Louisiana Administrative Code › Title 28 - EDUCATION › Part LXXIX - Bulletin 741(Nonpublic)-Louisiana Handbook for Nonpublic School Administrators › Chapter 25 - Career/Technical Education Course Offerings › Section LXXIX-2523 - Distance Learning

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 6, June 20, 2024
A. A
				school choosing to implement a distance education program shall establish
				policy and procedures for reviewing and approving programs that meet the
				following standards for distance education as established by BESE.
1. Distance education shall comply with all
				BESE policies related to nonpublic schools.
2. The school shall meet the following
				requirements related to the development of a standards-based distance education
				program. A
receiving
school is defined as any school that has
				students enrolled in courses via distance education. A
provider
could be an LEA, school, agency or educational
				organization.
a. The receiving school shall
				authorize each distance education course and ensure that the rigor and breadth
				meets appropriate course content requirements.
b. The receiving school shall ensure that
				instruction is provided by teachers certified or qualified in the
				course/subject in which they are teaching with training in the delivery method,
				including appropriate media and pedagogy.
c. The receiving school shall verify that
				college and university advanced placement and/or college dual enrollment course
				instructional staff not holding Louisiana state teacher credentials are
				validated as subject matter experts by the providing institution.
d. The receiving school shall ensure that all
				students enrolled in a distance learning course are provided with the necessary
				course materials and technical support.
e. The receiving school shall evaluate the
				effectiveness of each authorized distance education course based on course
				completion rates and student achievement.
f. The provider shall define minimum
				prerequisite technology competencies for student participation in distance
				education courses if such competencies are required for course
				access.
g. The provider shall also
				make available to the student an orientation to the course delivery method
				prior to or at the start of the course.
h. The provider shall ensure that teachers
				delivering instruction in distance education courses use a variety of methods
				to assess the mastery of the content as reflected in the
Louisiana
				Content Standards
.
i. The
				provider shall provide to the receiving school a complete syllabus and a list
				of required materials prior to course implementation.
j. The provider shall ensure that all course
				content complies with copyright fair use laws, including The Technology,
				Education, and Copyright Harmonization Act (TEACH Act).
k. Online Course providers shall ensure
				access to the courses' web content by using non-proprietary technologies
				(html).
l. Schools and course
				providers shall make courses available to all students by complying with web
				accessibility guidelines and standards (W3C, section 508, and Louisiana and
				institutional guidelines) to the maximum extent reasonably possible.
m. The provider shall supply course content
				that is designed to meet the following criteria:
i. based on current perspectives of learning
				theories and curriculum standards;
ii. systematic in design, clearly written and
				revised based on student performance and feedback;
iii. uses appropriate presentation methods,
				media and pedagogy;
iv. engages
				students in a variety of learning activities based on various learning
				styles;
v. accommodates individual
				differences, including student disabilities; and
vi. encourages student-to-teacher and
				student-to-student interaction.
3. Management and Administration
a. The receiving school shall award credit
				and grades for distanced education courses assigned by the distance education
				provider and instructor with no deviations.
b. The receiving school shall ensure that a
				facilitator who is a Louisiana licensed or qualified teacher is assigned to and
				is actively engaged with each student participating in distance education
				courses.
c. The receiving school
				shall ensure that the facilitator adheres to guidelines determined by the
				provider and the policies in this Section.
d. The receiving school shall provide
				adequate, timely, and appropriate technical support to students, teachers, and
				facilitators.
e. The receiving
				school shall ensure that the facilitators are provided ongoing staff
				development appropriate to the delivery method used, supporting distance
				education courses technically and instructionally.
f. The receiving school shall ensure that
				students have appropriate, equitable, and adequate access for course
				participation.
g. In the event of
				short- and long-term interruptions, the school shall establish an alternative
				method of instruction in cooperation with the provider.
h. The provider shall judiciously address
				issues relative to course load and student-teacher ratio as appropriate for the
				particular method of delivery, course content, and teacher competency to ensure
				effective student interaction and course management.
i. Students will be enrolled, added, and
				dropped as outlined in the school policies.
j. The provider shall ensure that the teacher
				providing instruction is provided adequate technical support to ensure ease of
				use for faculty and students.
k.
				The provider shall furnish training and/or support in designing course content
				to fit the delivery methods proposed for distance education courses.
l. The teacher delivering instruction and the
				facilitator, through ongoing communication, shall be responsible for verifying
				student participation and performance.
m. The teacher delivering instruction shall
				provide alternate course procedures and activities for use in case of technical
				and other course delivery problems arise that prevent normal course
				delivery.
n. The teacher delivering
				instruction shall an atmosphere conducive to optimal learning, including but
				not limited to monitoring online discussions and other instructional
				activities.
o. The teacher
				delivering instruction shall practice ethical and legal use of equipment and
				instructional resources.
p. The
				facilitator shall practice ethical and legal use of equipment and instructional
				resources.
q. The teacher
				delivering instruction and the facilitator through ongoing communication shall
				be responsible for verifying student participation and performance.
r. The facilitator shall implement alternate
				course procedures when technical and other course delivery problems prevent
				normal course delivery.
s. The
				facilitator shall maintain an atmosphere conducive to optimal learning
				including but not limited to monitoring online discussions and other
				instructional activities as they occur in the classroom as directed by the
				teacher delivering instruction.
4. Specifications
a. The receiving school shall provide
				students enrolled in distance education courses technical access which meets
				specifications furnished by the course provider.
b. The receiving school shall provide
				instructional and communication hardware which meets specifications furnished
				by the course provider.
c. The
				receiving school shall fund and provide timely and appropriate technical
				support.
d. The provider will
				furnish course technical requirements sufficiently in advance so districts may
				make informed decisions about participation.
e. Course providers will ensure they have the
				appropriate technical infrastructure to support their course offerings for
				effective course delivery.