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Association of Real Estate License Law Officials
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Distance Education
Certification
Program
Policies and Procedures
Updated December 2010
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
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TABLE OF CONTENTS............................................................................................................... 2
Program Administrative Policies and Procedures ....................................................... 3
Objectives of Distance Education Course Certification ....................................................... 3
Eligibility Requirements for Providers Seeking Course Certification ........................... 3
Fees for Certification......................................................................................................................... 4
Applying for Certification ............................................................................................................... 5
The Course Review and Certification ......................................................................................... 5
Renewal of Certification .................................................................................................................. 7
Appeals Procedure............................................................................................................................. 7
Compliance after Certification is Obtained .............................................................................. 9
Grounds for Suspension, Withdrawal or Conditioning of Certification ..................... 10
Course Audits.................................................................................................................................... 10
Course Review Policies ........................................................................................................ 11
Introduction To Course Review Policy ................................................................................... 11
1. Delivery Method Definitions .............................................................................................. 11
2. Course Design Requirements ............................................................................................. 14
3. Interactivity............................................................................................................................... 15
4. Evaluation and Assessment ................................................................................................ 15
5. Student Support Services..................................................................................................... 18
6. Other Requirements for Primary Providers ................................................................. 18
7. Course Content ........................................................................................................................ 21
8. Secondary Providers ............................................................................................................. 21
9. Instructors ................................................................................................................................. 21
Addendum for Synchronous Internet Courses .................................................................... 23
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Program Policies and Procedures
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Objectives of Distance Education Course Certification
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Eligibility Requirements for Providers Seeking Course
Certification
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To foster excellence in professional real estate education by developing
standards and guidelines for evaluating distance education effectiveness,
while recognizing and respecting the diversity of courses in the real estate
industry.
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To promote educational and ethical standards of professional education.
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To provide public assurance that real estate education offered via distance
education is of acceptable quality.
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To provide guidance to providers in the continued improvement of the
educational offering via distance learning.
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To ensure that the certification process evaluates not only the presence of
essential resources and processes but also the achievement of programmatic
outcomes when applicable.
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To encourage programs to view self-study and evaluations as a continuous
obligation.
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To provide feedback that will stimulate improvement of educational courses
and related activities.
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To ensure that the evaluation, policy and decision-making process
undertaken by the certification process reflects the interests of the real
estate community.
Each provider applying for distance education course certification in real estate
must demonstrate that it satisfies each of the general requirements listed below
which taken together, define its eligibility to participate in ARELLO’s distance
education certification process.
General Course and Provider Requirements:
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Courses are offered within a context of a provider that has stated mission
and objectives appropriate to career education.
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Each student, potential student or other interested persons is provided an
accurate and complete description of courses offered.
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The provider admits students to courses and does not discriminate with
respect to age, sex, ethnic background, color, creed, or disability.
Fees for Certification
All fees will be paid directly to ARELLO, c/o Distance Education Certification
Program. Fees may be paid by check or credit card. These fees will be in effect for
the 3-year certification period. Course reviews cannot be started until the
appropriate fee has been paid.
Note: all fees are effective July 1, 2006.
Primary Provider or Course Developer
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$825 for the first course offered via different delivery methods
$625 for the second and subsequent courses offered via the same delivery
method
$470 for recertification after the three year certification period has expired
Secondary Provider or Branch School
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$275 for the first course offered via different delivery methods
$225 for the second and subsequent courses offered via the same delivery
method
$195 for recertification after the three year certification period has expired
Other Fees
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Course name change fee - $25
Primary providers that desire to change the clock hours of an existing
certified course may do so at recertification application time given new time
study affidavits are submitted along with a $155 fee per course. (Note: this is
in addition to the $470 recertification fee. Providers that substantially change
the content of the course should submit the course as a new submission.
ARELLO reserves the right to define what changes are considered substantial.)
Supplemental IDECC Certification - $75 per course. ARELLO’s subsidiary,
IDECC (the International Distance Education Certification Center) offers
IDECC Distance Education Certification that is very similar to ARELLO’s
certification. IDECC Certification is primarily recognized in industries
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outside real estate like appraisal. No additional paperwork is necessary for
this supplemental certification. Certain restrictions apply; please contact our
staff for details.
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Applying for Certification
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The Course Review and Certification
The provider requesting course certification by ARELLO must first make application
for certification. The application forms along with instructions on how to submit
them are located, free of charge, at WWW.ARELLO.NET. Each course is reviewed and
evaluated by the standards set forth in the ARELLO Distance Education Standards
Manual. It is highly recommended that providers obtain and examine the ARELLO
Distance Education Standards Manual prior to making application for certification.
All applications are processed in the order they are received.
Through the application forms, the provider mobilizes its various elements to reflect
on the purposes and effectiveness of their distance learning initiatives. Through this
process the provider is expected to examine its distance learning courses in terms of
strengths and weaknesses, and where problems or opportunities are identified,
begin to work toward their solution or fulfillment.
Providers are expected to use ARELLO Distance Education Standards and these
Program Policies and Procedures as the primary resource for completing their
application for certification.
Once the provider has paid the appropriate fee, completed and submitted the
application and accompanying documentation to begin the review, the application
will be evaluated by an educational consultant retained by ARELLO who possesses
the necessary educational credentials to evaluate distance education courses. If a
course is offered in multiple jurisdictions without substantial differences, the
applicant need submit only one application for certification for that course. The
educational consultant may contact a provider via the course review management
system for additional information, as deemed necessary to complete the objective
evaluation.
Receiving Certification
Certification is granted when a submission is in compliance with ARELLO standards
for a course as determined by ARELLO and/or designees. ARELLO will not
conditionally certify courses. Certification may be denied or withdrawn, as
appropriate, upon a finding by ARELLO that the application does not comply with
the standards.
If the review determines the course complies with standards, the provider will be
promptly notified via the course management system that the course has been
certified. A summary certificate listing a description of the course will be published
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as proof of certification. Certificates are available for download in the course
management system.
Handling Deficiencies
Once a course review has begun, fees are non-refundable. During the review, the
reviewer may cite deficiencies in the submission for certification. ARELLO will
provide two iterations of the course review to give the provider the opportunity to
remedy the deficiencies. ARELLO shall afford the applicant a reasonable opportunity
to address deficiencies in the application for certification. The provider will have
forty-five(45) days to respond to the requests of the reviewer after which the
course(s) will be withdrawn from the review process. Notice will be provided in
writing via the course management system once a course is withdrawn from the
review process. If the deficiencies have not been remedied after the second
iteration of the review, the course will be withdrawn from the review process and
fees forfeit. If the course is submitted again in a new submission, ARELLO shall
assign the course to a different reviewer.
Access to the Application and Other Documentation
Access to an application shall be restricted to ARELLO personnel involved in the
certification process. ARELLO personnel shall take appropriate steps to protect the
copyrights and trademarks of applicants. Upon completion of the certification or
approval process of an applicant's submission(s), the identity of the providers to
which a certification or an approval decision has been communicated shall become a
matter of public record. However, the application material submitted shall remain
restricted to ARELLO personnel except that it may be made available upon written
request to ARELLO's regulatory agencies who request specific information; to any
parties, such as secondary providers, who are also affected by the conditions and/or
requirements; and to other parties if specifically authorized in writing by the
applicant.
Denial of Certification or Recertification for Unethical Operation
To help ensure public protection against course providers that may operate
unethically, ARELLO may deny certification of any course offered by a provider
whose owners and/or instructors have a documentable record of breaching public
trust. Breaching public trust may include but is not limited to felony convictions,
and/or disciplinary action on a jurisdictional license. ARELLO reserves the right to
perform limited background checks on those owners or instructors associated with
certified courses. Organizations denied certification on this basis may appeal using
the procedures described in these polices.
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Renewal of Certification
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Appeals Procedure
Prior to the expiration of certification, it is the provider’s responsibility to file an
application for a renewal of certification. Recertification for each course is required
every three years.
In order to continue to use the “ARELLO Certified” credential for these courses,
providers must successfully complete the recertification process for each course.
Please note the following policy:
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Application for recertification shall be submitted 90 days prior to the
expiration of the current certification period. An application is deemed
timely submitted if it is electronically submitted on or before the deadline. If
ARELLO needs additional time to consider and take final action on the
application for recertification, ARELLO may extend the current certification
period for up to 120 days.
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If the application for recertification is submitted anytime less than 90 days
prior to the expiration date through the twelve month period following the
expiration date, the application shall require an additional late filing fee of
$100. During this fifteen-month period, certification can only be achieved by
properly re-certifying the course. After the fifteen-month period, the course
will no longer be eligible for recertification and must be filed as a new course.
Providers may obtain recertification information and applications at
http://WWW.ARELLO.NET in the Documents area.
Decisions made by course reviewers, the Program Director, the ARELLO Chief
Executive Officer (CEO) and/or actions taken by the Program Director as a
result of a course audit are appealable. Appealable action is limited to four
grounds as follows:
1. ARELLO or its agents failed to consider all the evidence and documentation
presented in favor of a provider’s application or audit documentation.
2. ARELLO or its agents acted erroneously by disregarding its own Standards.
3. There was a bias demonstrated by ARELLO or its agents.
4. The evidence provided to the course reviewers at the time of the decision
was materially in error.
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The provider must notify the Program Director in writing of its intention to petition
for review of the decision no later than thirty (30) calendar days from the date the
provider was notified of the adverse decision by ARELLO. The petition must relate
to one of the grounds cited above and justification must be provided for the request.
All documentation supporting the petition must be submitted to the Program
Director no later than forty-five (45) days from the date the provider was notified of
the decision. If the Program Director served as a reviewer of the course, the appeal
shall be forwarded to the CEO for consideration.
The Program Director will be provided with a copy of the application, accompanying
documentation, including any appended program responses, the letter of
notification of the ARELLO action, and the written request which states the grounds
for the appeal. The Program Director will have full access to all other documents and
records filed with ARELLO and its agents during the certification process.
After receiving the written appeal, the Program Director will either uphold the
original decision made by the ARELLO reviewer(s) or instruct them to take other
action as necessary. The Program Director will notify the provider in writing of the
decision within ten (10) days of his or her action.
If the provider wishes to appeal the decision of the Program Director, they may
do so by making their request in writing to the ARELLO Chief Executive Officer
(CEO) within thirty (30) days of the Program Director’s notification of the decision.
The CEO shall have access to the necessary documentation and then may uphold the
actions of the Program Director or instruct him to take other action as necessary.
The CEO will notify the provider in writing within ten (10) days of his or her action.
If the provider wishes to appeal the decision of the CEO, they may do so by
making their final appeal in writing to the Education Certification Committee (ECC)
for consideration in a formal hearing.
Appeals are administrative, not-judicial, hearings.
During any hearing, the appellant unit and ARELLO shall have the following rights:
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To be represented by a representative(s) of their choice.
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To be present during any hearing.
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To present oral testimony keeping within any established time limits.
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If the provider waives personal appearance, the matter will be handled solely
on briefs submitted.
The ECC’s deliberations following the conclusion of any hearing and its subsequent
decision process will be in closed session.
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All such petitions may only be heard at a scheduled meeting of the ECC. The full ECC
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affirm the decision of the CEO and its educational agents,
or reconsider the original decision and vote for other action.
In either case the Chair of the ECC will provide reasons for its actions and notify the
provider in writing within forty-five (45) days following the meeting. If the ECC
affirms the prior decision of the Program Director, CEO and its educational agents,
there is no further remedy available to the provider. The decision is final.
Compliance after Certification is Obtained
Offering the Course Only As Certified
Providers representing courses as certified to regulatory agencies or the public have
the responsibility of only offering the course as it was certified. Providers are not
allowed to manipulate the instructional design of the course without advanced
notice to ARELLO and claim the course is certified.
Advertising of Certification
Only after ARELLO grants certification may a provider utilize the ARELLO
certification logo and so denote its certification status in official publications or
advertising. Providers may advertise certified courses as “Course Instructional
Design and Delivery Certified by the Association of Real Estate License Law
Officials” as long as certification is current and in good standing. A secondary
provider may not advertise that a course is ARELLO certified unless: 1) the primary
provider has submitted the course and been granted certification, and 2) the
secondary provider has also submitted the course to ARELLO and been granted
certification.
Providers advertising certified courses shall ensure the delivery method, course
titles and clock hours advertised are consistent with what is listed on the ARELLO
certification summary certificate.
Advance Notice of Substantive Changes
A provider considering substantive change(s) to a course(s) should notify ARELLO,
in writing, of any proposed changes sixty (60) days in advance of the change.
Substantive changes are generally defined as any changes in the course which will
affect the certified instructional design and/or delivery. Changes in the course clock
hours are also typically considered to be a substantive change.
Additional factors considered substantive include major content revisions, new
administration and/or owners, new facilities or new locations. Additions, removals
or modification of course instructors are also considered a substantive change to the
course and shall be approved by ARELLO.
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Change in Provider Accreditation, Approval or State Licensure Status
A provider of any ARELLO certified course must notify ARELLO within ninety (90)
days of any denial, suspension, revocation, probation or any other final or interim
adverse action affecting any accreditation status of the provider. A provider who has
been granted certification must notify ARELLO in writing of any state agency or
other regulatory body attempting to withdraw approval or licensure of the
institution or any of its courses, programs or instructors.
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Course Audits
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Grounds for Suspension, Withdrawal or Conditioning of
Certification
While standards and certification are positive components of maintaining quality
distance education, other measures associated with enforcement of the standards
are necessary to ensure courses are taught as certified.
At any point during the time a course is certified by ARELLO, reviewers may
perform the following enforcement procedures, for primary and/or secondary
providers that include but are not limited to:
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Anonymously auditing courses.
Randomly checking courses to ensure course design is consistent with
what was certified.
Requesting the provider document historical information pertaining to
the amount of time courses are taking students to complete.
Monitoring of advertising regarding certified courses.
It is important to note that ARELLO investigates complaints submitted by regulatory
officials, students, or other providers regarding certified courses.
Failure to comply with the responsibilities listed in this document shall be grounds
for suspension, withdrawal or conditioning of its grant of certification from ARELLO.
The sanctions against certified courses by ARELLO are appealable under the
procedures listed in this document.
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Course Review Policies
Introduction To Course Review Policy
ARELLO standards are applicable for a variety of delivery methods and
education models that utilize any number of different technologies. While
ARELLO is flexible in the application of its general standards in regard to a
variety of delivery methods, ARELLO has found it necessary to provide
course developers with additional specificity in regard to course review
policy pertaining to common delivery methods prevalent in today’s market.
This policy document has been created to provide additional specificity
to the ARELLO Distance Education Standards available at www.arello.net
and pertains to typical delivery methods and/or technologies used in
the design and delivery of distance education courses. ARELLO uses
these policies in light of the standards to measure the quality of courses
submitted for certification. The paragraphs below containing policy
have been numbered for easy reference. ARELLO reviewers may
reference this document and specific paragraphs during the
certification review process.
1. Delivery Method Definitions
ARELLO has strict guidelines that constitute delivery method definitions, and
certifies courses on an individual basis and by delivery method. For example,
a provider has an ethics course that is delivered via the Internet and CBT
(CDROM Based Training). In regard to ARELLO Certification, offering the
course via the Internet and CBT would constitute two separate delivery
methods thus requiring two separate certifications. Many providers choose
to offer identical courses via several different delivery methods to
accommodate market demands. While the list of definitions below does not
encompass all delivery methods that exist, the following represent the most
common delivery methods submitted to ARELLO. Some of the delivery
methods below are listed only for clarification and are not eligible to be
considered for certification. Please note, once a course is submitted to
ARELLO, the review team will define the delivery method based upon
ARELLO’s criteria. It is possible the delivery method you choose may not be
described below. For more information about delivery methods not defined
here, contact ARELLO.
1.1. CBT (CDROM Based Training) – CBT are asynchronous courses taught via a
computer and typically delivered from a CD-ROM. CBT courses may also be
“distributed” via the Internet but are not typically “delivered” via the
Internet. The distinguishing feature of CBT courses is that an Internet
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connection is not needed to complete the course or run a substantial part of
it. So for example, a course that is sent to the student on a CD-ROM and is
installed and run on the student’s computer independent of an Internet
connection would be considered a CBT course. Even if the student
completion reporting were done within the CBT program via an Internet
connection at the end of a course, the primary delivery method is still CBT.
Typically, in a CBT course student progress information is kept on the
student’s hard drive, not on a remote server as with Internet based courses.
1.2. Correspondence (not eligible for new certification) – Courses that use
static print or static print in electronic media as the primary means by which
to deliver content and assessments. Correspondence courses may consist of
“computer files” that students simply print off to read and interact with. For
example, a course consisting of a booklet and printed exercises that the
student completes would be considered a correspondence course. In
addition, word processing files or Adobe® PDF files that are used to simply
distribute course material would also be considered correspondence since
the purpose of the electronic file is to simply distribute the course content.
Static electronic text files that are available on a web site may also be
considered correspondence courses not necessarily “online courses.”
1.1. Web Enhanced Correspondence (not eligible for new certification) –
Courses that combine several technologies to deliver a single course. Most
often, web enhanced correspondence refers to correspondence courses that
utilize print or electronic media to deliver content to the student. In
addition, for interactive exercises such as quizzes or exams, web or other
technologies may be used. For example, a course developer provides
students with documents in which they could download from a web site and
read as the primary method of content distribution. So far, this would be
considered a correspondence course. However, the provider adds some
interactive quizzes students must take on the Internet, thus adding another
media to the instructional design strategy. This then would constitute a
mixed media course.
Regarding courses offered via “correspondence” and/or “web enhanced
correspondence” delivery methods:
a. ARELLO will cease to certify new courses using these delivery
methods after September 30, 2009.
b. Recertification of courses certified via these delivery methods will be
continued after September 30, 2009, but shall not have an expiration
date that surpasses September 30, 2012. ARELLO will prorate
recertification fees for courses not being allowed the full three year
certification term. Providers that need to have recertification fees
prorated should contact ARELLO prior to making the submission for
recertification.
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1.2. Asynchronous Internet – Courses that require an Internet connection to
complete. Internet or web-based courses are typically facilitated by web
technologies that use a web browser as the primary means of content
delivery and providing interactivity. Typically, Internet-based courses are
asynchronous and store student progress information in a database housed
on the provider’s server. Internet courses can typically be run from any
computer having an Internet connection and a web browser. In an Internet
based course, the content is delivered to the student in logical increments
and assessments are performed at appropriate intervals using Internet or
web technologies. Asynchronous Internet courses make up the majority of
courses submitted to ARELLO for certification.
1.3. Synchronous – Courses that require students to be engaged at a particular
time via any number of different technologies including the Internet,
Satellite or other telecommunications device. Synchronous courses typically
require a third party technology facilitator such as WebEx™ or
GoToMeeting™ among others. Synchronous courses offer unique capabilities
and challenges for educators when compared with asynchronous delivery
methods. Synchronous delivery platforms can provide educational
experiences similar to those in a classroom environment. For more
information synchronous Internet courses, see the Addendum for
Synchronous Internet Courses.
1.4. Considerations Regarding Course Delivery Method Definitions
Static computer files like Adobe® PDF or other word processing files
consisting of course content cannot be placed on a web site for download and
called an “Internet based” course.
Courses that appear to have identical interfaces but utilize different
technological infrastructures should be considered two different courses
when submitted to ARELLO. This is often the case for providers who wish to
offer both CBT and Internet based delivery methods for a single course to
accommodate students regardless of whether or not they have an Internet
connection.
Delivery method definitions take into account how courses are “delivered” as
opposed to how they are “distributed.” For example, many providers may
make their CBT courses available for download on a web site. This does not
make the course Internet based in that the “delivery” typically does not
require an Internet connection even though the method of “distribution” may
or may not.
Typically, when a provider replicates course features using different
technologies to accommodate market demand for a single course, this
equates to utilization of different delivery methods. Therefore, in regard to
ARELLO Certification, two different delivery methods would require a unique
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certification for each “set” of technologies used to offer a particular course.
For example, a course provider creates an Internet course that a student runs
from a centralized web server at the provider’s office. The provider then
creates a course that is identical in the way the course looks but utilizes
different technologies so the course can be run from a CD-ROM and without
an Internet connection. In this case, the provider has used two different base
technologies for offering the same course content. Therefore, since ARELLO
also examines the technological layer of each delivery method, the provider
would have to certify both delivery methods. In this case, one would be CBT
and the other Internet.
2. Course Design Requirements
Depending upon what type of distance education course you are developing
there are several requirements concerning course design. This section examines
several requirements for typical asynchronous Internet and CBT based courses.
If you have questions concerning a particular course design, contact ARELLO to
find out specifically how the standards will be applied in the review process for
certification.
2.1. Course Navigation (Applicable to CBT and Internet Based Courses)
When regulators examine the credibility of distance education courses, one
of the first items they consider is the completion time of the course. If a
course offered for eight clock hours takes 30 minutes for the typical student
to complete, the course essentially has little credibility with ARELLO or
regulatory agencies.
Therefore, Internet and CBT courses should control navigation through
course content to ensure the student masters the material on a unit-by-unit
basis. For example, if a student begins unit one of a course, he should not be
able to navigate to unit two until he has successfully demonstrated mastery
of unit one by some means of assessment like a quiz.
Designing courses within these parameters accomplishes several things: 1)
helps ensure the student masters the material in the course. 2) Helps ensure
the completion time is appropriate for the number of clock hours the course
is offered for.
2.2. Course Design Criteria (Correspondence Courses)
Correspondence courses in their traditional form have inherent issues that
cause concern for regulators. In some cases, regulatory agencies do not
accept traditional correspondence courses due to the lack of required
interactivity. While providers are required to implement incremental
assessments within correspondence courses, these assessments are often not
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presented in a form that requires the student to complete them or provides
mandatory remediation. Despite certain inherent issues with navigating
though a correspondence (paper and pencil) course, many regulatory
agencies feel these courses do provide a legitimate learning potential and
therefore approve courses via this delivery method for credit.
Regarding courses offered via “correspondence” and/or “web enhanced
correspondence” delivery methods:
a. ARELLO will cease to certify new courses using these delivery methods
after September 30, 2009.
b. Recertification of courses certified via these delivery methods will be
continued after September 30, 2009, but shall not have an expiration
date that surpasses September 30, 2012. ARELLO will prorate
recertification fees for courses not being allowed the full three year
certification term. Providers that need to have recertification fees
prorated should contact ARELLO prior to making the submission for
recertification.
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3. Interactivity
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4. Evaluation and Assessment
Educational research indicates that interactivity is a critical part of the
learning process. Therefore, ARELLO requires courses have learning
strategies that provide interactivity and that those strategies are measurable
in terms of their success. There are three types of interaction: a) studentcontent, b) student-student, and c) student-instructor.
3.1 ARELLO requires the availability of student-instructor interactivity and also
requires acceptable levels of interactivity in regard to student-content.
3.2 While student-student interactivity is welcomed and recognized as a valuable
learning strategy, it is not required.
3.3 ARELLO requires reasonable levels of student-content interaction. Student
content interaction is evaluated on a course-by-course basis by reviewers.
Examples of student content interaction include but are not limited to,
hyperlinks to vocabulary words, links to supplemental reference material,
quizzes, final exams, and remediation exercises.
4.1. Pretests
Pretests are administered to measure the student’s knowledge prior to
taking the course. By the end of the course, a clear measurement of what
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has been learned can be provided to the student by comparing pre and post
assessments. Pretests are not required for ARELLO Certification.
However, pretests do serve as interactive elements that can be attributed to
a course. A pretest may also be a worthy learning strategy to implement in
order to extend the time it takes to complete a course and meet clock hour
requirements. Implementing pretests solely as a way to extend course time
is not recommended. Any implementation of pretest should be integrated
with other learning strategies such as post-tests to ensure they are
purposeful and accurately provide some measurement of student
performance.
4.2. Incremental Assessments
Incremental assessments are typically considered to be quizzes given after
each logical unit of instruction. Incremental assessments are required at
appropriate intervals throughout the course to obtain certification.
These assessments should be properly designed to ensure questions are not
too easy and are not repetitive. Incremental assessments should be
designed to properly measure whether or not mastery of the material has
been achieved. ARELLO will not quantify a preferred number of assessment
items. ARELLO will look for a “reasonable number” of questions to reflect
the material presented and more importantly that the objectives have been
appropriately measured. For example, if a particular unit takes the typical
student thirty minutes to complete and is fairly complex in nature, it is
doubtful five true or false questions would adequately measure competency.
Instead the provider may more appropriately choose a higher number of
multiple choice questions for the incremental assessment. ARELLO will
examine the number and type of assessment items to ensure the instrument
appropriately measures the course objectives.
4.3. Summative Assessments
Summative assessments are typically considered final exams to be
administered at the end of a course to ensure mastery over all the material
presented in the course. As with incremental assessments, summative
assessments should be properly designed to ensure questions are not too
easy and are not repetitive. Summative assessments shall not consist of
identical questions posed in the incremental assessments. In other words,
final exam questions shall not consist of questions previously posed in a
quiz. Summative assessments should be designed to properly measure
whether or not mastery of the material as been achieved. ARELLO does not
quantify a preferred number of assessment items. ARELLO will look for a
reasonable number of questions to reflect the material presented and more
importantly that the course objectives are appropriately assessed.
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Summative assessments are highly recommended but not required for
ARELLO Certification because a number of regulatory agencies do not
require final exams for course approval.
4.4. Remediation
Remediation takes place during the process of an assessment. Remediation
involves providing the student, when a question is answered incorrectly,
with some indication of why their answer was incorrect and what the
appropriate answer should have been. Remediation should be implemented
as a part of the required incremental assessments. Remediation may not be
considered vital on summative assessments or final exams. Course
developers should ensure remediation strategies do not over simplify the
course to where student are simply “given the answers.” ARELLO reviewers
will evaluate remediation strategies on a course-by-course basis.
4.5. Assessment Banks
Assessment banks allow assessment (quiz or test) questions to be presented
from an appropriately sized “pool” of potential questions. For example, for
every 10 quiz questions, there may be 30 potential questions within the
bank. Implementation of an assessment bank within a course provides an
excellent instructional strategy to ensure students do not simply memorize
questions and answers. When using an assessment bank, no assessment is
identical to one a student previously completed. Providers should ensure
that questions in the bank provide adequate distribution across objectives
being measured. For example, if there are 10 course objectives for a unit
and 30 questions in the bank for the unit quiz, there should be 3 questions
developed per objective. Questions should be proportionally implemented
for the number of objectives being measured.
Providers shall submit all
assessment banks with answers to ARELLO for the review process.
ARELLO recommends that in addition to assessment banks, if the student
could theoretically experience the same questions twice, that when multiple
choice options are employed, the answer options appear in random order.
Required Implementation of Assessment Banks or Similar Process
Effective after September 30, 2009, incremental (quizzes) and summative
(final exam) assessments shall be developed using technologies that better
ensure objectives have been achieved. This will include the appropriate use
of “assessment bank” systems or similar process that better ensure integrity
of the assessment. For example, if a student is asked a question in an
assessment and fails to answer the question appropriately, the system should
reassess using different assessment items that cover the same objective.
ARELLO recommends, using a “three to one” ratio of questions stored to
questions presented. Providers may also choose other strategies such as
implementing multiple versions of an assessment where the entire
assessment is replaced with a new one in the event the student does not
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succeed on initial attempts.
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4.6. Assessment Quality
Course developers and instructional designers should be familiar with
Benjamin Bloom’s taxonomy for categorizing the level of abstraction of
questions that commonly occur in educational settings. Bloom’s taxonomy
provides a useful framework in which to categorize assessment items.
Ideally, and unless course objectives state otherwise, instructional designers
should design assessment items that incorporate a variety of questions that
would range from the knowledge level on through the application, analysis,
synthesis, and evaluation levels. ARELLO reviewers will evaluate the quality
of assessment items in light of the course objectives and other learning
strategies found in the course.
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5. Student Support Services
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6. Other Requirements for Primary Providers
5.1. Course Syllabus and Orientation
Providers must give students a course syllabus or student manual during the
orientation for the course. Items in syllabus or student manual should
include but be not limited to:
 Instructor contact information for instructional support.
 How credit will be reported to regulatory agencies if applicable.
 Technology requirements or prerequisite skills.
 Links to the schools policies on the cheating or misrepresenting
student identity.
 How much time the student has to complete the course.
 Refund polices.
6.1. Manual for Secondary Providers
ARELLO requires primary providers or course developers that use
secondary providers as a means of distributing and instructionally
supporting courses to develop a reference manual for secondary providers.
The secondary provider’s manual should contain but not be limited to the
following when applicable:
 Instructional strategies for the secondary provider that may enhance
the course.
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 Information on how to access administrative features of a course used
in monitoring student progress.
 Suggestions on how to offer timely and quality instructional support.
 Information pertaining to course design and delivery that may be
necessary for secondary providers to obtain prior to receiving
ARELLO Certification. For example, a manual might include comments
on the course instructional design that would help secondary
providers understand how to answer the necessary question on the
secondary provider application form for ARELLO Certification.
 Technical support information.
6.2. Time Studies
Note: time studies are not necessary for courses taught live or completely
by synchronous delivery methods. These delivery methods include but are
not limited to live satellite broadcasts, live video conferencing, or live web
casts using streaming media. Even though time studies are not required for
courses using these types of delivery methods, a timing analysis of the
course syllabus or schedule of what is taught when and for how long is
necessary to document that the course will take the appropriate amount of
time to complete.
Time studies are required to help ensure the average completion time of a
course is appropriate for the number of clock hours the course is being
offered for. Two methods are available for providers to meet the time
study requirement.
6.2.1. The provider can have 10 individuals of an appropriate sample
audience complete the course and fill out the appropriate Time
Study Participant form available at ARELLO.NET. Please note
students must complete the affidavits provided by ARELLO. These
reports received in any other manner will not be accepted.
6.2.2. The provider may have two qualified professionals, which are
experienced with course content and instructional design, complete
the course and attest to the appropriate time. These professionals
must complete the Time Study Participant form located at
ARELLO.NET.
6.2.3. The primary difference between these two options is obviously the
number of participants that would be involved in the time study.
ARELLO prefers “10 individuals of an appropriate sample audience”
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because it represents a broader sample that would better verify the
appropriate number of clock hours. It also represents the best
method a provider can assure the course time is appropriate.
However, ARELLO realizes having ten individuals taking lengthier
courses, like prelicense or other qualifying education courses, can be
cost prohibitive and therefore allows for the “two professionals”
option.
During the course review, ARELLO reviewers conduct their own
time analysis to ensure the integrity of the provider’s time study. If
ARELLO finds that its time study substantially differs from the one
provided by the course provider, one of two actions will occur:
a) The course will be certified with a reduced number of clock
hours.
b) Certification for the course will be denied.
6.2.4. ARELLO will not allow providers to resubmit courses that are
lacking the appropriate clock hours multiple times. ARELLO does
attempt to allow providers with instructional design issues
identified during the review process to address those issues and
resubmit the course for no additional fee. This is not the case for
courses that do not take the appropriate amount of time to
complete. ARELLO course reviewers reserve the right to reject time
studies not validated by their own and require a provider to
resubmit time studies using the “10 individuals of an appropriate
sample audience” approach.
6.2.5. ARELLO as most regulatory agencies recognize an “instructional
hour” as 50 minutes. So a “3 hour” course should take the average
student 150 minutes to complete.
6.3.
Required Learning Management Time Tracking Functionality
6.3.1. Primary providers of courses offered via asynchronous Internet or CBT delivery
methods should have a learning management system in place that quantifies
the amount of time students spent in a course. This includes time reading
content, taking assessments, and participating in other instructional activities.
This is not “mandating seat time” for each student but documenting students,
on average, are spending the appropriate amount of time in a course.
Providers will be required to show evidence that their LMS has time tracking
and reporting capability during the (re)certification process. Student affidavits
or “personal testimony” affirming course time will no longer be accepted at
recertification as a means of documenting that a course is taking students the
appropriate amount of time to complete.
ARELLO shall accept student
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testimony on the “Time Study Participants Form” for ensuring time as a part of
the “time study” process during the initial review for certification only.
6.3.2. If the course is offered via secondary providers, the secondary provider will
need to quantify the time students are spending in the course for
recertification. Primary providers shall ensure secondary providers have
access to reports in the learning management system that allows them to view
how long their students are taking to complete a course.
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7. Course Content
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8. Secondary Providers
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9. Instructors
ARELLO does not as a matter of practice review course content but only
instructional design and delivery. Content is often unique to individual
jurisdictions and it would be cost prohibitive for ARELLO to maintain content
experts for all the jurisdictions that recognize ARELLO Certification. However,
during the course review for instructional design and delivery, if content issues
become obvious to members of the review team, ARELLO will address those as
part of the review process. ARELLO may also take into consideration the
difficulty level of the course objectives and assessments as they pertain to course
time. Courses with higher level objectives and assessment items may be
certified for more time that those that are offered at a lower level. ARELLO
reviewers use Bloom’s Taxonomy as a gauge for evaluating the difficulty of
objectives and assessment items.
A secondary provider obtains a course from primary provider. They also have
approved instructors and are responsible for monitoring student progress and
verifying course completion and student identity. Secondary providers provide
opportunities for interaction, support, administrative communications, and
assessment or evaluation feedback. During the process of reviewing an
application for secondary certification, ARELLO reviewers will evaluate and
document the secondary provider’s plan to perform the associated
responsibilities. Secondary providers may also be the subject of audits by
ARELLO to ensure the course is taught as certified. More information about
requirements for secondary providers can be found in the Secondary Provider’s
Application for Certification available in the Documents area of www.arello.net.
9.1.
All ARELLO Certified courses must have an instructor regardless of
the delivery method. Students taking distance education courses
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require instructional support that can only be provided by a qualified
course instructor. Instructors may also play an important role in
monitoring student progress.
9.2.
As of January 1, 2009, instructor(s) associated with distance
education courses being submitted for ARELLO (re)certification will
be required to have the CDEI™ designation. Instructors that have not
earned the CDEI™ designation will not be permitted to be listed as the
instructor for an ARELLO certified courses. ARELLO requires a
qualified instructor to be associated with every certified
course. Education providers should double check with their course
instructors to ensure they are maintaining the CDEI™ designation.
The CDEI™ requires renewal every three years.
9.3.
Instructor credentials must be submitted with the application and
reflect experience and expertise in the subject matter and the distance
delivery. If instructors are changed or added, the credentials must be
submitted and approved by ARELLO before they can officially teach or
instructionally support the course.
9.4.
A part of the instructor’s responsibility is to monitor student progress
in the course. On-line courses should have a course/learning
management system where the instructor monitors student progress.
In the case of other delivery methods such as correspondence and
CBT, the school and the instructor must have a system in place to
check on student progress at a minimum of every 30-days. This can be
done via mail, e-mail or telephone. See the ARELLO-IDECC Standards
and Resource Guide for more information.
Summary
This policy document is subject to change and does not pertain to all delivery
methods. Delivery methods such as satellite broadcasting, or other delivery
methods not commonly used by course providers seeking certification may have
additional requirements not mentioned here. All courses are subject to the general
ARELLO Distance Education Standards.
If you have questions pertaining to this policy document, please contact ARELLO at
334-260-2928 or email Info@arello.net for more information.
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Addendum for Synchronous Internet Courses
Introduction
The purpose of this addendum is to clarify how ARELLO’s Distance Education
Standards apply to synchronous Internet or “Webinar” courses. It is important to
clarify that most of the policies provided in this document also apply to synchronous
courses. For example, synchronous Internet courses like asynchronous ones must:

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Provide an appropriate orientation to the student.
Assess the learning at appropriate intervals throughout the course.
Use assessments that measure objectives etc.
Provide remediation strategies where necessary to ensure mastery.
Provide adequate amounts of interactivity.
Accommodate the availability of timely instructional support by a
credentialed instructor.
Etc.
Synchronous Internet courses offer unique capabilities and challenges for educators
when compared with asynchronous delivery methods. With the cost of facilitating
synchronous courses decreasing, more education providers than ever are
considering synchronous delivery methods. Education providers that have strong
classroom programs are especially considering the advantages of synchronous
education because they can extend their live classroom programs to students at a
distance. Of all distance education delivery methods, synchronous distance
education is often viewed as being closest to the live classroom experience.
How ARELLO Standards Apply To Synchronous Internet Courses
Listed below are some specific issues with ARELLO certification and how
synchronous Internet courses differ from asynchronous.
1. Time studies – are not required for ARELLO Certification in synchronous
Internet courses. A synchronous Internet course is offered live requiring the
student to be online at a particular date and time. ARELLO will require a
detailed timed outline of the course content, course materials such as books,
handouts, and PowerPoint® presentations to ensure that there is enough
content to justify the clock hours requested. As with a live classroom course,
instructors must document how they will use the allotted time to help
students achieve the course objectives.
2. Assessments – are required at appropriate intervals of the course. The
course provider must submit the assessments and a detailed plan on how
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they will use the technology to administer them. The plan submitted must
meet minimum standards. ARELLO reviewers are familiar with almost every
major platform for offering synchronous education. The review process for
certification will document that the provider is capable and familiar with the
features of the technology they intend to use.
Also in synchronous courses, course instructors can assess and remediate the
class or cohort as opposed to solely the individual. For example, in
asynchronous courses, when a student is given a quiz, the quiz score is
attributed to the individual student. In an asynchronous environment, it is
far more difficult to provide individualized instruction because of the
constraints of time. In the synchronous environment, an instructor can
“quiz” or “poll” the individuals in a class with a specific question. The
instructor can then examine the results of the quiz and determine where
remediation, if any, may be needed in context of the whole class. If a class of
30 students answers a quiz question and the instructor sees through the
technology used that 10 students answered the question incorrectly, the
instructor would know to remediate appropriately and would do so with the
whole class. In contrast, if the instructor sees that only one student
answered the question incorrectly, the instructor may bypass remediation at
their discretion and/or give the student that answered the question
incorrectly the ability to remediate outside of “class.” Other approaches may
be used in assessing students with synchronous technologies. The example
listed here represents a common methodology for assessing students but
course developers are not limited to this approach.
Note: Regulatory agencies charged with approving professional education
often require summative assessments (final exams) at the end of a course
and require the student achieve a minimum score. This can be one of the
major challenges of using a synchronous delivery platform. If the education
provider is required to implement a final exam as a part of the course, then
they will have to work out the details of measuring individual performance
on a final exam with their application vendor. Some vendors have this
capability while others do not. Care should be given in choosing a technology
vendor that can accommodate measurement of individual performance on a
final exam. In some cases, course providers have implemented “fax in” final
exams or other technology systems of their own outside of the synchronous
delivery environment to accommodate individualized testing, scoring, and
reporting.
3. Instructor Training – is vital in a synchronous Internet course. Instructors
are responsible for using technology to present content, while assessing,
remediating, and completing the course within time constraints. ARELLO
requires that course instructors and facilitators document the training they
have completed that has prepared them to use a specific synchronous
technology platform. ARELLO reviewers may also request the education
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provider verify competency by demonstrating the features of the course with
an ARELLO reviewer.
A course “instructor” will always be required in synchronous Internet
courses. In some cases, ARELLO may require or recommend an additional
course “facilitator.” The “facilitator” would focus on the technology and
helping the instructor where necessary. The instructor would focus on
content delivery and answering questions. Whether the “facilitator” is
required for ARELLO Certification will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
A good rule of thumb to consider is, as the number of students in a course
increase, so does the justification for a facilitator in addition to the instructor.
Facilitators (or teaching assistants) do not have to be content experts as long
as their role is limited to administrative functions.
4. Interactivity – is required in all certified courses. Quizzes, polls, chat,
whiteboard annotations, document sharing, cooperative learning exercises
with other students are all strategies that are available in most synchronous
learning platforms. While certification is not contingent upon the use of all
these strategies, course designers are encouraged to think beyond rote
lecture and quizzes.
Instructors are also required to document how they will use interactivity to
ensure students are present and engaged in the course. With most quality
synchronous platforms, it is simple to include interactive strategies that
make it very difficult for a student to login and “walk away.” Instructors
should have procedures in place to deal with students that do not participate
in course activities. These procedures should be communicated in the course
orientation.
Summary
Synchronous Internet courses can be very similar to the classroom experience if:


The technological platform has features that allow instructors to interact
with and assess students in different ways.
The instructor is well trained on the delivery platform, and has clear
objectives on how and when to use its features.
Synchronous courses that have historically not met ARELLO standards include those
that were:
 Rote lecture with no assessment or with only a final exam. For ARELLO
certification, incremental assessments are required, final (summative)
assessments are recommended but not required.
 Not designed to meet or appropriately measure the objectives.
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Finally, it is often the aspiration of education providers to record a synchronous
course and allow students to access it at a later date asynchronously for credit. In
this case, ARELLO would consider the live and recorded versions to be two different
delivery methods and would thus require two different certifications. The
instructional design of the course and procedures for assessment and remediation
dramatically change between synchronous and asynchronous delivery methods. It
is recommended that course providers that have questions regarding synchronous
delivery methods consult ARELLO prior to developing the course.
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