Virtual Education and Innovative Learning (VEIL)
Virtual education is a modality in which the teaching and learning process takes place through the internet. Education is mediated by information and innovative communication technologies, known as ICTs. ICTs at PUPR include a diverse set of technological tools and resources used to transmit, store, create, share, and exchange information. These technological tools and resources include computers, the Internet (websites, blogs, and emails), live broadcasting technologies, and recorded broadcasting technologies (podcasting, audio and video players, and storage devices).
Overview
Virtual education is a substantial part of our institution. The Polytechnic University of Puerto Rico and its Center for Virtual Education and Innovative Learning (VEIL) embark on a continuous improvement process to provide faculty with learner-centered educational methodologies and state-of-the-art ICTs for instructional content design and classroom use in face-to-face, hybrid, or online modalities. These innovative technologies motivate and make learning more accessible, attractive, and engaging for students. Our end objective is to increase student academic achievement.
VEIL is responsible for managing, designing, and developing projects from all the academic institutional programs that use distance education as their teaching methodology, in Puerto Rico, Miami and Orlando campuses. In addition, the Center for Virtual Education and Innovative Learning focuses on giving support and training to faculty members who are designing, developing, and delivering technology-enhanced online, hybrid, web, and face-to-face courses and academic programs. Accordingly, VEIL seeks to empower and inspire faculty members to implement modern teaching-learning strategies, methodologies, and cutting-edge technologies to deliver engaging content to students on campus, regionally and internationally. Furthermore, the Institution provides ongoing orientation, training, and technical support services for students taking online/hybrid courses, and technology-enriched on-
campus courses through its Virtual Education and Innovative Learning Center.
VEIL supports online academic programs through its human and technological resources. The Center is composed of a team specialized in Blackboard Use and Management, Instructional Systems Design, Graphic Design, Multimedia Integration, and Instructional Technology. The Center is a course development production site where instructional design principles are used and aligned with Quality Matters™ Standards. Therefore, courses meet the standards of excellence in distance education programs. The institution’s Learning Management System (LMS) is Blackboard Learn. Blackboard Learn is an integral part of the teaching process, enabling continuous access to instructional content. Thus, Blackboard facilitates learning experiences for our students and faculty, empowering them to involve themselves in a more active and hands-on teaching-learning process. This LMS allows faculty to create environments aligned with Learner-Centered Education strategies for online, hybrid, and on-campus courses. Also, the VEIL Center provides training to faculty members in using other technological tools to design and develop modern and innovative learning experiences with engaging content and hands-on practices that students must comply with in their respective fields. Blackboard Learn also allows the institution to create educational communities whose main objective is to share knowledge by taking advantage of all the technological tools the Center has acquired. Some of the LMS’s tools are interaction mechanisms such as discussion forums, blogs, and wikis. Finally, the LMS allows the creation of exams, question banks, and tasks that contribute to students’ skills and knowledge development.
VEIL provides support services to students, including training on using Blackboard to complete an online/hybrid course successfully. Before enrolling in an online/hybrid course, students must attend one of the Blackboard Students Workshops offered by Virtual Ed multiple times every academic term. Additional training and technical support are provided to students regarding academic integrity tools and other technical aspects associated with successfully participating in online/hybrid courses available through Blackboard. The institution continually improves software and hardware to support greater access and uptime, including portal and server reliability.
Academic Integrity in Distance Education
The Polytechnic University of Puerto Rico seeks to foster a spirit of honesty and integrity. Any work submitted by a student must represent an original work produced by that student. Consequently, to maintain the academic integrity in distance learning courses, the University has developed a Policy and Procedure to Support the Academic Integrity of Online Courses. The Policy and Procedures seek to verify and ascertain the identity of a student enrolled in an online/hybrid course, as well as monitoring performance of students who take remote exams, as required by the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008.
Distance Learning Students
Every student who wants to register for online courses is required to possess basic technological knowledge of programs such as word processors, presentation creation, and e-mail management. Also, the student must have skills in searching for information from webpages with a navigator or browser.
It is also the student’s responsibility to verify the minimum systems requirements to access course information residing in Blackboard, read the Policy to Support the Academic Integrity of Online Courses and install the tools needed to verify and ascertain the identity of the student enrolled in the online/hybrid course (RespondusTM Lockdown Bowser, among others).
State Authorization for Online Programs and Courses
The State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement (SARA) is an agreement among member states, districts and territories that establishes comparable national standards for interstate offering of postsecondary distance education courses and programs. It is intended to make it easier for students to take online courses offered by postsecondary institutions based in another state. PUPR has been approved by Board of Postsecondary Institutions of Puerto Rico JIPs (in Spanish) to participate in the National Council for State Authorization Reciprocity Agreements.
Complaint Process
It is the goal of PUPR to provide students with an expeditious, fair, equitable, and consistent procedure for resolving their academic grievances. The purpose of an academic grievance is to give students a fair review and an opportunity to be heard. Students are expected to follow the procedures established by the college or academic department in which they are pursuing a course of study; however, academic grievances regarding a course grade must be filed with college or academic department unit in which the course is offered.
Students residing in other states, while enrolled in a course offered by PUPR, are encouraged to utilize the internal complaint or Virtual Education Student Service Platform https://studentservice.pupr.edu/ review policies and procedures, typically initiated within the academic department, before filing a complaint with their state agency or agencies. See Institution’s Home State SARA Portal Entity listed at https://www.nc-sara.org/state-portal-entity-contacts.
Complaint Process
It is the goal of PUPR to provide students with an expeditious, fair, equitable, and consistent procedure for resolving their academic grievances. The purpose of an academic grievance is to give students a fair review and an opportunity to be heard. Students are expected to follow the procedures established by the college or academic department in which they are pursuing a course of study; however, academic grievances regarding a course grade must be filed with college or academic department unit in which the course is offered.
Students residing in other states, while enrolled in a course offered by PUPR, are encouraged to utilize the internal complaint or Virtual Education Student Service Platform https://studentservice.pupr.edu/ review policies and procedures, typically initiated within the academic department, before filing a complaint with their state agency or agencies. See Institution’s Home State SARA Portal Entity listed at https://www.nc-sara.org/state-portal-entity-contacts.
