S5.3.3

=Support staff are provided with standards and guidelines covering technical and pedagogical aspects of e-learning design and (re)development. =

Evidence
Standards and guidelines define the quality of teaching, build consensus about the process of developing a course and help staff learn good practice. They can help to ensure that resources are well used. They can also serve as a check list when evaluating online learning (Milne & White 2005). However, it is noted that quality standards and guidelines must not become more important than outcomes. And also, as reiterated by Meyer (2003), some guidelines are not based on research.

Inglis (2005) notes that guidelines should be developed in consultation with all stakeholders. Guidelines alone may not ensure quality (Meyer 2003), but should be used in conjunction with a number of sources that give evidence of quality within and specific to the organization and its expectations.

Resources
Milne & White (2005) collect together twenty-three sets of e-learning quality guidelines from an array of geographical regions. Such guidelines, or something like them, should be part of the support offered to staff by their organizations. Staff need guidelines, and examples of good practice.

Several sets of guidelines for e-learning design and (re)development exist. The JISC has guiding principles for staff involved in development of e-learning content:

http://www.techdis.ac.uk/index.php?p=6_6

And also, guidelines for e-learning content:

http://www.techdis.ac.uk/index.php?p=6_6_1 These set out minimum requirements.

Also, extensive explanation of design principles for e-learning can be found in Clark & Mayer (2007) ‘E-learning and the science of instruction: Proven guidelines for consumers and designers of multimedia learning.’ These authors systematically work through the evidence of how to most successfully employ a range of media in e-learning.

Kenny (2007) explains how problem-based learning (PBL) can be incorporated into online courses. In general e-learning pedagogies must be defensible, used with reference to proven education practice. Kenny explains what problem-based learning is and why it has been successful in conventional learning arenas. He then describes what PBL is like in an online learning context. This includes describing what is needed to support PBL online and the opportunities and challenges it provides.

Van Assche & Vuorikari (2006) describe the aspects of quality that are related to the creation of learning material, its discovery and eventual use and reuse. These authors discuss the quality of learning resources from a product and process approach and cover all processes from creation to use. They present a full framework for dealing with quality of learning resources.