Online Course Content Auditing: Templates and Practices

摘要

This paper introduces and discusses the Blackboard Content Audit tool developed by a CS school within an Australian university. Based upon the key sections of a unit's site in the Blackboard LMS, the tool establishes sets of basic, intermediate and advanced criteria and a rating scale upon which to assess the criteria. By specifying the basic criteria as a minimum standard, the consistency of unit sites can be improved. This helps to close the perceived quality gap between the schools online unit offerings, where in the past some staff had engaged more than others with the features of Blackboard. The audit process involves a semester based self-assessment by teaching staff for their units, followed by a review of the self-assessment by a member of the schools teaching and learning committee. This institutes an ongoing cycle of review, encouraging staff to continuously improve their online unit offerings. The auditing tool itself will also undergo regular review and refinement to ensure it remains relevant to the school's ongoing T & L needs. Such a tool could be adapted for any LCMS and institution in order to meet their specific needs and context.