TeachOnline@UW: Plan & Design is an immersive and collaborative faculty learning community that helps an instructor plan, design, and begin building a quality online course. It is an opportunity to make significant progress on developing or redesigning an online course.
The program will connect participants in-person and online, immersing them in an authentic online learning experience using the Canvas learning management system.
- While online, participants investigate pedagogical and technological best practices and connect with one another in discussions and other interactive activities.
- In person or via webinar, participants will have the opportunity to reflect on their experiences and meet with experienced online instructors and instructional design experts to gain further insights and ideas.
The full array of engagements offers new and experienced online instructors a unique opportunity to focus their efforts, interact with peers, and work to create quality and active online learning.
Program goals:
- Apply principles of instructional design and research-based quality standards to design/redesign online courses.
- Experience and reflect on pedagogical and technological best practices.
- Draft a high-level plan that aligns objectives, assessments, instructional materials, and learning activities.
- Use proven planning tools to propel your course design.
- Develop strategies to foster an active learning experience.
- Access templates and tools to help you quickly build course content.
Schedule and Time Commitment
This program has both online and in-person sessions. Following is the schedule for the Fall 2019 semester.
FALL 2019
Dates: To be determined based on when the majority who register are available. The application survey asks about availability for either in-person or webinar dates. Dates will be determined based on when the majority who register are available. The majority of the content is provided in an online Canvas course
Time Commitment: Participants spend three to four hours per online module for a total of six modules (total of approximately 20 hours over 11 weeks) and then we meet every other week for 1.5 hours in-person or via remote meetings every other week.
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Fall 2019 Course Details
Fall 2019 Schedule
This learning community is organized in two-week intervals, also called modules. Each module follows a similar pattern to help establish a rhythm that is clear and predictable.
Phase 1: Online
Each module commences with a fully online experience that allows you to participate on your own schedule during a span of 7 to 13 days. The modules offer reading materials, online self-directed activities, informal discussion forums, and targeted design exercises that help move your course design forward. The online experience also serves the intentional and important function of situating you as a student in an online course.
Phase 2: Face-to-Face or Live Webinar
The online modules are followed by face-to-face or webinar sessions that bring us together for further, deeper discussion on the topics addressed in the online materials and activities. We use peer collaboration and team activities to prompt sharing and reflection. We will also allow for flexible time to respond and discuss ongoing questions, challenges, ideas, and aspirations. The face-to-face or webinar meetings are an important time to connect and support one another in the transition to online teaching and to share best practices.
Plan & Design features the following online course modules:
| Module 1: Course Design Module 2: Objectives & Alignment Module 3: Assessment |
Module 4: Instructional Materials Module 5: Learner Interaction Module 6: Putting It All Together |
Participant feedback:
- “It was a great combination of seeing and trying out examples, both at the level of general planning as well as specific activities.”
- “Learning the pedagogy of online learning was invaluable.”
- “It was well worth the effort to try and succeed and be able to say: “I can do this!”