When authoring my own online course, I would need to consider:
1. What do students need to learn in the course?
First of all, I would need to ascertain the learning objectives of the course. Most of the courses I teach are software-based, so students are learning how to draw in CAD software, or how to model a 3D building in BIM software, or generate renderings and animations. I would need to know what software skills the students need to learn and what their current level of ability is (beginner, intermediate or expert).
2. What is the best way to present the information students need to learn?
I would need to decide the best way to present the information to students. I have found that teaching the step-by-step process of using a specific piece of software usually requires videos or screenshots of the software in a written tutorial format.
3. How do I know students are learning the information and able to apply it?
I would need to develop individual student projects for the course that allow students to apply the knowledge they are learning. I would then have a good way to assess their learning by analyzing the projects they deliver.
Dr. Crews,
These are the three things:
1. To know the diversity of the students (age, culture, learning style, past knowledge and educational experiences)
2. Comfort level and how to approach all, but each individually.
3. Delivering the course dynamically by responding to all the student's questions individually and recognizing all the students at the same time.
Hearty cheers,
Dr. George Ojie-Ahamiojie
Dennis,
You bring several good points to the table. I like the statement "feedback should be given with the intention that" students will redo. This type of formative feedback is essential to help students improve. Nice job.
You are correct in that some platforms may restrict what you can/cannot do. It's important to think outside the box and sometimes work around the system.
Thank you for your input.
One of the most important things I consider with eLearning is the platform. I have to adapt my learning outcomes to the capabilities of the system I am using. In other words I have to determine how creative I can be in my environment.
Second would be to encourage as much participaton as possible. Feedback shoudl be given with the intention that a student will redo the missed questions
Third is to pay a particular attention to detail. In Face-to-Face you get several chances to make something perfect. Online needs to be almost perfect the first time
Rob,
You bring up a good point without even thinking of it. . .content, the subject matter many times does play an important part of how we teach. All content, however, should be provided to the students so that they see the relevance in the material covered and communication is essential.
Nice job.
In teaching mathematics online, I find the following are the most important things to consider:
1. Relevance of material.
2. Ease of communication in the online environment (especially in mathematics)
3. How students can see that mathematics is a way of thinking, not just discrete problems in symbol manipulation, joined together by exams.
Ellie,
Thanks for your input. You have mentioned important aspects of authoring online courses. Knowing how to set up and organize the course is essential. And, the navigation is also important. Make sure the course outcomes/students expectations are also clear and provide a list of due dates to students as well.
Nice job.
Jennifer,
Thank you for your organized thoughts and for adding to the conversation. When you speak of organized objectives and clear expectations, they go hand in hand. Meeting the course objectives/outcomes lay the foundation for what is expected from the students. As you note though - communication is the key.
Edutainment is a work that keeps coming up over and over again. It's many times hard to get everything done that you need to do in the class and keep students attention all the time.
Nice job.
When I am going to author my own online course there are many things I have to consider. The first thing I need to consider when putting together an online course is how will I deliver the content to the students. I will need to write up the road map of the course and then create modules for the content. I will have to decide how will the students receive the material. Will the material be easily accessed and will the directions and goals be understood without question. I will also have to decide how I will know if the students understood the material through developing assessments and assignments that will give me knowledge and show the student that they indeed have gotten the concepts.
John,
I like your point about a user-friendly approach to a course. There is nothing more frustrating for a student than an unorganized and difficult course format.
Thanks,
Jennifer
Three important things I would consider when developing an online course are:
Organized Objectives- although already stated multiple times, objectives are important in steering the course in the right direction. Ultimately you need to pinpoint what you want students to learn from the course before creating it.
Online Delivery- Again, a point that has already been brought up, but in online courses it’s so important to engage students by using multiple learning styles. No one wants to take an online course that solely contains texts and lectures- that’s boring! The delivery needs to be “edutaining†so the students want to participate and learn.
Clear Expectations- I believe it is vital to create solid expectations of a course so students know what is expected of them before the course begins. The student should not be blind sighted by anything that is to come in the course.
Thanks,
Jennifer
Donna,
Thank you for adding to the conversation in this forum. I like your quoted phrase "finger on the pulse."
You are exactly right that you must organize your content/material, provide it to students in a variety of ways and make sure you are assessing throughout to make sure students are on track.
Nice job.
Clayton,
Many times the road map must be revisited to make sure you're on track. ;-) You are correct in adding these three important aspects to the discussion in this forum.
You must know where you're going (goals/objectives/outcomes) before the students will understand where they are going. And, you must be able to assess whether they got there to know if you and your students have been successful.
Nice job.
Charlene,
Thank you for your organized feedback. You have touched on three important aspect and have added to the conversation of this forum.
Navigation within a course is many time overlooked, yet so important. Students need to be able to find information, know where to deposit information/assignments, and understand what learning tools are availble to them.
You mention a variety of learning tools and it is important to provide different opportunities for students to learn the content. Nice job.
Not necessarily in any order:
1. delivery of content to address various learning styles
2. providing interaction opportunities for students with the content
3. meeting each of the course objectives
Many students new to online courses think the class will be an independent study where they will read the book and complete their work. This reputation could only have come about with experiences where this was the case. The students need to connect with each other, and participate in the learning rather than simply reading and taking tests. Not all students learn the same way, so their differences need to be accomodated if at all possible. For accreditation and quality purposes, the course objectives must be met.
The three most important things to consider while devising an online course:
1. To create a syllabus that will guide the student throught the course and explain the course objective. This is to give the student a clear and decisive path to reach our goals.
2. The nature on which to present the course material. It will be important to take into account the online forum as well as the student demographics and to present the material in an interesting and interactive way.
3. To be able to assess the students along the way. It will be critical to keep the "finger on the pulse" of each student and to assure that the material is being presented effectively and retained appropriately.
When authoring an online course I see the three most important things to consider as follows:
1. What are the goals an objectives to the course?
2. What activities need to occur to support these goals and objectives?
3. What assessment measures are to be used to determine student learning as measured against the goals and objectives.
Theses three items create the road map. Where are going? How do we get there? And did we arrive.
I believe the three most important items to consider are:
1. Ensuring the content in the module reflects the courses' content and the module is consistent thorugh out.
2. The course material is laid out in a matter that represents easy access and maneuvering by the student.
3. The course has a variety of learning tools not just text, such as flash video and interactive tools.
Nicholas,
You bring good ideas to the table. Thanks for your input. There is no doubt that the learning outcomes of the course are essential. If students understand what is expected of them, they understand how to achieve what is expected and they can navigate the course, there's a great chance they will succeed.
Nice job.
When creating an online course I think the three most important things to consider are the following;
1. Does the course meet the objectives as outlined in the descrpition?
2. Does the course have good flow and build to a level of understanding meeting the objectives?
3. Is the course easy for students to manage and navigate and are expectations learned.
I also think with an online course you should incorporate technology. I feel with the lack of a classroom you need to provide additional learning resources.
