Credit Hours Policy
Policy Statement

PURPOSE

This policy provides general guidelines for faculty and administrators in determining the amount of credits awarded for Richmindale courses. This policy requires oversight by persons academically qualified to make necessary judgements.

SCOPE

This policy applies to all Richmindale curriculum development teams, faculty, administrators, and students.

REFERENCES

Code of Federal Regulations (CFR). Distance Education Accrediting Commission (DEAC) Accreditation Handbook.

DEFINITIONS

Clock hour (34 CFR 600.2). Clock hour, as defined in 34 CFR 600.2, is a period of time consisting of—

  1. A 50- to 60-minute class, lecture, or recitation in a 60-minute period;
  2. A 50- to 60-minute faculty-supervised laboratory, shop training, or internship in a 60-minute period; or
  3. Sixty minutes of preparation in a correspondence course.

Correspondence course (34 CFR 600.2). Correspondence course is defined in 34 CFR 600.2 as:

  1. A course provided by an institution under which the institution provides instructional materials, by mail or electronic transmission, including examinations on the materials, to students who are separated from the instructor. Interaction between the instructor and student is limited, is not regular and substantive, and is primarily initiated by the student. Correspondence courses are typically self-paced.
  2. If a course is part correspondence and part residential training, the Secretary considers the course to be a correspondence course.
  3. A correspondence course is not distance education.

Correspondence course (34 CFR 600.2). Correspondence course is defined in 34 CFR 600.2 as:

  1. Credit hour (34 CFR 600.2). Credit hour, as defined in 34 CFR 600.2, is an amount of work represented in intended learning outcomes and verified by evidence of student achievement that is an institutionally established equivalency that reasonably approximates not less than—
  2. One hour of classroom or direct faculty instruction and a minimum of two hours of out of class student work each week for approximately fifteen weeks for one semester or trimester hour of credit, or ten to twelve weeks for one quarter hour of credit, or the equivalent amount of work over a different amount of time; or
  3. At least an equivalent amount of work as required in paragraph (1) of this definition for other academic activities as established by the institution including laboratory work, internships, practica, studio work, and other academic work leading to the award of credit hours.

Direct assessment program (34 CFR 668.10). Direct assessment program, as defined in 34 CFR 668.10, is an instructional program that, in lieu of credit hours or clock hours as a measure of student learning, utilizes direct assessment of student learning, or recognizes the direct assessment of student learning by others. The assessment must be consistent with the accreditation of the institution or program utilizing the results of the assessment.

Direct assessment of student learning (34 CFR 668.10). Direct assessment of student learning, as defined in 34 CFR 668.10, means a measure by the institution of what a student knows and can do in terms of the body of knowledge making up the educational program. These measures provide evidence that a student has command of a specific subject, content area, or skill or that the student demonstrates a specific quality such as creativity, analysis or synthesis associated with the subject matter of the program. Examples of direct measures include projects, papers, examinations, presentations, performances, and portfolios.

Distance education (34 CFR 668.2). Distance education means education that uses one or more of the technologies listed in paragraphs (1) through (4) of this definition to deliver instruction to students who are separated from the instructor and to support regular and substantive interaction between the students and the instructor, either synchronously or asynchronously. The technologies may include—

  1. The internet;
  2. One-way and two-way transmissions through open broadcast, closed circuit, cable, microwave, broadband lines, fiber optics, satellite, or wireless communications devices;
  3. Audio conferencing; or
  4. Video cassettes, DVDs, and CD-ROMs, if the cassettes, DVDs, or CD-ROMs are used in a course in conjunction with any of the technologies listed in paragraphs (1) through (3) of this definition.

POLICY

This policy conforms to the DEAC Part 3, Section F, Academic Units of Measurement, DEAC Accreditation Handbook, page 77 requirement that institutions document policies and procedures used to define the chosen academic unit of measurement. Academic units are measured by either clock hours or credit hours. This policy also complies with the definitions of distance education, clock hours, credit hours, and other related terms used in this policy as described in Title 34 of CFR. Richmindale uses credit hours as the academic unit of measurement for its online courses and programs.

Richmindale requires subject matter experts (SMEs) with the right academic qualifications and experience to develop its programs, courses, syllabi and other course materials. During course development, the SMEs identify and analyze the number of one-hour meetings required in a course for one 15-week semester, considering additional two hours of out-of-class work for each one-hour meeting based on Carnegie unit. Since Richmindale uses the distance learning format, these one-hour face-to-face meetings between instructors and students happen online, primary using video conference through the Internet. Richmindale considers each of these online meetings as a way to provide direct faculty instruction to students for classes, lectures, or recitations, which fulfills the requirements of a credit hour based on its definition in 34 CFR 600.2(1). As such, Richmindale uses this number of meetings as credits awarded in an online course of Richmindale. For example, an online course that is identified to require three hours of meetings (online) for direct faculty instruction and two hours of out-of-class work every week for one 15-week semester, which equates to 45 instruction (clock) hours and 90 outside work, is awarded three credits.

Richmindale also considers other student activities to award credits in a course based on the definition of credit hours in 34 CFR 600.2(2), in addition to the online face-to-face meetings described in item 5.3 of this section. The following table of student activities guided by instructors defines the number of equivalent credit hours used to award a course:

Student activities and criteria as part of curriculum (guided by instructors) Equivalent credit hours to award a course

Laboratory work

3 hours of laboratory work; and Worksheets to assess learning from laboratory work that students must submit and get a passing mark.

1 credit hour

Internship work

3 hours of internship; and Worksheets to assess learning from internship work that students must submit and get a passing mark.

1 credit hour

Practica

3 hours of practica; and Worksheets to assess learning from practica that students must submit and get a passing mark.

1 credit hour
Student activities and criteria as part of curriculum (guided by instructors) Equivalent credit hours to award a course

Studio work

3 hours of studio work; and Worksheets to assess learning from studio work that students must submit and get a passing mark.

1 credit hour

Use of instructional materials such as videos, audios, books, articles, software applications, and other materials provided by instructors

50- to 60-minute video (can be accumulated); and Online quiz related to the topics covered in the instructional materials that students must complete and get a passing mark.

1 credit hour

Chat with instructors

50- to 60-minute chat with instructor (can be accumulated); and Online quiz related to the topics covered in the chats with instructors that students must complete and get a passing mark.

1 credit hour

Participation in discussion boards initiated by instructors

Posting of sensible content about a topic in a course to be scored by instructors; and An accumulated score of 100 points from the postings of the same topic.

1 credit hour

Submission of written articles (deliverables) such as research, case studies, thesis, white papers, journals, blogs, and wikis as required by instructors

Each written deliverable is designed to require at least 3 hours of student work; and An accumulated score of 100 points from the written deliverables on a topic required by instructors.

1 credit hour

Submission of worksheets and other assessment tools provided by instructors

Each worksheet or assessment tool is designed to require at least 3 hours of student work; and Worksheets that students must complete and get a passing mark.

1 credit hour
Student activities and criteria as part of curriculum (guided by instructors) Equivalent credit hours to award a course

Submission of individual and group projects required by instructors

Each project is designed to require at least 3 hours of student work; and An accumulated score of 100 points from the written deliverables on a topic required by instructors.

1 credit hour