1. PROSPECTIVE STUDENTS
2. CURRENT STUDENTS
3. FACULTY & STAFF
4. ALUMNI
5. COMMUNITY & FRIENDS

1. CAMPUS LINKS
   1. Inside UNCG
   2. Academics
   3. Administration
   4. Admissions
   5. Arts & Entertainment
   6. Athletics
   7. Continuing Education
      & Outreach
   8. Employment
   9. Giving to UNCG
   10. International Programs
   11. Libraries
   12. Online Courses & Degrees
   13. Research
   14. Technology
   15. University News

UNCG Distance Education Policy

Distance education is any instructional activity characterized by a separation in time or place between the student and instructor or providing institution for all or part of the period of study. It may require that faculty travel to outlying sites or that educational materials travel by some method of distance communication, or both. Operationally, a distance education course or program at UNCG is one that is designed to be offered or is offered to students at sites away from the UNCG campus. The fact that the course or program may also be accessed from on-campus sites will not exclude the course or program from this operational definition. However, as far as is consistent with the UNC-General Administration policy, courses taught off-campus in clinical, technical, or international settings as a part of what would normally be classified as an on-campus degree program are not considered distance education courses.

The creation and delivery of distance education programs raise new questions about ownership, compensation, control, evaluation, and quality, as well as other rights and responsibilities that may not be adequately addressed by existing policies. The purpose of this policy is to address these issues:

1. All current policies that apply to on-campus or “traditional” education will apply in the domain of distance education unless otherwise specified below.
2. UNCG is responsible for the technological delivery of courses.  Courses must be delivered by reliable methods, and the institution must provide technical, academic, clerical, and instructional design support services to faculty and students as appropriate.
3. Student services and instructional materials essential to distance education must be made available and accessible to all students and at all sites.
4. UNCG will train faculty, staff, and students in the use of information technology and distance delivery media as appropriate.
5. Decisions to offer courses or programs through distance education will reflect student needs and availability of resources. If a degree program is designed to be offered entirely by distance education, the enrolled student must be able to satisfy all requirements of that degree program.
6. The academic unit (the department or school if it is not departmentalized) providing distance education will be responsible for maintaining the same high standards for all courses, regardless of delivery method, and for ensuring that distance education instruction is comparable in quality and content to the corresponding traditional on-campus instruction. Academic units offering distance education courses will regularly assess the methods by which they are delivered and their content.
7. The academic unit offering distance education will approve the curriculum and will develop and implement fair policies regarding faculty workload and staff support. New courses, whatever their planned mode of delivery, must be approved by the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee or the Graduate Studies Committee, as appropriate. A faculty member must receive approval from his or her department head to offer a distance education course.
8. When full-time faculty offer distance education courses during fall or spring semester, they will do so as part of their regularly compensated responsibilities to UNCG, except in rare instances which require the approval of the Provost.
9. Policies for faculty evaluation should include appropriate recognition of teaching, service, and scholarly or creative activities related to distance education programs or courses.
10. Faculty who teach through distance education technologies are responsible for acquiring sufficient technical skills to present their subject matter and related material effectively, and, as necessary, for consulting with technical support personnel.
11. Faculty are responsible for informing students about technical skill prerequisites and required hardware, software, and supplementary materials necessary for course participation in the catalogue description or syllabus.
12. Faculty who offer distance education should be available to interact individually with their students in person or via email or telephone.
13. The Academic Honor Policy applies regardless of whether courses are taught traditionally or through distance education.
14. All courses in the Undergraduate and Graduate Bulletins may be offered by distance education if feasible.  The UNCG Semester Schedule of Classes must indicate which sections of courses will be delivered by distance education, but these courses will not be distinguished on transcripts from sections of these courses delivered in more traditional ways.
15. Credit hours granted for courses delivered through distance education will be the equivalent to the credit hours for the same courses delivered traditionally.
16. Student participation in distance education is likely to be recorded in various ways and media, and student participants may be required to post materials electronically. Students should be informed in the syllabus (a) that their participation will be recorded and (b) of the circumstances under which others may have access to those recordings and their postings. Additionally, recordings and postings should be destroyed when they are no longer needed.
17. As a general rule, the creator(s) of distance education materials used at UNCG own the copyright to those materials and retain right of use.  However, given the nature of distance education, the creator(s) of these materials and UNCG may find it desirable to enter into written agreements to protect the interests of all parties involved.

Return to Instructional Technology

Page updated: 02-Sep-2008

Accessibility Policy