Home Study Course Development Handbook
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DOM! V? RESUME iD 103 943 (CE 024 §72, AUTHOR Laibertti.chacl, Welch, ,S:arly B. TITLE Home" StudV CO$rse Development Handbook. 'INSTITUTION ,National Home, Study CouncilVshington, D.C. PUB. DATE 30. ,NOTE 256p:* AVAILAtLE FROM'National Home Study. council, 1601 18t,h Street, DC ,2000,9(15..00) EDRS MF01/PC11--Plu_s Postage. ,DESCRIPTORS Accoustin;i: Adult 'Education': AudioviSAl Aids: Authors: *CorresPomdenee Study: CoursIklitntent; t vi CourA Ob lectivds : Course 4: *Curricul uui *Curriculum Develoilher;t: Editing; *Home' Study: Material Develcpm-enf: Multiple Choice Tests; Readability Formulas: *Test Construction: Trextbook T:treparation: #Textbook Publication , ABSTRACT . - Intended for independent 'stud y directors: course authors, And'directors of hombased or dis,tance learaingrojects,:: thisollettion 'of current, practical guides on cotrespon den,qe course deva p1$rent contains fourteen, chapters authorel by practicing'ik9'me stuelducatorsd, and experts in their field. From Theory to Pract'i .liSts stays in course produdtion from subject "selection thzough revision grogram implementation. 4 Naming the Parts lists course Ompottents with. a profile of a home study oou.:Tse and glossary ; included. Approaching Course Development offers guidpIce on pla:kaing. -'Supervising .COurse Authors discusses author selection mid* gives x 'sample author' s contract. Writing Oblectives shows how to prepare good- instructional objectives.(A rev itw quiz follows.) Working lagic.. with manuscripts provides checklists for copy editing.' Managing Text Readability discusses reading level fcriaufas4 and Orovides practice j examples.txhe Dale list of 30,000 Familiar Words is appended.) Writing Examples uses practical exatnras in describing multiple -- .choice test preparation. Audlo Visuat Material ftsc'usses their pffective use. .Course Design and 'Layogt overv;tews techniques ..available to the course developer, Managing Course Production discussRs step-by-step text produCtion. (Proofrekder's marks and --\' glossary are appended...) Creatiye Course Packaging presents design _..;..1- principles. Cothpletion Rate, Studies defines terms, provide4 exampleT, P ahd includes a ,q.aiz. Financial Analysis explains basic cost 4 * accounting principles (relationship,s 'among course price, volume, and ' pr-olit an-alysis)-.,(T1,8) --...) * Reproductions stoplied by EDRS are the best that can be made t* * fiom the original document. * **** *******************A************************************#********* Ho'nie Stu \) Course Development .ndboo Edi Michael P. La ert-. and Sally. R.eIch te. , It"PERMISSION Tp REPRODUCE THIS MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY PAW OF HEALTH. ATION &WELFARE AL ItaTitun Of OUCATION THIS .00CI.)ENT HAS SHEN REPRO OUCEO E CIO* AS RECEIVED FROM THE PERSC4 OR ORGANIZATION ATING IT qOINTSOF VIEW OR OP11.41,0N5 it) i'FIE EDUCATIONAL RSOIJRCES STATEb D4 NOT NECESSARILY REPRE INFORMATION 'ON tER SENT-OPP kA1IPL1NS1tE 00 EDLICAT OSITION OR POLICY National Home Study Council . 1601 18th Stieet, N.W Washington D .0 20409 (202) 234-5100 .e APR 2 3 1980 41. Copyright 01980 Nationat,HOthe Study Council " All Tights reserved Printdd in the United States ofAmerici ThesN'4ionialHome Study Couhcil; .a yoluntary asOciaticln.of cm- credited home stud& schools, 'was fo4nded.in ,192,0o protnOte sound educational standards gnd ethical, business practices within the -home study field. The independent NH$C Accrettititig Commission is listed by. the United States Office of EducatOn as ,.arinationally recognized accrediting agency." 'The Accrediting :CoMmiision is also a recog- ber of the Council on Postsedindark Accreditation (COPA). a Editor's Note. I 4 a Introduction..... ... Introducing the Authors... * a * a 5 5. From T eory to Practice . a .. S. 1 , Nam ng the Parts. 15 ... Approaching Course beve1opment . V * c4 Supervising Course Authoi .. a 47 Writing Objectives 59 6 Working Magic with Manuscrpeg 7 Managing Text Readability . 99 Writing Examinations . 127 9 151 Audio Visual Material * II* 10 Course Design and Layout.. * ***.. 163 - Managing Course Production 191 12. Creative Coutse Packaging 207 13 .27 Conipletion RateStUdies * ..... Financial Analys s . r 11 :233 I. $ Suggested Readings . I ........ ... 243 In writing material for thisHandboqk the editors and authors have - chosen to use the word "he" in all references, asis fitting for writing on a descriptive level."He" is defined by WEBSTER'S NEWCOLLE- IQATE DICTIONARY, eighth edition, as"used in a generic sense or when the scx of the person'is unspecified."Therefore,in the follow- lug articles,"he" also indicates "ehe." a intrOduction. .One of the National Home Study Council's main ioals is to conduct and promote research for the advancement of correspondtnce edu- cation. This Handbook is a' collection of current, practical, essen- tial guides on hoit, to develop Tcorrespondence course. 4 presents the vital skills and.knowledge deVelopers of homq,study courses need. for success. The Handbook attempts to cover the complete range of topics on course develogment, from maeket research to. the final priNing. I. 'This Handbook is a 'result of a project suggested by ASC's' ,Research and Educational Standards Committee.It is intended' for uge by new home study Directors of Education,course authori; or.anyone interested in home study Course development. 1 The authors are practicing home study.educators and, expeks tI heir fields. The National Home Study Council is deepiy indebted to thfm and expresses gratitude for their fine contributions to the advancement of the home study field. We hope that you,will-find this Handbook useful qnd we we. come any suggestions and comments. William' A,'Fowler Eiecutive. Director National Home Study Council April 1980 ntS4iieitig ,the Aothors William A. Fowler is the Executive Director of the National Home Study Council. He joined the Cpuncil in1961.as Assistant Director and was named to.his current positionin 1972. -"What we have tried to achieve with thisHandbook, the Council's initial effort in,whatwe hope will be a continuing series of HandboOks, s to capture. and preserve4he collectiVe knoWledge andeoerience of veteran home study educators. " Michael P. Lainberlis the.AssistantDirector of theN.ational -Home Study Council. He joined the Council staffas Accrediiing Pro- grEgn Coordinator.in 1972 And was appointed.to hispresent positidn in 1977. '"Each year the Council receiveshundreds of requests for help from member and non-member corresondenceinstitutions. Thi Ilawlbook' presents as much practical adviceon hQme study course dweiopment as.possible, given the .constraints ofpaper, .ink, ttme,Adorn"Illr and budget." I.ouis E. Frenzel joined the education staffat National Radio Institute, Washington, D .0,in 1959. In 1969.he. became Assistant Director of Education. He joined HeathCompany in 1973 where he is cu'rzletrtly the Vice President, Education Systems. "I urge.cours writers and education directorsto consider seriously greater usage of a variety ornnedia7- particularly audio-visual media .their courses. Some or the old formulas for course development need to be retired." Mary E. McKeown joinedthe American School, Chicagd, Illinois, in 1942'as an Instructor..In 1958 she was named High School . Principal, and today she servesas. yice President,Educational 'Services. "As a Director of Educatioinyou need to have a good sense of humor. You will have.to playmany roles 7- administrator, teacher, writer, motivator, supervisor, innovator,,and most importantly,,listener.You'll never be bored! " Gordon C. Bennett is Chief of the Program Management Office, Directorate of Training Dirfelopments at the V.S.Army-QUEirter- master School (QMS) in Fort Lee, Virginia: He joined theQMS in 1959.and has over 14years of experience in preparing corre-. A spondence courses for the U.S. Army. "If you.agree that objectivesare the starting point and basis of a course, canyou' really say you havea cOurse if you don't have objectives?\ Can you say you havea good course if you didn't make the necessary effort' to develop good objectiVesf" iv 9 Charles B. Marshall joined 14,a Salle Extension Vniversity, Chicago, Illinois, in 1962.. Ite is ''currently theVice Presidett, Edubation,' at La Salle, and heis a former member .ofit:he''- Accrediting ,Commbission of the National Home Study-Cothicil.* :PA t a time wheri high quality home studycourses are so widely recognized that theyrnay,even award a degree, the responsibility, for providingthe finest home study materials becomesmore important, than ever 4efore in the history of correspondenceeducation:" lee Hughes is the Director of Edu'eationat the,U.S.. Marine Corps InstitUte (MCI) in WEshington,'D.C.,which he joined in 1964. 'He is the chairman of the NHSC's.Researchand Educational Standards Committee. " "Everyone knows that Johnny isa poor reader. There dre many proVed Methods to determine the reading grade level of your home stddy courses. Try one'. " Ake, John T. Loftus join.e'd*the staff "Of International CorresiondenZe Schools, Scranton, PennsYlvania, in 1952. Today he is.theVice President-Operations at ICS. "Preparing the exaMination is the critital act Of developinga course.It is the primary' ../e13.i'cle'to measture the effectiveness of your course." Douglas M. Bonham is another alumnus ofthe National Radio Institute, staff of the early 1979:s. He joined HeathCompany; Benton Harbor, Michigan, in 1974, where he is.now Pi-oduct Line Manager in their Education Systems Division. "To beteffective, a home studycourse must be more than just