Federal regulations require institutions to define an hour of credit and justify the methods of allocating credit hours to courses in accordance with sections 600.2 and 600.24 of the federal Department of Education Act under the Higher Education Act, 1965, as amended. For example, two hours of laboratory teaching contact corresponds to one credit hour and three hours of clinical teaching contact to one credit hour. Credit ratings for courses are reviewed and approved by the College`s Programs of Study Committee. 50 minutes contact time x 15 weeks = 750 minutes total contact time 120 minutes away from work x 15 weeks = 1800 total minutes outside work 750 + 1800 minutes = 2,550 minutes total student engagement in the course 2,550 minutes = 42.5 hours or 8.5 hours per day for 5 days for 1 semester of credit hour But yesterday, The ministry resurfaced its proposal, removing from the definition any reference to hours inside or outside the classroom. Instead, the ministry would allow institutions and their accrediting bodies to define “an appropriate approach for many student work.” Policymakers should consider “alternative delivery methods, measures of student work, academic calendars, disciplines, and degree levels,” according to page five of the proposed new regulations. “I think we`re removing a tool that gave accreditation teeth to challenge the kind of academic work that goes into the credit hour,” said Leah Matthews, executive director of the Commission on Accreditation of Distance Education — one of the organizations tasked with advocating definitions of credit hours under the proposed rules. Duration of the program Credit hours are also used to convey the duration of a program of study. At Lake Michigan College, bachelor`s degree programs require a minimum of 120 credit hours. Associate degrees require a minimum of 60 credit hours. Certificate programs must include at least 16 credit hours to be eligible for federal financial assistance approval under employment regulations.
Certificates may have fewer than 16 credits, but must result in a marketable qualification and are not eligible for federal financial support. All programs of study and certificates must be approved by the College`s Programs of Study Committee and the Board of Governors. Academic units that offer courses for the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign must adhere to the federal definition of one credit hour for the allocation of credit hours earned per course. “The two hours of work outside of class are completely intangible. It`s pretty impossible to categorize whether that happens or not,” said Gregory Martin, the department head who chaired Monday`s meeting. “The [class] time is acceptable because most schools are usually organized that way. This proposal was widely criticized, prompting Ministry officials to assure observers that the credit hours standard would remain in place if changed. Later in yesterday`s meeting, ministry officials came back with a compromise proposal from agency heads: abolish the requirement to teach outside the classroom, but retain the one-hour classroom teaching requirement, as well as language that gives institutions and letters of credit more flexibility. Direct class time, also known as “classroom time” or “sitting time,” is a simple calculation of face-to-face class time. This is when the faculty member personally interacts with students in the classroom or on campus. It`s not that easy when it comes to online and hybrid delivery modalities. In these cases, direct class time may represent a variety of activities for educational purposes that are planned, facilitated, and documented by the faculty member.
The table below provides an example of direct classroom activities and examples of direct course time in an online course with three (3) credit hours. A federal definition of “credit hour” places the federal government at the centre of academic decision-making and limits institutions` ability to respond to new models of higher education. No amount of clarity from the Department can overcome the inherent problem of imposing the rigidity of federal regulation on a dynamic process – one that has allowed our higher education system to grow, improve and respond to changing circumstances. As the basic unit of eligibility for federal assistance, credit hours must accurately represent the level of instruction, academic rigor and time requirements for a course taken at an institution. Credit hours are often thought of as an approximation of how much student learning has taken place and are also used to define the duration of a program of study. In addition, this federal code also requires regional accrediting agencies to monitor compliance by ensuring, through their audit practices: The Department of Education proposed Monday to remove or substantially amend the existing federal definition of one credit hour after several rounds of criticism of previous similar proposals. The proposal was made at an e-learning expert meeting to make recommendations on various changes to federal rules. Most members of this group rejected the department`s new wording. A set of program integrity rules released by the Ministry of Education in 2010 includes a federal definition of a “credit hour.” The federal definition of one credit hour is as follows: Credit ratings are established by the College Curriculum Committee (CCC) to align with the documented direct class time required to achieve all required student learning outcomes in the official course summary and/or CAB approved program.
In addition, students are expected to participate in at least two hours of independent learning activities (p. e.g., reading, research, homework, studying) for each credited hour of direct instruction. These standards apply to all credit courses, where and how they are offered. One (1) credit hour is granted for each hour of direct instruction in face-to-face, hybrid and distance learning courses (ratio 1:1 contact hour to credit hours). In an online environment, direct class time can represent a variety of activities with an educational purpose that is planned, facilitated, and documented by the faculty member. Simply registering on a course page does not meet the teaching/learning requirements for online learning for the student or faculty member. See Appendix A for more information on direct classroom time in an online teaching and learning environment. NOTE: Standard undergraduate and master`s courses on campus are offered for three or four credits of s.h. Courses that do not meet the credit hour standards described above, including those offered for more than four hours, must first be reviewed and approved by the College and then by the Vice-President`s Office. Applications for exemption from credit hours at the college level should be directed to Associate Dean Cornelia Lang. The awarding and definition of academic credits is at the heart of an institution`s academic mission and the value and importance of its degree. In a rapidly changing environment characterised by increasing student mobility and new forms of course offering, higher education institutions are carefully examining their policies.
However, federal mandates on applicable standards are not only inappropriate, but also compromise one of the most effective quality control mechanisms in higher education. Definition of a Lake Michigan College Credit Hour An hour of credit is the unit of measurement used to indicate the amount of teaching and learning time required to achieve the learning outcomes of a college-level course. The credit hour at LMC is based on a 14-week teaching semester in which 60 minutes of direct instruction are provided each week for every credit hour allocated for at least 14 hours of teacher-led activities per credit hour. Contact hours per week are adjusted for semesters of varying lengths (e.g. accelerated and shorter summer sessions) to ensure that the minimum teaching time of 14 hours per credit hour is respected. The dispute over the federal definition of an hour of credit began to escalate in November 2009 when the Department of Education`s inspector general released a report criticizing the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools` (SACS) regional accrediting body for not clearly defining an hour of credit.