Concentrations

• Measuring the Impact of Quality Assurance

  Quality Matters is an integral part of an overall approach to quality in online and blended education. Proposals in this concentration should summarize planned and strategic efforts to achieve quality assurance goals through the use of the QM Rubric, QM Course or Program Reviews, or QM Professional Development including:

  • Analyzing the QM/QA relationship, use, and impact
  • Finding evidence of learner success: learning outcomes, learner satisfaction as related to the institution's QA efforts
  • Measuring instructor development and satisfaction as related to the institution's QM efforts
  • Determining institutional QM/QA evolution and studying the initiatives that facilitated that evolution
  • Assessing the quality of alternative learning initiatives

  
  Proposals should focus on how attendees can use the methods or processes discussed to assess the impact of QM/QA and make data-driven decisions to improve the impact of quality assurance efforts at their own institutions.

• Launching QM and Achieving Sustainability

  Proposals in this concentration should address the ways Quality Matters is initiated in the institution or organization. Initiation is only half of the formula for success. The other half is making QM sustainable in various environments. How do you launch and keep your quality assurance program goals alive and growing? Share how you are doing one or more of the following:

  • Launching and sustaining QM
  • Navigating evolving QA environments
  • Rejuvenating existing QA programs

  • Planting seeds of growth
  • Sustaining momentum in K-12 
• Quality Assurance: Theory to Practice

  We know continuous improvement is a vital process for success in quality assurance. Proposals in this concentration should focus on specific ideas that translate into improved courses or programs. Ideas include:

  • Using QM to achieve QA
  • Alignment strategies
  • Assessment strategies

  • Mapping alignment in courses and curricula
  • Making courses more accessible and usable
  • K-12 course design
• Leading Quality Assurance

  Leadership takes many forms. Many stakeholders play a role in leading quality assurance including instructional designers, faculty, and administrators. This concentration explores various facets of leading change by setting expectations for quality assurance. Tell us about the ways your institution or organization are addressing the issue including:

  • Faculty QA leadership models (mentoring programs, Faculty Learning Communities (FLCs), Communities of Practice [CoPs], leading from the middle)
  • Institutional QA leadership
  • Diversity of QA services and applications

  • Cultivating QA trust and safe spaces to explore continuous improvement
  • QA professional learning program design
  • Leadership challenges in K-12
• Engagement Strategies

  Building relationships, connecting, and collaborating are key elements of engagement. Proposals in this concentration should address how to engage people in different QA roles including administrators, faculty, instructional designers, and staff. The strategies should focus on the human element and motivation for investing in quality assurance. Share your practical approaches to:

  • Engaging administrators
    • Buy-in and support, accreditation, raising awareness
    • Creating a culture of QA collaboration
    • Recognizing QA intersections and benefiting from QA collisions
    • Marketing strategies
    • Implementation and other tactical challenges for K-12
  • Engaging faculty
    • Professional learning opportunities, Faculty Learning Communities (FLCs), Communities of Practice (CoPs), raising awareness and eliciting buy-in
    • Encouraging instructor and teacher participation
    • Celebrating QA achievements and contributions
  • Engaging students
    • Assessment and course design, providing effective feedback, accessibility and inclusion, UDL, competency-based design, adaptive learning
    • Connecting teachers and students
    • Using social networking to support QA
    • Active learning in online courses
• Fresh Ideas: Accessibility

  We all need inspiration. Proposals in this concentration should focus on practical tools for improving accessibility. Share your newest practices, most creative ideas, and actionable concepts related to:

  • Moving toward accessible and inclusive classrooms
  • Introducing accessibility and usability
  • Pinpointing your institution’s main obstacles to accessibility and figuring out how to overcome them
• Fresh Ideas: Technology

  Help the QM Community by bringing your best ideas to the table. Proposals in this concentration should focus on practical tools for technology.  Share your newest practices, most creative ideas, and actionable concepts. Inspire others with your experiences related to:

  • Emerging tools, trends, delivery formats, and ways of thinking about educational quality
  • Leveraging options available in your LMS
  • Meeting QM standards in your LMS
• Fresh Ideas: Alternative Design Models

  It’s time to share your fresh ideas related to alternative design models. Proposals in this concentration should focus on practical models as well as  newest practices, most creative ideas, and actionable concepts including:

  • Creative course design models
  • Intriguing funding models for course reviews and professional development
  • Competency-based design, adaptive learning, integrated curricula
  • Introducing OER
  • Thinking outside the box in the K-12 environment

Presentation Formats

All Conference sessions will be 50 minutes.

• Conversation that Matters
• Active Learning
• Panel
• Quality Talk
• Poster
• 5-Minute Quality Talk