Standards and Guidelines for Online Evangelical Theological Education

Standards and Guidelines for Online Evangelical Theological Education

The Standards and Guidelines for Global Evangelical Theological Education (SG-GETE) are intended to be modality neutral and thus to be equally applicable to varying types of theological institutions and instructional models without presupposing anyone in particular. The applicability of the SG-GETE to online programs is therefore assumed and serves as the basis for more specific standards and guidance offered here in Appendix F with regards to what are minimum accreditable and aspirational levels of quality for programs and institutions that offer online and blended theological education. Although the scope of this Appendix does not permit a detailed development of each standards area and their sub-sections, a more comprehensive treatment is presently being prepared by the ICETE Workgroup on Standards for Online Evangelical Theological Education. This is projected for completion in late 2019.

In the discussion that follows, it will be helpful to keep the following definitions and distinctions in mind:

• Online Learning (also referred to as electronic or e-Learning1). Online Learning as a mode of delivery commonly refers to educational programs that are mediated by the Internet and are taught online with little or no physical face-to-face interaction between instructors and students. Virtual interaction takes place in a variety of ways and may be either synchronous or asynchronous. In the SG-GETE and this Appendix, “online learning” or “online education” will be used generically to embrace multiple modes and types of online educational delivery.
• Technology Enhanced Learning. Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL) refers to the use of computers, the internet, and other technological means as tools to improve the quality of teaching, learning, and research. TEL is an integral part of online education but is also commonly used in other delivery models, including face-to-face instruction.
• Distance Education. For the purposes of SG-GETE and this Appendix, Distance Education is understood as referring to any instructional model in which the teacher and learners are geographically separated during part or all of the learning process. Under this broad definition, diverse instructional models may be classified as subsets of distance education, including correspondence studies and programs mediated totally or partially online.
• Blended Learning (also referred to as Hybrid Learning or B-Learning). Blended Learning refers to a hybrid instructional model that combines face-to-face instruction with periods of online or other modes of distance learning. It should be noted that many theological programs popularly classified as “fully online” actually possess a blended element, in the sense that student learning involves formal, informal, and nonformal interaction with on-the-ground components, such as the student’s context of life and ministry, participation in the local church, a mentoring or discipleship relationship. From a holistic formative perspective3 that pursues learning outcomes related to being, doing, and living in a community, as well as knowing, intentional strategies of blended learning are a necessary complement to online theological education.
• Situated Learning. Situated learning refers to learning that takes place in the various spheres of regular life situations of students, usually outside their formal education programs. While not in itself a form of online learning, situated learning is an appropriate and often essential complement to various forms of online study for the creation of blended learning opportunities. The most significant of these for theological students is often the church or believing community Education (SG-GETE) is intended to be modality neutral and thus to be equally applicable to varying types of theological institutions and instructional models without presupposing anyone in particular. The applicability of the SG-GETE to online programs is therefore assumed and serves as the basis for more specific standards and guidance offered here in Appendix F with regards to what are minimum accreditable and aspirational levels of quality for programs and institutions that offer online and blended theological education. Although the scope of this Appendix does not permit a detailed development of each standards area and their sub-sections, a more comprehensive treatment is presently being prepared by the ICETE Workgroup on Standards for Online Evangelical Theological Education. This is projected for completion in late 2019. In the discussion that follows, it will be helpful to keep the following definitions and distinctions in mind:
• Online Learning (also referred to as electronic or e-Learning1). Online Learning as a mode of delivery commonly refers to educational programs that are mediated by the Internet and are taught online with little or no physical face-to-face interaction between instructors and students. Virtual interaction takes place in a variety of ways and may be either synchronous or asynchronous. In the SG-GETE and this Appendix, “online learning” or “online education” will be used generically to embrace multiple modes and types of online educational delivery.
• Technology Enhanced Learning. Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL) refers to the use of computers, the internet and other technological means as tools to improve the quality of teaching, learning and research. TEL is an integral part of online education, but is also commonly used in other delivery models, including face-to-face instruction.
• Distance Education. For the purposes of SG-GETE and this Appendix, Distance Education is understood as referring to any instructional model in which the teacher and learners are geographically separated during part or all of the learning process. Under this broad definition, diverse instructional models may be classified as subsets of distance education, including correspondence studies and programs mediated totally or partially online.
• Blended Learning (also referred to as Hybrid Learning or B-Learning). Blended Learning refers to a hybrid instructional model that combines face-to-face instruction with periods of online or other modes of distance learning. It should be noted that many theological programs popularly classified as “fully online” actually possess a blended element, in the sense that student learning involves formal, informal, and nonformal interaction with on-the-ground components, such as the student’s context of life and ministry, participation in the local church, a mentoring or discipleship relationship. From a holistic formative perspective3 that pursues learning outcomes related to being, doing, and living in a community, as well as knowing, intentional strategies of blended learning are a necessary complement to online theological education.
• Situated Learning. Situated learning refers to learning that takes place in the various spheres of regular life situations of students, usually outside their formal education programs. While not in itself a form of online learning, situated learning is an appropriate and often essential complement to various forms of online study for the creation of blended learning opportunities. The most significant of these for theological students is often the church or believing community that they belong to. Through active partnerships with local churches and community groups, education providers can intentionally draw upon situated learning opportunities for their students in holistic formation areas that they may not otherwise be able to address adequately through formal online studies.

This Appendix identifies six major areas that should be taken into consideration in applying the SGGETE Institutional and Programmatic standards to the assessment of online theological education programs. Although the Appendix specifically deals with online education, some parts may be applicable to quality assurance and evaluation in other models of distance education.

• F1: Institutional support for e-Learning
• F2: Academic preparation for quality e-Learning
• F3: Online educators and their qualifications
• F4: Holistic educational program
• F5: Educational components in the online medium
• F6: Support for online students and educators

For each of these six standards areas, the Appendix includes specific references to:

• The philosophy or educational rationale behind the online standards;
• Representative standards and guidelines for online theological education, divided into “threshold standards” and “quality standards”;
• Evidentiary measures that would help to demonstrate compliance with the standards; and
• Suggestive examples of evaluation tools and rubrics for Visiting Evaluation Teams. Finally, the SG-GETE Bibliography at the end of this document also contains a selection of excellent references pertaining to online learning for further consideration by accrediting agencies. The ICETE Online Standards Workgroup leaders welcome further input into these Standards and Guidelines to make them more effective and relevant within the rapidly growing and changing sector of online theological education.

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