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Course Definition
The Tennessee Board of Regents technology centers, community colleges, and universities have joined in a collaborative, strategic planning effort to offer the Regents Online Degree Program (RODP) and the Regents Online Continuing Education and Workforce Development (ROCE) Program. The thirteen two-year community colleges deliver and award four associate degrees, and the six TBR universities deliver and award two bachelor degrees, and masters degrees in Education, Professional Studies, and Nursing.
RODP courses are entirely online and transferable among all the participating institutions. Students may choose the college or university (home school) through which the admission and registration processes are completed and at which their degrees are awarded.
Registration Override Form
Students who are not earning a degree through the RODP but wish to take a RODP course are required to complete the RODP Request for Override Form. This form is submitted to the department of the student’s major.
It is the responsibility of the student to ensure RODP classes meet degree requirements.
Prior to enrolling in any RODP course, students are encouraged to check degree requirements with their college advisors.
Class Size
Maximum class enrollments for RODP courses are:
25 Undergraduate;
15 Graduate.
Typically, MTSU guidelines* are used for RODP course recommended minimum enrollments.
| No. Students |
Course Levels |
| 6 |
7000 |
| 8 |
6000 |
| 10 |
3000/4000/5000 |
| 15 |
1000/2000 |
*Based on the Faculty Workload I, G and Summer School Guidelines VI, 1.
Please note:
- The MTSU Banner system displays only the R50 section, with MTSU student enrollments only, of each RODP course.
- Course sections balanced the week prior to each semester.
- Additional course sections (R51, R52, etc.) must be placed manually in the instructors workload.
FTE and Student Headcount
The home institution receives all FTE and Student Headcount and 30% of the RODP fee.
The home school is the university to which the student has been admitted, and from which his/her degree will be awarded.
The delivering institution is the university or community college from which the course is being taught and it receives all tuition.
Faculty - Full Time
Course Access
RODP courses are accessed through the RODP website.
Required Training – Course Instruction
All faculty new to RODP course instruction are required to participate in these online training sessions:
- Faculty RODP Orientation;
- Teaching with D2L Tools trainings.
Faculty who wish to prepare for RODP course instruction in anticipation of teaching a section of an existing course may register for training sessions at the RODP training website.
Course and Teaching Preparation
- RODP course designers are required to serve as the lead instructor/designer for their courses which includes maintaining and updating course content in the master shell especially just before cloning course sections prior to each semester.
- Consider the academic calendar when determining assignment deadlines and course activities: beginning/end of semester; holidays; final grade submissions, etc.;
- Notify the Distance Learning Faculty Services Office if the delivery date of a new RODP course must be postponed;
- Staff as many of the sections as required/possible each semester or locate instructors to staff them.
- Successfully complete Online Sexual Harassment Training, provided for and required of all MTSU personnel, before (or shortly after) the beginning of the semester.
Teaching Responsibilities
- Instruct the course in the TBR-supported learning environment system Desire2Learn (D2L);
- Conduct a high level of interaction among students and between instructor and students;
- Log into class at least three times per week
- Respond to student e-mails and discussion postings within 48 hours
- Grade assignments, discussions, quizzes, etc., and post the grades within two weeks of the assignment’s posted due date
Faculty Compensation
- Departments are reimbursed (at the faculty extra compensation rate) for all RODP courses offered within faculty workloads.
- Departments process the pay documents for faculty teaching RODP courses in an overload situation using the Distance Learning Faculty Services account and position numbers. Linda Davis (lmdavis@mtsu.edu) may be contacted for account and position numbers.
- RODP course sections other than R50 (R51, R52, etc.), are not visible on Banner or the faculty workloads and must be added manually by the department.
- Departments may view courses and enrollments at https://rodp.tbr.state.tn.us/loginadmin.asp. The password is mtsu2402.
- In previous summer sessions, schools had the flexibility of extending the summer faculty teaching load if faculty were teaching an RODP class. These RODP hours were outside the departments’ original summer allocations.
- Any hours taught over the summer workload of 8 hours were paid at the faculty extra compensation rate (dependent upon faculty rank) instead of summer school rate.
- Departments process the payroll paperwork for faculty teaching in summer using the Distance Learning Faculty Services account and position numbers. Linda Davis (lmdavis@mtsu.edu) may be contacted for account and position numbers.
Adjunct Faculty
Hiring
Course and Teaching Preparation
All faculty new to RODP course instruction are required to participate in these online training sessions:
- Faculty RODP Orientation;
- Teaching with D2L Tools trainings.
Faculty who wish to prepare for RODP course instruction (even if a course has not yet been assigned) may register for training sessions at the RODP training website.
New RODP faculty must:
- Successfully complete Online Sexual Harassment Training, provided for and required of all MTSU personnel, before (or shortly after) the beginning of the semester.
- Update assigned course section(s) as required by the RODP.
Teaching Responsibilities
- Instruct the course in the TBR-supported learning environment system Desire2Learn (D2L);
- Conduct a high level of interaction among students and between instructor and students;
- Log into class at least three times per week
- Respond to student e-mails and discussion postings within 48 hours
- Grade assignments, discussions, quizzes, etc., and post the grades within two weeks of the assignment’s posted due date
Faculty Compensation
Adjuncts are paid per credit hour, depending on their faculty rank (determined by the department), for teaching a RODP course. Departments process the pay documents for RODP instructors and forward them to Linda Davis (lmdavis@mtsu.edu) in the Distance Learning Faculty Services Office for processing.
RODP Faculty Mentors
http://www.rodp.org/faculty/rodp_faculty_mentors.htm
Faculty mentors provide online mentoring and assistance to RODP instructors. Their role consists of: preparing new faculty members for online teaching and learning; assisting with online and on-ground training of RODP instructors; ensuring courses adhere to the RODP guidelines, course design, and templates; ensuring the recommended faculty-student online communication and interactions; assisting with online faculty development activities; assisting with quality control and standards of excellence for online teaching and learning.
Grade Changes
http://www.rodp.org/faculty/gradechangeform.htm
- Instructions for submitting an RODP grade change, and the Grade Change Form, may be found at the RODP website.
- Instructors should follow their institution's policy when acquiring signatures for the grade change form.
- The deadlines for changing grades of Incomplete may also be found at the RODP website. The deadline depends upon the student's home school rather than the delivery institution.
Student Evaluations
RODP students complete online evaluations every fall and spring semester facilitated by the East Tennessee State University (ETSU) Research Center. Chairs are provided access to the evaluation results of all RODP courses taught by faculty within their respective departments.
Testing and Proctoring Information
- RODP instructors have the option of requiring two proctored exams (one during mid-term week and one during finals week).
- Students are responsible for identifying an appropriate proctor and setting up arrangements for taking a test according to the noted RODP guidelines.
- RODP instructors will review and have final approval authority over any potential proctor.
- Students may select any TBR institution at which to take their exam or another location that is approved by the instructor.
- The MTSU Distance Learning Test Center, located in 126 Kirksey Old Main, is a test proctoring site for RODP students. Students may schedule online or contact skcopela@mtsu.edu or 615/898-2743 to make test proctoring arrangements.
Instructional Resources
Faculty Instructional Technology Center
Located in the Telecommunications Building, the staff of the FITC assists Middle Tennessee State University faculty with the creation of online and hybrid courses and with technology-based instructional materials for their traditional courses.
Learning, Teaching and Innovative Technologies Center
The Learning, Teaching and Innovative Technologies Center (LT&ITC) is a partnership between Academic Affairs and the Information Technology Division to further faculty development in learning and teaching excellence. The objective of the LT&ITC is to create a community of faculty who develop, improve and integrate creative and effective use of appropriate pedagogy and technologies to enhance student learning.
Library, James E. Walker – Distance Librarian
MTSU Contacts
RODP Virtual Library
Sloan Consortium
Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) Standards for Quality Online Teaching
Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) Electronic Campus
Student Handbook
MTSU's definition of plagiarism may be found in the Student Handbook.
Turnitin Educational Suite
Turnitin is an online educational suite which assists distance educators with plagiarism detection and prevention. Some students may not know what plagiarism is or that they are violating copyright laws, especially if the information they are using is obtained from the internet. The Distance Learning Faculty Services Office provides Turnitin accounts for all MTSU distance educators. Please contact the Distance Learning Faculty Services Office at cladams@mtsu.edu or 615/904-8276 to request an account.
Instructional Recommendations
Student Readiness for Online Learning
Instructors may assess student readiness to take online classes by asking them to complete the Regents Online Degree Program (RODP) Student Readiness Survey.
First Day of Class
(Based on Best Practices for Student Success and RODP Policies & Guidelines)
- Send an email and post a message on the Discussion Board to students welcoming them to class and encouraging them to actively communicate with their classmates. Encourage them to email you regarding any learning problems or issues.
- Direct students to review the course syllabus and any “Getting Started” information. This will help students to understand the organization and requirements of the course.
- In an effort to establish a positive and respectful classroom environment, encourage your students to review your course expectations and remind them of appropriate behavior in an online environment.
First Week of Class
(Based on Best Practices for Student Success and RODP Policies & Guidelines)
- Be prepared for registration adjustments during the first week of class.
- Students on financial aid may be delayed in obtaining their textbooks due the processing of the materials. Therefore, please provide some alternative options for students without books to access the information for the first week (Internet, etc.).
- Make students aware of support services that may enhance their success online (free tutoring, virtual library, ADA services, etc.) Share with them that within their class are links to all of the services.
- “Be sure to help students practice any tools they will need later on, such as a special quizzing browser, an online writing or math lab with a code required to get in, a certain type of file or program, a media player, an audio recorder, a video camera, etc. Get problems solved during the first week so that students can focus on learning content – not technology – later on.”
- If your students will require a proctor, urge them to schedule this during the first week or two of class. Most testing centers are not heavily staffed, and trying to accommodate latecomers can become a nightmare for them.
-
Especially during the first week of class, try to be online every day. This will help students by:
- reducing concerns;
- addressing questions;
- establishing bonding;
- assisting students in preparing for the class;
- assisting students in learning to navigate the course.
Studies have shown that instructors who are available online every day during the first week have a significantly higher retention rate, increased communication and bonding, and fewer classroom problems.
After the Second Week of Class
(Based on Best Practices for Student Success and RODP Policies & Guidelines)
- Identify students who have not participated in the course and contact Susan Jones, Academic Outreach and Distance Learning, at smjones@mtsu.edu. Susan will try to contact the students to confirm that they are still enrolled and to offer assistance.
- When it is evident that a student is falling behind in his/her work, email them immediately to try to get back on track. Make sure that your policies on accepting late work are clear. If no late work is allowed, communicate this at the start of the semester. Also, quickly contact students who miss an assignment in an effort to assist them before the next assignment is due.
Semester Instructional Tips
(Based on Best Practices for Student Success and RODP Policies & Guidelines)
- Log into class at least three times per week to initiate communication with your students in an effort to serve as “facilitators of learning” and “motivators”.
- Respond to student e-mails and discussion postings within 48 hours, unless the students have been notified of any change beyond the required 48 hours.
- Grade assignments, discussions, quizzes, etc., and post the grades within two weeks of the assignment’s posted due date.
- MTSU online courses are to be taught asynchronously, and professors cannot require synchronous student interaction or assignments where students must be online at the same time as other students or with the instructor.
Discussion Board Examples
The discussion board is a useful teaching tool and allows for student-to-student interaction. If you intend to grade discussion, provide students with guidelines.
All students will post a response to each of the discussion questions. In addition each student will respond to the comments left by at least one of the other students. You may only respond once to any particular student and that student must respond to your comments. You may however respond to as many students as you like, and they may respond once to you.
General criteria used to assess class discussions include:
(1) Content Mastery: Students must evidence an understanding of the fact, concepts, and theories presented in the assigned readings and lectures. This ability is the basis for all higher-level skills and must be made evident by comments and/or response to questions.
(2) Communication Skills: Students must be able to inform others in an intelligent manner what he/she knows. Ideas must be communicated clearly and persuasively. Communication skills include listening to others and understanding what they have said, responding appropriately, asking questions in a clear manner, avoiding rambling discourses or class domination, using proper vocabulary pertinent to the discussion, building on the ideas of others, etc.
(3) Synthesis/Integration: Students must be able to illuminate the connections between the material under consideration and other bodies of knowledge. For example, one could take several ideas from the reading or class discussions and combine them to produce a new perspective on an issue, or one could take outside materials (from other classes, personal experiences, etc.) and combine them to create novel insights. Students who probe the interdisciplinary roots of the theories presented or who are able to view the author or the materials from several viewpoints demonstrate this skill.
(4) Creativity: Students must demonstrate that they have mastered the basic materials and have gone on to produce their own insights. A simple repetition of ideas from the articles will not suffice, nor will simply commenting on what others have said. Students must go beyond the obvious by bringing their own beliefs and imagination to bear. Creativity may be displayed by showing further implications of the material, by applying it to a new field, or by finding new ways of articulating the materials, which produce significant insights.
(5) Valuing: Students should be able to identify the value inherent in the material studied. Furthermore, students should be able to articulate their own positions by reference to basic underlying values. Students must not simply feel something is wrong or incorrect; she or he must be able to state why, based on some hierarchy of values. In either accepting or rejecting a position, the operative values must be explicit.
(6) General Enthusiasm and Interest in the Class: This can be shown by regularity of discussion and bringing in outside, ancillary materials that you read or have passed along to you. The more substance that you bring to the discussion, the higher your grade.
Instructional Resource Links
Copyright
Electronic Campus (SREB)
MTSU and RODP
Sloan Consortium
Sloan Consortium (Sloan-C) - institutions and organizations committed to quality online education.
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