Online & Blended Course Development | FCPE | ÌÇÐÄÊÓƵ University (2024)

Begin Developing an Online Course

Developing an online course should be a dedicated exercise in organization, learning new skills, and re-inventing yourself as a facilitator of learning. It is recommended that faculty teaching in Web-based modalities acquire competencies in online pedagogy and educational technologies. We advise faculty to plan for several months of development time. There are several resources available to faculty who wish to begin this process. First, there are the resources within the section in this site called “Resources for Planning and Development.” The FCPE also offers a self-paced fully-online course on how to design and teach an online course. FCPE staff are also available to assist faculty throughout the development process. Please schedule an appointment through our contact page or call us for more information at 516.877.4221.

Recommended Workshops

The following workshops are recommended one semester prior to developing or teaching an online course.

1. Online and Blended Course Design
2. Moodle Basics
3. The Art of Online Discussion Forums
4. Moodle Gradebook
5. Preparing Online Quizzes in Moodle

Check our current schedule to see when these workshops are offered.

Course Communication

Instructors are required to be available online consistently throughout the duration of the course to assist students with their studies. Course communication methods include:

• Virtual office hours via: phone, live chat or video-conferencing tools
• Email
• Discussion boards
• Student surveys

Is Online Teaching Right for You?

The Faculty Center for Professional Excellence (FCPE) assists with this question. Before embarking on the approval process, we recommend that you read through the questions below and answer honestly about your teaching style. They are for your personal use and will help you assess your preparation needs if you are considering becoming an online instructor. You can also schedule an appointment with the FCPE at 516.877.4221 to brainstorm ideas and course possibilities.

Personal/Organization

• Do you communicate clearly through your writing?
• Are you self-motivated and self-disciplined instead of scrambling at the last minute?
• Are you willing to initiate and moderate online class discussions for students?
• Are you comfortable with using or learning technology as opposed to others who seem easily frustrated?
• Do you believe that high quality instruction can take place outside of a traditional classroom?
• Do you set specific objectives for your courses?
• Do you prepare each session’s instruction before class rather than make it up as you go along?
• Are you able to set limits for yourself, e.g., stick to office hours?
• Are you well organized at managing files and folders, both in your physical office and on your computer?

Technical Preparedness

• Do you have regular access to a home computer/laptop with high-speed Internet access?
• Do you use email regularly as a communications method?
• Can you easily surf the Web and perform searches to find necessary information online?
• Do you know how to download a file from the Internet?
• Can you attach a file to an outgoing email?
• Are you able to sit at your computer for two or more hours at a time?
• Do you have the necessary software applications on your home and/or office computer, e.g., MS Office Suite, Mozilla Firefox browser?
• Would you feel comfortable providing basic technical computer or Internet assistance to students?

Assessment

Depending on your answers to the questions above, you may need extra preparation before submitting a proposal for an online course. The FCPE can help you work on your technical and organizational skills in order to become more adept at successfully leading students in an online course.

To thrive in this teaching platform, you can’t put off creating course assignments or the preparation of materials. You must be able to resist distractions, whether it be people in your home, the TV, or other interruptions on your computer while you’re preparing course work. You need to be able to set aside blocks of time where online posting takes priority.

Additionally, students are depending on you to lead them through the course work and to make expectations and directions clear and explicit. You will also be expected to model and adhere to certain “Netiquette” standards of online communication conduct. In addition, students may be looking forward to enhancements to break up all the text, such as having their reading supplemented by images, video, and audio.

Next Steps

A good next step once you are ready to tackle online course design is to explore the FCPE’s resources for online and blended course development to learn more about best practices and view planning tools.