Faculty Resources

TCC’s Online Course Approval Procedure must be followed by faculty who are planning to teach a specific course online for the first time in 36 months at TCC. Thus, faculty must complete this process and the TCC Online Course Approval Form if any of these conditions is true:

• the course has never been taught before in an online format at TCC,
• the course has never been taught before in an online format by the faculty member, or
• the faculty member has not taught the course online during the past 36 months.

In any case, a course cannot be listed on the TCC schedule as an online class if the TCC Online Course Approval Form has not been submitted and approved.  The form has three parts:

• Part I is completed by the faculty member who will teach the course,
• Part II is completed by the peer reviewer(s) selected by the academic dean, and
• Part III is completed by the academic dean and includes the dean’s and campus provost’s signatures.

The completed form is then sent to the Associate Vice President for Educational Technology for final approval.  Questions about whether the form needs to be completed should be directed to Mike Williams(822-1913), Associate Vice President for Educational Technology.

Note: Instructors do not need to complete this form if they simply intend to web-enhance existing classes, although faculty will still need to complete the Resource Request Form to have the Blackboard shell created.

TCC’s online course approval process, form, and related guidelines and resources constitute the first stages of TCC’s online quality assurance plan.  The documents below also provide faculty and academic deans with lists of important guidelines, design elements, and instructional strategies for assuring effective teaching and the instructional integrity of online courses.

A good way to gain experience in the online environment is to "web-enhance" various components of an existing classroom-based course before attempting to teach a fully online class. Educational Technology staff can help with this process. Please check the faculty Distance Education web pages for information about steps involved in developing a web-enhanced or online course.

For many first-time online faculty, 12 months is not too soon to begin the development process. However, 6 months may be adequate in some situations, particularly for faculty who are skilled in the uses of instructional technologies or who have already taught a similar class with Internet components. Faculty new to using the Internet as a teaching or learning environment or developing a new class may need additional training and time. In any case, the TCC Online Course Approval Form should be completed at least eight (8) weeks prior to the beginning of the term when the course will be offered.

Additional documents are available to assist with the process, including:

Any comments or questions at any point in the development or approval process may be directed to the Associate Vice President for Educational Technology, Mike Williams (822-1913).