Report of the

ACCREDITING COMMISSIONS

The Task Force reviewed the standards and guidelines of regional commissions within which “best practice principles” of distance education and learning have been adopted. In as much as distance education requires institutional commitment and support, it is especially important that the regional accrediting commissions have taken the initiative to develop “best practice principles” for quality assessment of distance education and learning programs. Indeed, the regional accrediting commissions have collaborated through their Council of Regional Accrediting Commissions (CRAC, 2001) to achieve consensus on basic principles of accreditation practice, doing so also in collaboration with the Council on Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA, 2002) and the Western Interstate Commission on Higher Education (WICHE).

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  That education is best experienced within a community of learning where competent professionals are actively and cooperatively involved with creating, providing, and improving the instructional program;
  

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  That learning is dynamic and interactive, regardless of the setting in which it occurs;
  

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  That instructional programs leading to degrees having integrity are organized around substantive and coherent curricula which define expected learning outcomes;
  

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  That institutions accept the obligation to address student needs related to, and to provide the resources necessary for, their academic success;
  

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  That institutions are responsible for the education provided in their name;
  

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  That institutions undertake the assessment and improvement of their quality, giving particular emphasis to student learning;
  

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  That institutions voluntarily subject themselves to peer review.
  

These principles were initially developed by WICHE through the Western Cooperative for Educational Telecommunications (WCTE). In support of the principles, WICHE and the regional accreditation commissions also have developed quality assessment standards and guidelines for distance education programs, addressing quality through the following commonly used accreditation domains of institutional responsibility: (1) institutional context and commitment; (2) curriculum and instruction; (3) faculty support; (4) student support; (5) evaluation and assessment; (6) library and learning resources; and (7) facilities and finances.