Teaching Observation and Course Review

To meet concurrent enrollment standards, teaching observations and course content reviews are required. Teaching observations and course reviews are essential to verify quality and rigor are comparable to the same course taught at the college campus or online. Faculty Liaisons visit the classroom to observe course quality, equivalence, and student engagement. One course observation per each discipline taught by College Connections Instructors (CCI) will occur each semester for the first (1st) three (3) semesters taught by a CCI (consecutive or intermittent) for each discipline. After the first (3) semesters, course observation(s) will occur every three years. The Faculty Liaison completes and signs the EICC College Connections Instructor Observation Form (see Appendix B) and shares with the CCI and High School. All site visits should be completed before the High School semester ends. Observation Forms are filed with and tracked by the Curriculum and Accreditation department at EICC.

Course Content Review

• Occurs at the same time and same intervals as the observation of teaching.
• The Faculty Liaison and CCI review course content for common student learning outcomes, required instructional topics, assessment measures, and grading.
• Syllabi and assessments are collected each semester and documented for accreditation.

Policy

All CCI are expected to adhere to the EICC Course Development Model (CDM) for content, academic rigor, and assessment components. Non-compliance occurs when any of the College Connections course content expectations are not followed.

Procedure for non-compliance

A Faculty Liaison will be assigned to each CCI. A teaching observation and review of the course are parts of the ongoing interaction between a Faculty Liaison and the CCI. If during an observation or during a review of the course content, the Faculty Liaison identifies concerns regarding adherence to the CDM, syllabus, course content, academic rigor, assessment components, and/or instructional issues, the concerns will be addressed, as follows, with the goal of assisting the CCI to correct the concerns.

1. The Faculty Liaison will complete the EICC Observation Form, including recommendations for improvement, and send it to the Department Coordinator or Program Director (DC/PD).
    
2. The DC/PD will assess the severity of the concerns and the corresponding recommendations. If the severity is modest, a follow-up will be scheduled with the CCI to ensure the recommendations are followed. The DC/PD will sign and file the CCI Observation Form with the appropriate instructional dean, who will forward a copy for the personnel file.
    
3. In the event the concerns are urgent or serious in nature, or in the event of continued non-compliance with recommendations, the DC/PD will alert the Dean of Instruction, sign the CCI Observation Form and indicate a request for formal evaluation.
    
4. The Dean of Instruction will contact the High School administrator to coordinate a meeting with the CCI, Dean of Instruction, Department Coordinator, and High School administrator to discuss instructional concerns and develop an action plan. The action plan will include a timeline for completion of each milestone. Written documentation of the action plan will be kept in the personnel file in the Department of Human Resources.
    
5. The DC/PD will follow up with the CCI, either through another meeting or through a classroom observation, to determine if the concerns outlined in the action plan have been addressed and resolved. The Department Coordinator may request that the Dean of Instruction be involved in this meeting.
    
6. If the terms of the action plan are not adhered to, the Dean of Instruction and the DC/PD may determine that the course does not maintain College quality. The Dean of Instruction will cancel the course for the subsequent academic semester and the instructor will lose his/her status as a CCI in that discipline. The High School administration will be informed of the College’s decision, and the Dean of Instruction will work with the High School to identify another instructor, if appropriate.
    

NOTE: If an instructor has been approved to offer College Connections courses in more than one discipline, the Faculty Liaison for each discipline will assess adherence to course content. Cancellation of one (1) College Connections course due to non-compliance does not automatically cancel other College Connections courses.