To be considered a distance education program, courses must include regular and substantive interaction between the instructor and students. Interaction should take place at regular intervals and not be trivial--meaning that interaction should be predictable and built into program design. Substantive interaction refers to interaction (or the opportunity of interaction) with a student that is relevant to the academic subject matter in which the student is engaged. Substantive interaction includes, but is not limited to, direct instruction, substantive feedback to assessments, or contacts with students that create the opportunity for relevant discussion of academic subject matter.
Using technology to deliver instruction is a core aspect of supporting distance education. Technologies may include the internet, audio conferencing, multimedia (if the multimedia is used in conjunction with any of the aforementioned technologies). All interactions should be retained in the learning management system to ensure that the Distance Education and Financial Aid teams have the appropriate Regular and Substantive Interaction documentation.
The master course shell must be fully adhered to, aside from due dates, deadlines, and features that have been left for instructors to customize. Questions regarding the content of master course shells should be referred to full-time faculty or Dean in the associated discipline. Supplemental resources and assignments can be added throughout the semester. All supplemental resources must be ADA compliant. Any deviation from the content must be approved by the Dean.