Textbook QA Guidelines

The following guidelines will provide you with additional information regarding how to rate the quality of a book assignment.  In Classic Audio audiobooks, the two primary areas that affect the student experience are navigation and audio quality. Your assistance in this process will help quickly identify areas of concern and listening distractions.   

Expectations

• Volunteers should be spending about 10 minutes of QA time for every hour of recorded audio. These are intended to be quick reviews in order to help us understand the user’s experience.   Your feedback will help us determine whether or not this book requires a re-record.

• Volunteers are expected to self assign for book review projects. We ask that you assign yourself to one title at a time. 

• When you are selecting a title, please be aware of your own time constraints.  On average projects should be completed within one week or less. If any review is still in progress after a month, the name will be removed from the assignment sheet. Please be sure to complete a book review before assigning yourself for a new title. 

• Volunteers are expected to provide timely feedback to staff regarding their QA book review. We ask that you submit your feedback within 24 hours of finalizing your QA review.

• Volunteers are expected to reach out to staff if you have any questions or concerns. We are here to help!

• Volunteers are expected to log their service hours in the volunteer portal.
   

Guidelines

1. Page Announcements
   In Classic Audio we do announce pages.  When checking please make sure that page announcements are correct and navigable.
   If you find errors, please list the pages that are incorrect in the Worksheet.
    
2. Multiple Readers
   In Classic Audio we should have only one reader per chapter at most.  When checking please be sure that each chapter has only one narrator.
   If a book does have multiple narrators within a single chapter, please note this in the Worksheet.
    
3. Headings (chapters, parts, books, etc.)
   In Classic Audio, the headings become the digital table of contents for students so it is important that they are correct.  When checking please be sure that all the headings are the correct order, navigable, no skips, and announced in a consistent way.
   If a book does have errors within the headings, please note this in the Worksheet.
    
4. Audio Quality
   Getting the best audio quality is important to our narrators. Are there issues with the clarity of the sound? Is the audio quality poor, or does it contain background noises such as fuzzy, hissing, static, etc. which you find distracting?
   If a book has noticeable distractions that affect audio quality, please note this in the Worksheet.
    
5. Narrator Quality 
   Getting the best quality experience for our students is of utmost importance to us. Because of that, having engaging reading is very important. When listening to this audiobook please listen for the following narrator quality items: 
   Can you understand the narrator? 
   Is the narrator's voice too sibilant or monotone? 
   Is the narrator error-prone?
   Does the narrator have poor vocal habits like lip smacks?
   Did the narrator interject “uhs” and “ums”? 
   Does the narrator stumble in the text?
   Did the narrator cut off parts of sentences or words?If you experience any of these issues, please note this in the Worksheet.
    
6. Narrator Performance
   Is the narrator a good match for the material? 
   Is the narrator engaging?
   Did the narrator keep you interested?
   Did you lose interest in the reading?
   Is the narrator mechanical?
   Is the reading too fast or too slow?
   Does the narrator have poor voice quality?  
   If you experience any of the following issues, please note this in the Worksheet. 
    
7. Exceptional read
   If you come across an exceptional read, please let us know.  We like to highlight these titles for our students.  
   If you come across an exceptional read, please note this in the Worksheet.