What is Peer Online Course Review (POCR)?
The California Virtual Campus Online Education Initiative
Peer Online Course Review (POCR) was established in 2014 by the California Virtual Campus Online Education Initiative (CVC-OEI) 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. As of Spring 2025, Crafton Hills College is a Certified Local POCR Campus, meaning that we have an experienced team of faculty trained to conduct course reviews, and our work has been vetted and approved by the CVC-OEI.
During POCR, reviewers use the CVC-OEI Course Design Rubric and the CHC Equity Rubric as the standard for a high-quality online course. The CVC-OEI rubric has undergone revisions and updates since 2014 in response to changes in available instructional technology and feedback from both instructors and reviewers. There are four sections of the CVC-OEI Course Design Rubric, with a total of 44 elements between them. CHC also includes a fifth section that addresses Equity.
- Section A: Content Presentation
- Section B: Interaction
- Section C: Assessment
- Section D: Accessibility
- Section E: Equity (CHC specific)
You may view both rubrics below.
When a course is fully aligned with the Course Design Rubric, it is eligible for the "Quality Reviewed" badge in the Student-Centered Course Exchange (see the badge image above). The CVC Exchange is a mechanism for students in California to take online courses at any community college in the state.
Reaching Alignment
As you see throughout the rubrics above, an individual element can either be "incomplete," "aligned," or "exemplary" (though section D, Accessibility, only includes "incomplete" or aligned"). These determinations are made by the POCR Team as they review your online course. Any element found to be "incomplete" must be redesigned to become either "aligned" or "exemplary."
Opening up your online course to be reviewed by faculty colleagues might seem a bit intimidating. Rest assured, our POCR Team is here to support your professional development as an online instructor, not judge anyone. POCR is not punitive, nor is it part of full-time or part-time faculty evaluations (on the contrary, POCR can help prepare instructors for their routine evaluations!). This is a faculty-driven initiative at CHC, and we adhere to strict confidentiality when reviewing courses.
