It wasn't an easy task. After all, the online English teaching industry is fairly new, and the only quality control system that I knew of at the time was that of the food industry.
Nevertheless, I took the challenge -- and I'm so glad I did. Otherwise, I wouldn't have something to share in this hub. Use this as a crude resource. Educators are always welcome to share their thoughts and suggestions.
What is Quality in Online English Teaching?
The core is of course quality. In this context, we refer to "quality teaching" as practices that comply with standards that our company has set. These standards emphasize two things -- good teaching and excellent communication skills.
At this point, assume that our standards for good teaching include the following: adherence to the standard flow of the class, student-teacher talk ratio, technique and style, and time management. Our standard for communication skills include the following: grammar, pronunciation, and sentence construction.
How Do You Go About Quality Control?
In online English teaching, there are two types of classes -- video and phone. Whatever type of online class a student chooses to enroll in, the class is always recorded and the QC analyst has access to these recordings.
The first step is sampling. The analyst randomly selects a set of number of recordings, and then he listens to or watch them. As he goes about this, he takes notes of any type of non-compliance for teaching skills and communication skills.
After the analyst is done with his evaluation, he discusses the results with the teacher involved. He also recommends whether or not the teacher needs coaching or retraining to improve his performance.
Does This System Work?
Of course, in my previous company, we strongly believe it did work. But in reality, a third party still needs to evaluate this system to say it truly works.
