The Chronicle: Colloquy: The question

THE QUESTION

Two opinion articles in this week's issue of The Chronicle differ on whether virtual universities should be accredited. In one, James Perley and Denise Marie Tanguay argue that the accreditation of on-line universities diminishes the quality of higher education. Virtual universities, they write, "raise the specter of a higher-education system that is nothing more than a collection of marketable commodities." In the other, Steven Crow defends the accreditation of on-line universities. Mr. Crow says critics are not concerned primarily with the quality of education offered by on-line universities, but with the possibility of "reduced faculty control over the design, teaching, and evaluation of curricula at distance-education institutions." Mr. Crow is executive director of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, which accredited Jones International University -- the first accreditation in the United States of a completely on-line institution. Should virtual universities be accredited? Can on-line education be the equal of traditional higher education?

Mr. Crow, along with Mr. Perley and Ms. Tanguay -- the chairman and a member, respectively, of the American Association of University Professors' Committee on the Accrediting of Colleges and Universities -- have agreed to join the discussion to respond to readers' comments and to one another.

For further information, see these opinion articles:

Accrediting On-Line Institutions Diminishes Higher Education (10/29/99)
Virtual Universities Can Meet High Standards (10/29/99)

: 140 RESPONSES (New 3/21)

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