Quality Matters @ Southeastern (QM@S) Steps

1. The Department Head recommends faculty members designing and developing an online
   course to a Southeastern Online Instructional Design Specialist.
2. The faculty member completes the Teaching Online at Southeastern course in the LMS and earns all of the necessary credentials for teaching online.
3. Faculty will meet with an Instructional Design Specialist at Southeastern Online to
   begin the design and development process of their course in the LMS. Faculty will
   teach the course during the first semester while designing the course with the designer.
4. At the end of the first semester of the course being taught, the faculty will make
   necessary revisions with the guidance of the Instructional Design Specialist. 
5. After the course has been taught twice, the faculty will submit their course for a
   formal QM@S review. This can be done during the second semester while teaching the
   course.
6. The course will undergo a screening process to determine if the course goes through
   to the next step. Courses are screened for measurable objectives, faculty introductions
   and inclusion of the course syllabus, for example.
7. A team of qualified eLearning Ambassadors complete the formal review, and Southeastern
   Online shares this anonymous feedback with the faculty member.
8. If the course does not earn a QM@S certification, the faculty will continue working
   with the Instructional Design Specialist to make necessary revisions based on feedback
   from the review and submit the course after getting approval from the designer. The
   course will not be taught again until a QM@S certification is obtained. The course
   will earn a QM@S certification in order for the course to be taught in an online or
   hybrid modality again.

Once a course has been through the entire QM@S review, it will be determined that
the course either meets or does not meet expectations based on the rubric. The faculty
member will be notified through email with the decision. The email will contain a
scorecard of your course review with the determination of the review along with feedback
and suggestions from the QM@S Review Team.

There are some courses that go through a review, but only needs minor adjustments
to pass. These courses are considered for an Amended Review Process (ARP). This allows
the faculty to make the changes within a 28-day period and have the unmet items reviewed
again.

The faculty member will be notified through email that the course did not meet expectations.
The email will include a scorecard containing detailed feedback from the QM@S Review
Team. This feedback includes suggestions and examples of how to make improvements
to meet standards. It is good practice to review and consider the feedback carefully
before beginning to make corrections to the course.

Once corrections have been made to the course, contact a Southeastern Online Instructional
Design Specialist and discuss options for submitting the course for another review.
There are times when a full review may not be necessary, and an Instructional Design
Specialist will be able to guide you through the next steps.

The faculty member will be notified through email that the course met expectations.
This email will include detailed feedback from the QM@S Review Team. A QM@S certification banner
will be added to the course in the LMS. This badge identifies the course as a quality
course that has undergone rigorous evaluation.

QM@S certifications last between three to five years. However, if there have been
significant changes to the course since the review and before the expiration time,
the course would need to go through a QM@S review sooner. These significant changes
can be things such as a textbook change or content, activities, and assessments that
have been added or deleted. Anything that affects course outcomes, learning objectives,
or the alignment of the course would be considered a significant change.

If there have not been significant changes to the course, the faculty member should
begin preparing to go through the QM@S steps again around the three- to four-year
mark to avoid the QM@S certification expiring for the course.

No, Southeastern Online does NOT conduct QM@S reviews. Southeastern Online maintains
the system for QM@S, but staff do not review courses. We help faculty prepare their
courses for a review and offer design and development workshops all year long for
faculty to design their courses against the QM@S rubric. Southeastern faculty from
all five colleges of the university who have received speciality training with the
rubric and online courses conduct the reviews.