Just as with face to face courses, best practices have been established for online learning to ensure students receive the high quality education that they need. Standards of quality for online courses have been outlined by organizations such as the International Association for K-12 Online Learning (iNACOL) and Quality Matters. At Carone Learning, we pride ourselves on consistently meeting and exceeding these quality standards. Here is a look at some of standards we hold ourselves to when designing our health, PE, and elective courses.
Clearly outlined expectations
Students need to know what is expected of them throughout the course. What are the requirements to be successful? The best online courses clearly state their goals and objectives, outlining what students will know and be able to do upon completing the course. With our courses, students are guided through expectations with detailed introductory materials, sample assignments, and weekly reminders.
Up-to-date, standards-based information
One major advantage of online learning is that it can easily be updated to adapt to new discoveries and educational advances. The best online courses, therefore, are updated at least once every three years in order to keep course material up-to-date. Our courses, actually, receive an annual review to identify content or technology that needs an update. We want to stay on top of information that is current, relevant, and engaging, which includes scientifically-based content that aligns with state and national standards.
Rich content
Students should be provided with access to multiple learning resources and materials. In addition, course content and assignments should incorporate a variety of media formats and be of sufficient rigor, depth, and breadth to cover the necessary material. Carone Learning courses consistently exceed these criteria, helping students succeed beyond state and national standards. Students have access to multimedia lessons, individualized health and fitness plans, review tools, an exercise library with over 300 exercise options to choose from, and so much more.
Clear and consistent navigation
Clear and consistent navigation is important for ensuring that students always have a seamless online experience. Course navigation should not be a barrier to students beginning or being successful in a course. Our courses always feature an intuitive user interface so that students can move logically to different areas of their courses.
High student-teacher interaction
High quality online courses use the latest online technologies to maximize student-teacher interaction. Courses incorporate effective accountability measures and allow teachers to give constructive feedback to their students. Our courses make it easy for students to ask questions and receive detailed, constructive feedback from their instructors. Our PE classes, in particular, involve strong teacher follow-up in order to ensure that students are completing their required physical activity. Students can even participate in teacher-monitored discussion boards with other students for a classroom-like learning environment.
Take a closer look at Carone Learning’s quality online courses: https://caronelearning.com/courses/our-courses/
