (MAC)

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