(a) Continuing education courses may be qualifying courses and certified classroom, classroom equivalent, and self study courses offered by registered providers.
(b) Providers shall offer adjuster prelicensing courses only as a complete course of study for the particular adjuster's license type designation that meets the requirements of §19.1003(c) of this title (relating to Licensee Requirements) and §19.1017 of this title (relating to Adjuster Prelicensing Education Course Content and Examination Requirements). The course of study may consist of classroom, classroom equivalent, and self study instruction. Providers may offer a variety of courses for each adjuster's license designation.
(c) Providers must offer long-term care partnership certification courses only as a complete course of study that meets the requirements of §19.1022 of this subchapter (relating to Long-Term Care Partnership Certification Course). The course of study for long-term care partnership certification courses may consist of classroom, classroom equivalent, and self-study instruction.
(d) Providers must offer Medicare-related product certification courses only as a complete course of study that meets the requirements of §19.1024 of this subchapter (relating to Medicare-Related Product Certification Course). The course of study for Medicare-related product certification courses may consist of classroom, classroom equivalent, and self-study instruction.
(e) Providers must offer small employer health benefit plan specialty certification courses only as a complete course of study that meets the requirements of §19.1026 of this subchapter (relating to Small Employer Health Benefit Plan Specialty Certification Course). The course of study for small employer health benefit plan specialty certification courses may consist of classroom, classroom equivalent, and self-study instruction.
(f) Providers must offer annuity certification courses only as a complete course of study that meets the requirements of paragraphs §19.1028(g)(1) - (4) of this subchapter (relating to Annuity Certification Course). The course of study for annuity certification courses may consist of classroom, classroom equivalent, and self-study instruction.
(g) Classroom courses may include lectures, seminars, audio, video, computer-based instruction, and teleconferences that meet the following requirements:
  (1) A disinterested third party attendant, an instructor, or a disinterested third party using visual observation technology must visually monitor attendance either inside or at all exits to the course presentation area at all times during the course presentation.
  (2) At least three students and an instructor must be involved in each presentation of the course; however, in circumstances involving remote presentations, all students and the instructor do not need to be in the same location. In the case of presenting recorded or text materials, the instructor making the live course presentation does not have to be the same instructor included on the recorded presentation or who prepared the text materials.
  (3) Question and answer and discussion periods must be provided by:
    (A) an instructor making a live presentation of the course to licensees in the same room or via real-time live audio or audio-visual connection which shall allow for immediate student inquiries and responses with the presenting instructor; or
    (B) an instructor who is present for the entire remote, recorded, or computer-based course presentation to students in the same room which shall allow for immediate inquiries and responses of students to the instructor.
  (4) The course pace is set by the instructor and does not allow for independent completion of the course by students.
(h) Classroom equivalent courses may be internet, CD-ROM, DVD, or other computer-based presentations that:
  (1) May not have more than one student at any one presentation of the course.
  (2) Must have an interactive electronic component that:
    (A) provides for at least four interactive multiple choice inquiry periods during each hour of the course, one of which shall be at the end of the course. Inquiry periods shall occur at regular and relatively evenly-spaced intervals between each period. Inquiry periods shall cover material presented in that section of the course;
    (B) requires answering 70% of the inquiries for each period correctly to demonstrate mastery of the current section, including the final section, before the student is allowed by the program to proceed to the next section or complete the course;
    (C) identifies all incorrect responses and informs the student of the correct response with an explanation of the correct answer;
    (D) generates a different set of inquiries for the section, which may be repeated as necessary on a random or rotating basis if the student does not achieve the 70% correct response rate necessary to advance to the next section;
    (E) is capable of generating at least two separate sets of inquiries for each inquiry period;
    (F) provides for a method to directly transmit the final course completion results to the provider or a printed course completion receipt to be sent to the provider for issuance of a completion certificate; and
    (G) has a means to reasonably authenticate the student's identity on a periodic hourly basis, including upon entering, during, and exiting the course.
  (3) A comprehensive final examination is not required for classroom equivalent courses.
(i) Self-study courses may include textbook, audio, video, computer-based instruction, or any combination of these in an independent study setting designed in such a manner as to insure that the course cannot be completed by the typical enrollee in less time than the period for which the course is certified to the department.
(j) One-time-event courses shall:
  (1) meet the requirements of a classroom course, except that the course may be offered only in a lecture or seminar format at particular events such as conventions and organizational meetings; and
  (2) be designed to be offered as a single live presentation, except that providers may offer the course as a live presentation an additional three times per year within this state.
(k) One-time-event courses may be presented by speakers or instructors.
(l) Qualifying courses shall be categorized as classroom, classroom equivalent, or self-study based upon the teaching format in which the course is offered.

Source Note: The provisions of this §19.1009 adopted to be effective January 6, 2003, 28 TexReg 75; amended to be effective August 5, 2008, 33 TexReg 6138; amended to be effective February 21, 2010, 35 TexReg 1271