| (a) Course completion roster. A provider offering each
MCE course shall file an MCE Course Completion Roster with the commission
within 10 days following completion of the course for licensees who
have attended the entire course registered with the commission. Course
completion rosters may be transmitted for filing by facsimile machine.
The roster shall be signed by an authorized representative of the
provider who was in attendance and for whom an authorized signature
exemplar is on file with the commission or the instructor for the
course. Providers are responsible for the security of the course completion
rosters. The commission may not accept signature stamps or unsigned
forms. Providers must make every reasonable effort to ensure that
no student is certified for full MCE credit who has not attended all
class sessions.
(b) Partial credit.
(1) A provider may, but is not required, to permit
a student to claim partial credit for a course if:
(A) the course is approved for elective credit only;
(B) the course is not a distance learning course;
(C) the student attends less than the complete number
of hours in the course;
(D) the student, by completing an MCE Partial Credit
Request Form, requests credit only for the hours the student completed
and the student does not claim credit for an hour that the student
did not attend in its entirety except as provided by subsection (c)
of this section;
(E) the provider signs the MCE Partial Credit Request
Form as evidence that the provider has no reason to believe the amount
of credit claimed is inaccurate;
(F) the provider submits the MCE Partial Credit Request
Form to the commission within the time required to submit the course
completion roster under subsection (a) of this section.
(2) Partial credit may not be granted for any course
that contains as part of its curriculum all or part of the non-elective
hours of mandatory continuing education required by §1101.455
and §1101.458 of the Act.
(c) Attendance. While a provider is expected to ensure
that each student is present in the classroom for the hours of time
for which credit is awarded, this section is not intended to penalize
students who must leave the classroom for brief periods of time for
personal reasons. Providers shall make every reasonable effort to
ensure that no student is given course credit if the student persists
in disrupting the orderly conduct of a class after being cautioned
by the provider or the instructor to cease disruptive behavior. Providers
may not use students for administration or monitoring duties during
the course if the use prevents the student's participation in a significant
portion of the course.
(d) Proof of distance learning course completion. In
a distance learning course, the provider shall award the student credit
for the course no earlier than 24 hours after the student starts the
course and after the student completes course requirements for credit.
The provider shall report the awarding of credit to the commission.
Course credit must be reported either by the provider filing a completed
Alternative Instructional Methods Reporting Form signed by the student,
or submitting the information contained in the form by electronic
means acceptable to the commission. If the provider chooses to use
an electronic reporting process, the process must ensure that only
students who complete the course are reported to the commission as
receiving course credit and that the process does not compromise the
security of commission records.
(e) Pre-course announcements. A provider shall, prior
to commencement of a course, announce that the provider will not certify
a student for full MCE credit unless the student attends all sessions
of the course, that no makeups or written work will be allowed for
MCE credit, that students may evaluate the course and instructor by
downloading an evaluation form from the TREC web site and submitting
the form electronically or by mail, and that the student must determine
if the course is timely and appropriate for the student's MCE requirement.
If the provider accepts partial credit for partial attendance at an
elective credit course, the provider shall explain the procedure for
granting partial credit. If the provider has not advertised or otherwise
made students aware of the provider's refund policy, the pre-course
announcement must also contain the refund policy. The provider may
allow a ten-minute break for every 50 minutes of session time, but
a break must be given at least every two hours, using all accumulated
break time, and the daily course presentation may not exceed ten hours.
(f) Facilities. Facilities used by providers for classroom
presentations must be adequate to accommodate students. Providers
shall ensure each student has seating, a writing surface and writing
materials. Rigid tablets or clipboards may be provided as a writing
surface. For a classroom course, the provider must offer the course
in a location conducive to instruction that is separate and apart
from the work area, such as a classroom, training room, conference
room, or assembly hall.
(g) Course materials. Providers must furnish students
with copies, for students' permanent use, of any material which is
the basis for a significant portion of the course. Providers offering
any of the non-elective courses must provide the students with the
materials identified as student course materials for the non-elective
courses. The course materials provided to the students may be in printed
form or electronic media such as a CD-ROM or diskette that the student
may access through commonly available software such as common word-processing
programs and slide presentation programs. Ample space must be provided
on handouts for note taking or completion of any written exercises.
If a provider charges fees for supplies, materials, or books needed
in course work, the fees must be itemized in a written statement provided
to each student by the provider before the student registers for the
course.
(h) Open enrollment. All MCE courses must be open to
enrollment by the general public. Providers may give preference in
enrollment to persons who need MCE credit to obtain, renew or activate
a license and may enroll all others on a space available basis.
(i) Instructor and Course Evaluations. A provider shall
make available instructor and course evaluation forms for completion
by students in every course. The forms shall, at a minimum, contain
evaluation criteria approved by the commission. The school shall file
in the school records any comments by the school's management relevant
to instructor or course evaluations. On demand by the commission the
school shall produce instructor and course evaluation forms for inspection.
(j) Advertising. Advertising of MCE shall be subject
to the following conditions.
(1) A provider applicant may not advertise a specific
MCE course or represent in advertising that the applicant is a provider
until the applicant has received written approval from the commission
for the providership and registered at least one course. A provider
applicant may advertise an intention to offer MCE courses if no specific
course is described and the advertisement clearly indicates the applicant
has not been approved as a provider.
(2) A provider may not advertise a course as acceptable
for MCE credit until the provider has received written acknowledgment
of registration of the course. A provider may advertise that approval
of the course for MCE credit is pending provided that an application
has been submitted to the commission and is awaiting approval.
(3) A provider may not offer a course until the provider
has received written acknowledgment of registration of the course.
(4) Any advertisement or promotional material used
by a provider must indicate the MCE provider's name or assumed business
name as reflected in the commission's records and the MCE provider
number assigned by the commission. The advertisement or promotional
material also must include the specific MCE course numbers and course
titles or a statement that MCE course numbers and titles are available
from the provider; or, if approval of the course is pending, the course
title and a statement that MCE approval is pending. When a provider
offers a course that is hosted by another person or organization,
the advertisement or promotional material must show clearly that the
approved MCE provider is offering the course.
(5) A provider may not publish advertisements which
are misleading or which are likely to deceive the public.
(6) Any name a provider uses in advertising must not
be deceptively similar to the name of any other approved MCE provider
or school accredited by the commission or falsely imply a governmental
relationship.
Cont'd... |
