2009 Minnesota Statutes

45.305 PRELICENSE EDUCATION COURSES OFFERED OVER THE INTERNET.

Subdivision 1.Appraiser and insurance Internet prelicense courses.

The design and delivery of an appraiser prelicense education course or an insurance prelicense education course must be approved by the International Distance Education Certification Center (IDECC) before the course is submitted for the commissioner's approval.

Subd. 2.Real estate Internet prelicense courses.

The design and delivery of a real estate prelicense education course must be approved by either IDECC or the Association of Real Estate License Law Officials before the course is submitted for the commissioner's approval.

Subd. 3.Academic credit Internet courses.

Subdivisions 1 and 2 do not apply to Internet prelicense courses offered for academic credit by an accredited college, community college, or university that offers distance education programs and is approved or accredited by the Commission on Colleges, a regional or national accreditation association, or by an accrediting agency that is recognized by the United States Secretary of Education.

Subd. 4.Interactive Internet course requirements.

An interactive Internet prelicense education course must:

(1) specify the minimum system requirements;

(2) provide encryption that ensures that all personal information, including the student's name, address, and credit card number, cannot be read as it passes across the Internet;

(3) include technology to guarantee seat time;

(4) include a high level of interactivity;

(5) include graphics that reinforce the content;

(6) include the ability for the student to contact an instructor within a reasonable amount of time;

(7) include the ability for the student to get technical support within a reasonable amount of time;

(8) include a statement that the student's information will not be sold or distributed to any third party without prior written consent of the student. Taking the course does not constitute consent;

(9) be available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, excluding minimal down time for updating and administration, except that this provision does not apply to live courses taught by an actual instructor and delivered over the Internet;

(10) provide viewing access to the online course at all times to the commissioner, excluding minimal down time for updating and administration;

(11) include a process to authenticate the student's identity;

(12) inform the student and the commissioner how long after its purchase a course will be accessible;

(13) inform the student that license education credit will not be awarded for taking the course after it loses its status as an approved course;

(14) provide clear instructions on how to navigate through the course;

(15) provide automatic bookmarking at any point in the course;

(16) provide questions after each unit or chapter that must be answered before the student can proceed to the next unit or chapter;

(17) include a reinforcement response when a quiz question is answered correctly;

(18) include a response when a quiz question is answered incorrectly;

(19) include a comprehensive final examination covering all required topics;

(20) allow the student to go back and review any unit at any time, except during the final examination;

(21) provide a course evaluation at the end of the course. At a minimum, the evaluation must ask the student to report any difficulties caused by the online education delivery method; and

(22) provide a completion certificate when the course and exam have been completed and the provider has verified the completion. Electronic certificates are sufficient.

Subd. 5.Final examination.

The final examination for a prelicense education course offered over the Internet must be monitored by a proctor who certifies that the student took the examination. The exam must be either a paper examination or an encrypted online examination. The student must not be allowed to review the course content once the examination has begun.

History:

2009 c 63 s 9

NOTE: This section, as added by laws 2009, chapter 63, section 9, is effective July 1, 2010. Laws 2009, chapter 63, section 78.