Cal. Code Regs. Tit. 16, § 88.2 - Program Measurements

(a) Live Presentation.

In order to qualify as acceptable continuing education under Section 88(b) a live presentation program must meet all of the following requirements:

(1) Be measured in 50-minute class hours. A program must be at least one 50-minute class hour in length to be acceptable continuing education. For a program composed of several segments in which individual segments are less than 50 minutes, the sum of the segments, in increments not less than 10 minutes, may be added together to equal a full 50-minute class hour. For a program that is longer than one 50-minute class hour, credit shall be granted for additional 10-minute segments (one fifth of a 50-minute class hour) or 25-minute segments (one-half of a 50-minute class hour). Only class hours or the equivalent (and not participant hours devoted to preparation or study time) will be used to measure the hours of continuing education.

(2) Any program designed pursuant to Section 87(b) must be a minimum of one 50-minute class hour. Should a course be comprised of multiple subject areas as described in Section 87(a)(2), those components specific to Section 87(b) must be a minimum of one 50-minute class hour.

(3) Meet the provider requirements for live presentation under Section 88.1(a).

(b) Group Internet-Based Program (Webcast).

In order to qualify as acceptable continuing education under Section 88(c), a group internet-based program (Webcast) must meet all of the following requirements:

(1) Be measured by actual program length in 50-minute class hours. A program must be a minimum of one 50-minute class hour in length to be acceptable continuing education. For a program composed of several segments, the sum of the segments, in increments not less than 10 minutes, may be added together to equal a full 50-minute class hour. For a program that is longer than one 50-minute class hour, credit shall be granted for additional 10-minute segments (one fifth of a 50-minute class hour) or 25-minute segments (one-half of a 50-minute class hour). Only class hours or the equivalent (and not participant hours devoted to preparation or study time) will be used to measure the hours of continuing education.

(2) Any program designed pursuant to Section 87(b) must be a minimum of one 50-minute class hour. Should a program be comprised of multiple subject areas as described in Section 87(a)(2), those components specific to Section 87(b) must be a minimum of one 50-minute class hour.

(3) Meet the provider requirements for group internet-based program (Webcast) under Section 88.1(b).

(c) Self-Study and Adaptive Learning Self-Study.

In order to qualify as acceptable continuing education under Section 88(d), a self-study course, whether in electronic or paper text format, must meet all of the following requirements:

(1) Grant continuing education credit calculated using one of the following methods:

(A) Demonstrating an average completion time, measured in 50-minute continuing education hours, by pre-testing the documentation by participants who are current, active, and unrestricted certified public accountants simulating the manner in which the course will be completed and showing the length of time spent by each participant to complete the course. The pre-testing for self-study shall be performed by a minimum of three participants, and the pre-testing for adaptive learning self-study shall be performed by a minimum of seven participants. Pre-testing participants are required to be independent of the group that developed and/or are offering the course and provide feedback on the level of difficulty of the course. The continuing education credit shall be rounded down to the nearest 10-minute segment (one fifth of a 50-minute class hour) or 25-minute segment (one-half of a 50-minute class hour) when the total minutes of the program are not equally divisible by 50.

(B) Demonstrating an average completion time, measured in 50-minute continuing education hours, by dividing the number of words contained in the text of the required reading (excluding any material not critical to the achievement of the stated learning objectives such as the course introduction, author biography, instructions, table of contents, and supplementary reference materials) by 180, adding the actual length of time in minutes of any audio or video segments, adding the number of review questions, exercises, and final examination questions multiplied by 1.85, and dividing the total by 50. The continuing education credit shall be rounded down to the nearest 10-minute segment (one fifth of a 50-minute class hour) or 25-minute segment (one-half of a 50-minute class hour). Additionally, for adaptive learning self-study, the continuing education credit must be based on the average word count formula calculation of each potential path the learner could take to complete the program using the prescribed word count formula. All potential paths must be documented. For example, if an adaptive learning self-study program has nine potential paths a learner can take to complete the program, then the word count formula must be calculated for each of the nine potential paths, with the sum of the results divided by nine.

(2) A minimum of one-half hour of continuing education credit must be initially awarded, but after the first half hour credit has been earned, credits may be awarded in 10-minute segments (one fifth of a 50-minute class hour) or 25-minute segments (one-half of a 50-minute class hour).

(3) Clearly define lesson objectives and manage the participant through the learning process by requiring frequent participant response to questions or other content reinforcement tools that test for understanding of the material presented.

(A) When using questions, the program must provide evaluated feedback to incorrectly answered questions and reinforcement feedback to correctly answered questions. For purposes of this section, evaluated feedback means a response specific to each incorrect answer to the study questions that explains why the particular answer is wrong, as each one is likely to be wrong for a different reason. For purposes of this section, reinforcement feedback means a response to the correct answer of the study questions that restates and explains why the answer selected was correct.

(B) Other content reinforcement tools are tools used within the overall learning activity to reinforce learning and influence behavior throughout the learning or at the end of the learning.

(i) When using other content reinforcement tools that include drag-and-drop, rank order, or matching activities, it is permissible to provide single feedback to explain the correct response.

(ii) When using other content reinforcement tools that guide participants through structured decisions, it is allowable to provide feedback at irregular intervals or at the end of the learning experience, and single feedback is permissible.

(4) Any program designed pursuant to Section 87(b) must be a minimum of one class hour. Should a program be comprised of multiple subject areas as described in Section 87(a)(2), those components specific to Section 87(b) must be a minimum of one 50-minute class hour.

(5) Require a passing score on a test given at the conclusion of the course. The test shall not include true/false type questions.

(6) Meet the provider requirements for self-study or adaptive learning self-study under Section 88.1(c).

(d) Nano Learning.

In order to qualify as acceptable continuing education under Section 88(f) a nano learning presentation program must meet all of the following requirements:

(1) Require a passing score of 100 percent on a test consisting of at least two questions. The test shall not include true/false type questions,

(2) Grant continuing education hours in a 10-minute segment (one fifth of a 50-minute class hour), based on duration of the program including the test, and

(3) Meet the provider requirements for nano learning under Section 88.1(d).

(e) Blended Learning Program.

In order to qualify as acceptable continuing education under Section 88(g), a blended learning program must meet all of the following requirements:

(1) Calculate continuing education credit using the following methods:

(A) Measure by actual program length in 50-minute class hours. For a program composed of several segments, the sum of the segments, in increments not less than 10 minutes, may be added together to equal a full 50-minute class hour. For a program that is longer than one 50-minute class hour, credit shall be granted for additional 10-minute segments (one fifth of a 50-minute class hour) or 25-minute segments (one-half of a 50-minute class hour). Only class hours or the equivalent (and not participant hours devoted to preparation or study time) will be used to measure the hours of continuing education.

(B) Demonstrate an average completion time by pre-testing documentation as defined in Section 88.2(c)(1)(A).

(C) Demonstrate an average completion time by calculating the required reading as defined in Section 88.2(c)(1)(B).

(2) Any program designed pursuant to Section 87(b) must be a minimum of one 50-minute class hour. Should a course be comprised of multiple subject areas as described in Section 87(a)(2), those components specific to Section 87(b) must be a minimum of one 50-minute class hour.

(3) A minimum of one hour of continuing education credit must be initially awarded, but after the first hour credit has been earned, credits may be awarded in 10-minute segments (one fifth of a 50-minute class hour) or 25-minute segments (one-half of a 50-minute class hour). Credits awarded in 10-minute segments for a nano learning program shall comply with Section 88(f).

(4) Meet the provider requirements for blended learning under Section 88.1(e).

Notes

Cal. Code Regs. Tit. 16, § 88.2

1. New section filed 5-9-2000; operative 6-8-2000 (Register 2000, No. 19).
2. Amendment of subsection (b) and new subsections (c)-(c)(3) filed 1-23-2004; operative 1-23-2004 pursuant to Government Code section 11343.4 (Register 2004, No. 4).
3. Amendment filed 7-11-2007; operative 8-1-2007 pursuant to Government Code section 11343.4 (Register 2007, No. 28).
4. Amendment filed 12-18-2009; operative 1-1-2010 pursuant to Government Code section 11343.4 (Register 2009, No. 51).
5. Amendment renumbering duplicative subsection designator (c)(3) as subsection (c)(4) and renumbering former subsection (c)(4) as (c)(5) filed 2-1-2011; operative 3-3-2011 (Register 2011, No. 5).
6. Change without regulatory effect amending NOTE filed 2-27-2012 pursuant to section 100, title 1, California Code of Regulations (Register 2012, No. 9).
7. Amendment filed 9-10-2013; operative 1-1-2014 (Register 2013, No. 37).
8. Amendment filed 2-1-2023; operative 7-1-2023 (Register 2023, No. 5).

Note: Authority cited: Sections 5010 and 5027, Business and Professions Code. Reference: Sections 5026 and 5027, Business and Professions Code.

1. New section filed 5-9-2000; operative 6-8-2000 (Register 2000, No. 19).
2. Amendment of subsection (b) and new subsections (c)-(c)(3) filed 1-23-2004; operative 1-23-2004 pursuant to Government Code section 11343.4 (Register 2004, No. 4).
3. Amendment filed 7-11-2007; operative 8-1-2007 pursuant to Government Code section 11343.4 (Register 2007, No. 28).
4. Amendment filed 12-18-2009; operative 1-1-2010 pursuant to Government Code section 11343.4 (Register 2009, No. 51).
5. Amendment renumbering duplicative subsection designator (c)(3) as subsection (c)(4) and renumbering former subsection (c)(4) as (c)(5) filed 2-1-2011; operative 3-3-2011 (Register 2011, No. 5).
6. Change without regulatory effect amending Note filed 2-27-2012 pursuant to section 100, title 1, California Code of Regulations (Register 2012, No. 9).
7. Amendment filed 9-10-2013; operative 1-1-2014 (Register 2013, No. 37).
8. Amendment filed 2-1-2023; operative 7/1/2023 (Register 2023, No. 5).