“Peer Online Course Review (POCR) was established in 2014 by the CVC [California Virtual Campus] Professional Development Workgroup to ensure that students in the California Community College system have access to high-quality online courses designed to support student learning and success.”

POCR is a process that allows faculty to align classes to high-caliber state standards in order to facilitate student learning in an equitable way. Through using a POCR rubric, and aligning your course to the POCR process, your class will be reviewed by a team before it is launched to ‘go live.’ The POCR process involves establishing peer groups and offering feedback using the CVC course design rubric, which includes 44 criteria including:

• course design
• interaction
• assessment
• accessibility

Once a course has been approved by the POCR lead, the course is awarded a Quality Reviewed course badge, and the course is listed on the statewide CVC Exchange website with that badge designation. Additionally, badged courses are listed higher up in the students’ college course listings than non-badged courses. Any student at any school (potentially) would be able to take a badged course if desired.

What is the CVC?

• CVC stands for California Virtual Campus. It is a collaborative effort among California Community Colleges (CCCs) to ensure that significantly more students are able to complete their educational goals by increasing both access to and success in high-quality online courses.

Aligning to POCR helps Merritt College meet our mission and vision goals:

• Our strategic goal: transfer – students completing a course through the CVC will undoubtedly reach their degree goals to complete their AA-T and UC/CSU units in a timely manner
• Student access and success:  in using the robust POCR rubric, students are able to better communicate and participate in a POCR-designed course

Aligning to POCR is an equitable practice:

• The POCR rubric is highly-reviewed and robust! If followed correctly, instructors will design their class with equity built-in, and in-mind
• Designing your course using POCR standards ensures that all students will be learning in a streamlined model of consistent modules so students can expect a similar format in each unit of a single course
• POCR puts students first:
  • Student services and resources are placed at the front of course design
  • PDF, UDL, and alt text technologies ensure students can read or hear all texts contained in the shell
  • POCR alignment requires designers to maintain evidence of how students will connect with peers and their instructor
  • Classes completed with POCR alignment typically reflect students will maintain a higher success and retention rates

POCR is Assessment-Focused

• Part of the POCR rubric requires designers to place SLOs at the forefront of each module
• All POCR-aligned courses must include examples of assessment (usually a survey, or check-in model)
• Instructors are encouraged to include local objectives, course objectives, and those from CORs

Stipends are offered for faculty with badged courses:

• A badged course is one that has been reviewed by POCR reviewers and the team lead. These courses receive a badge to show that work is finalized and edits have been completed. Once badges are provided, instructors may apply for a stipend.

Badged Courses can be Offered Across the CCC

• If an instructor has already badged a course at their home college, they are able to bring the same course to a second college and request a formal submission to the CVC through the local POCR team

You Will have Support!

• The average time to fully align a course according to the rubric can range between 80-100 hours, however your POCR team and POCR lead will offer support regarding best online practices through office hours and short work sessions
• You will learn equitable teaching and course design through POCR team meetings and workshops
• The CVC and @one are developing ongoing courses such as Accessibility/Section D Training to support the local POCR process

In 2022/2023, preferences for POCR submissions will be prioritized as follows: 

1. Fully online classes ready for adaption to POCR alignment
2. Courses that are transferable for IGETC, UC/CSU, and AA
3. Courses in English/Math, and others that fall in the purview of AB 705
4. Courses that have already been badged at other colleges
5. Faculty seeking a quality badge for their course

Opportunities to Participate in POCR

There are currently two opportunities for full or part-time faculty interested in participating in POCR at Merritt College:

1. As a Course Designer who is aligning their course with the CVC-OEI rubric in order for it to be reviewed, revised, and badged.
2. As a Reviewer, who assess other courses and provide feedback so that those courses are aligned with the CVC-OEI rubric.

The time commitment for these roles varies but typically spans 1-2 semesters.

Funding for participants is negotiated into the budget on an annual basis and is never guaranteed

Get Reviewed as a Course Designer

If you are a faculty member with a course you want to align and get badged, you should have the following requirements in place:

• Teach a course that is formatted for a fully online experience (no onsite requirement)
• The course should be one in which you plan to continue to teach 100% online
• Your course is current in CurriQunet
• You have taught your course at least two semesters in a fully online modality

Desirable qualities:

• You are familiar with accessibility and how to create accessible PDFs, and slides
• Your course uses a C-ID OR is in high demand for transfer agreements with IGETC, CSU/UC, AA

To join the next cohort: 

1. First, document your name, email address, courses, etc. via the interest form.
2. Next, contact campus POCR Lead Brielle Erike (Plump) @bplump@peralta.edu to learn about upcoming opportunities and timelines.

Become a Reviewer

Already been through the POCR process? Consider signing up to become a POCR Reviewer

• At Merritt College, we have five certified POCR reviewers that have completed the class offered by @One which helps train faculty to become a local reviewer at their home campus. Classes are free and offered directly through @One. Please note that reviewer training should only be completed by advanced users of the Canvas LMS, and those that already have basic knowledge of accessibility, and whom have at least one of their own courses POCR badged.
• Classes are offered typically 2-3 times a year, and are completely asynchronous and facilitated
• Once you are certified to review POCR you can join a POCR team at any institution.

Tips and Tricks to Help you Get Started in POCR

• Sign up for an orientation meeting with our POCR lead
• Print out a copy of the CVC Course_Design_Rubric_(rev_April_2020)
• Consider the POCR Tips Canvas page so you can better understand how to build your course according to the rubric
• See these Tips for Aligning Courses from @One
• Use the Self-Assessment Review Form to help align your course; notice there are links from the @one team and the CVC that demonstrate alignments with specific examples

In order to participate in the POCR process you should have the following requirements in place:

• Use a course that is formatted for a fully online experience (no onsite requirement)
• The course should be one in which you plan to continue to teach 100% online
• Your course shows as ‘active’ in CurriQunet
• The course has been approved by Curriculum Committee to be taught in a fully online modality

(Preferably) your course should be part of one ore more the following:

• Part of an ADT (Associate Degree for Transfer)
• General Education Transfer Pattern (CSU or IGETC)
• CTE (Career Technical Education)

Steps to a Badged Course

1. Demonstrate your interest by submitting the POCR Interest Form
2. Schedule an orientation meeting with the lead
3. Begin aligning your course by using the POCR rubric
4. Consider the CVC design template in the Canvas Commons to help you begin
5. Design your course and perform a self-assessment of the modules before you bring them to the review team
   1. See this excellent self assessment (written by Gavilan College POCR)
6. Submit your course to the team
7. Team reviews, and will submit to the originator for possible edits and corrections
8. Upon completion of edits, resubmit to the POCR team for a final glance
9. Badging will be determined by the POCR lead, and a successful course will be sent to the CVC team for entry into the course exchange

Please see this POCR Checklist inspired by Cuyamaca College. Merritt College hopes to incorporate a flowchart similar to this model once funding incentives are in place. Est. 2024/2025.

POCR Participation 2024-2025

Every year the POCR process at Merritt College gets updated to reflect the needs of the district, team staffing, and budget.

Below is an informational graphic to reflect our typical review process.

For 2024-2025, the POCR team will recruit participants and reviewers during the Fall semester, and review 3-5 courses during the Spring semester.

You can learn more about the specific 2024-2025 plans please review the 11/1/2024 Overview Session recording.

Please note that the number of courses that have been approved for POCR differs from those that have been approved and are included in the state CVC listing.