scholarly journals Designing for learning: What are the essential features of an effective online course?

1997 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Allison Brown
Keyword(s):  
Instructional Design ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
Economic Thought ◽  
Online Course ◽  
Delivery Mode ◽  
Online Delivery ◽  
University Courses ◽  
New Learning

<span>How do online courses differ from traditional university courses? What are the new learning demands made on students in online courses? Which particular design features optimise the teaching and learning process in an online delivery mode?</span><p>These were the questions explored in a collaborative course design project involving an economics lecturer and the instructional designer at Murdoch University. Emerging from the project is the fully online course <em>Economic Thought and Controversy</em>, together with an instructional design template. This template is now being applied to other courses in the discipline with the aim of transferring the whole economics programme to online delivery in 1998.</p><p>This paper describes the pedagogical rationale of the design template.</p>

Using Gagné's Events of Instruction to Analyze Online Course Quality

2011 ◽  
pp. 2231-2238 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marc R. Robinson
Keyword(s):  
Instructional Design ◽  
Online Education ◽  
Learning Community ◽  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
Online Course ◽  
Design Quality ◽  
Course Quality ◽  
Events Of Instruction

Student perceptions of online courses are likely influenced by two overarching aspects of quality: instructor quality and course design quality (Ortiz-Rodriguez, Telg, Irani, Roberts & Rhoades, 2005). Both of these forces in online education may be analyzed using a well-known model of instructional design - Gagnés instructional design and cognition theory, the centerpiece of which are the nine events of instruction (Gagné, Wager, Golas, & Keller, 2004). Multiple studies positively correlate learner attitudes and perceptions of the online course to instructor quality. Early studies evaluating instructor quality attempted to correlate instructor quality with the attitude and perception of the learner, but not directly to learner success or course design quality. Researchers of online courses, such as Palloff & Pratt (2003), discussed the role of the instructor in depth while neglecting the roles of the learner, the institution, and course design. The main focus remained instructor-centered, and highlighted key instructor tasks such as understanding the virtual learner in terms of roles the learner plays, fostering team roles for the learner, designing an effective course orientation, and identifying potential legal issues the instructor might face (Palloff & Pratt, 2002, p. 16). A distant secondary focus was on effective course design. This highlighted instructor tasks in building an effective online learning community without highlighting the roles effective communication tools would play.

scholarly journals Maintaining Quality Online: Piloting an Online Language Course for Immigrants in Finland

Languages ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 25
Author(s):  
Karttunen ◽  
Juusola
Keyword(s):  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
Quality Criteria ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Online Course ◽  
Educational Discourse ◽  
Preparatory Program ◽  
Information And Communication

Finland’s educational system has aroused the interest of educational researchers worldwide. Teaching and learning with information and communication technologies (ICT) is one of the major methodologies in the present Finnish educational discourse. Feedback and assessment are questions of course design in online learning. This paper discusses and illustrates how to plan an online course for a higher education preparatory program in Finland by using digital methods with a focus on maintaining quality in the processes of feedback and evaluation. This paper also introduces and reflects recently published quality criteria that are recommended to be used in the design of online courses.

scholarly journals ON THE NATURE AND DEVELOPMENT OF SOCIAL PRESENCE IN ONLINE COURSE DISCUSSIONS

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Karen Swan ◽  
Li Fang Shih
Keyword(s):  
Student Satisfaction ◽  
Social Presence ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
Computer Mediated Communication ◽  
Online Discussions ◽  
Influential Factor ◽  
Online Course ◽  
Mediated Communication ◽  
Quantitative Results

“Social presence,” the degree to which participants in computer-mediated communication feel affectively connected one to another, has been shown to be an important factor in student satisfaction and success in online courses. This mixed methods study built on previous research to explore in greater depth the nature of social presence and how it develops in online course discussions. The study combined quantitative analyses of survey results from students enrolled in four online graduate courses, and qualitative comparisons of students with the highest and lowest perceptions of social presence. Quantitative results revealed significant correlations between perceived social presence and satisfaction with online discussions, and teased apart the respective influences of the perceived presence of instructors and peers. The findings indicate that the perceived presence of instructors may be a more influential factor in determining student satisfaction than the perceived presence of peers. Correlations with other course and learner characteristics suggest that course design may also significantly affect the development of social presence. Qualitative findings support the quantitative results. In addition, they provide evidence that students perceiving the highest social presence also projected themselves more into online discussions,and reveal meaningful differences in perceptions of the usefulness and purpose of online discussion between students perceiving high and low social presence.

scholarly journals 9. Quality Matters: A Faculty-Centred Program to Assure Quality in Online Course Design

2011 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
pp. 49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kay Shattuck
Keyword(s):  
Review Process ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
Peer Review Process ◽  
Research Literature ◽  
Quality Assurance Program ◽  
Online Course ◽  
Design Standards ◽  
Online Course Design ◽  
Quality Matters

One of the dilemmas faced by today’s faculty is assuring quality in online courses. As one solution to that dilemma, Quality Matters (QM), a program of MarylandOnline, built a rubric of design standards informed by existing research literature and best practices. The rubric was implemented within a faculty-centred, peer review process in which colleagues share their expertise to facilitate course design improvements and to achieve an established level of quality in online course design. This article will describe the basic tenets and processes of QM as an inter-institutional quality assurance program for online learning.

Examining Design Pattern Strategies as a Means to Achieve Social Presence in the Online Classroom

2015 ◽  
pp. 22-49
Author(s):  
Araminta Matthews ◽  
Robert M. Kitchin Jr.
Keyword(s):  
Social Interaction ◽  
Social Presence ◽  
Design Pattern ◽  
Design Patterns ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
Web Design ◽  
Online Course ◽  
Design Learning ◽  
Potential Benefits

Design patterns have received much attention across multiple design domains where social interaction is a central goal because they have great potential for capturing and sharing design knowledge. Design patterns, design pattern language, and design pattern libraries demonstrate potential benefits to novice and expert online course designers. Trends affecting the growth of online courses and resultant pitfalls negatively affecting students and instructors indicate the need for social presence design. A literature review addresses the importance of social interaction, differentiated design, learning-oriented social networking, and Web design structures in an effort to assuage the experience of isolation reported by the majority of online students. The authors argue that design patterns are a method of overcoming many of these apparent obstacles to quality online course design and learning engagement. Additionally, they present example design patterns to solve specific social interacting problems.

Preparing Part-Time Instructors for Success in Online Course Development and Teaching

2019 ◽  
pp. 250-297
Author(s):  
Dan Piedra
Keyword(s):  
Continuing Education ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Online Course ◽  
Course Development ◽  
Education Theory ◽  
Part Time ◽  
Online Course Development

Part-time instructors are at the heart of each continuing education operation throughout the world. They bring a wealth of industry experience which adds real-life undertones to classes. However, many lack foundational training in areas of instructional strategies and adult education theory, learning management systems (LMS) and their use in online courses, and course design and development. This chapter will provide an overview of how McMaster University's Centre for Continuing Education has addressed all three of the above areas with a view towards better equipping their part-time instructors in providing a better-quality learning experience. Central to the above is the use of online training and a thorough and highly structured approach to online course development.

Exploring a New Learning Environment Through Massive Open Online Course

2018 ◽  
pp. 24-36
Author(s):  
Shweta Pandey ◽  
Satyam Prakash Tripathi
Keyword(s):  
Learning Environment ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
Online Course ◽  
Library And Information Science ◽  
Massive Open Online ◽  
Scholarly Literature ◽  
Massive Open Online Course ◽  
Literature Reviews ◽  
New Learning

As the Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) concept is adding a new dimension to online learning and presenting a deeper impact in different disciplines including the library and information science area, library and information science professionals are producing scholarly literature on MOOC-related issues. Through this chapter, the authors gave the overview of the genesis of MOOCs in a new learning environment. This article gives the outlook of MOOCs, which are one of the latest trends in education. This chapter also explores various literature reviews on the conceptual framework and discusses the online courses in general and specifically for LIS domain.

Preparing Part-Time Instructors for Success in Online Course Development and Teaching

2021 ◽  
pp. 554-598
Author(s):  
Dan Piedra
Keyword(s):  
Continuing Education ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Online Course ◽  
Course Development ◽  
Education Theory ◽  
Part Time ◽  
Online Course Development

Part-time instructors are at the heart of each continuing education operation throughout the world. They bring a wealth of industry experience which adds real-life undertones to classes. However, many lack foundational training in areas of instructional strategies and adult education theory, learning management systems (LMS) and their use in online courses, and course design and development. This chapter will provide an overview of how McMaster University's Centre for Continuing Education has addressed all three of the above areas with a view towards better equipping their part-time instructors in providing a better-quality learning experience. Central to the above is the use of online training and a thorough and highly structured approach to online course development.

Examining the Factors that Influence how Instructors Provide Feedback in Online Learning Environments

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 47-66 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan S. Conrad ◽  
Nada Dabbagh
Keyword(s):  
Course Design ◽  
Teaching Style ◽  
Descriptive Study ◽  
Delivery Mode ◽  
Online Environment ◽  
Online Learning Environments ◽  
Online Delivery ◽  
Teaching Online ◽  
Future Behavior ◽  
Feedback Delivery

Feedback is considered to be the bridge between what has been learned and what the student should know. Feedback can correct misconceptions, motivate learners, stimulate deep thinking, and guide future behavior. However, in the online environment instructors must rely upon technologies to deliver feedback to students. To better understand the prompts and processes for online delivery of feedback, a descriptive study of higher education instructors who teach online was conducted to discover what events trigger instructor feedback and what tools the instructors choose to administer this feedback to online students. Results of the study revealed that the chosen feedback delivery mode and method are impacted by an instructor's technology expertise, the class size, and audience composition and assessment type. The study revealed that instructors teaching online have transformed their pedagogy by purposively planning feedback methods into their course design and applying reflective methods into their teaching style.

Facilitation of Web-Based Courses Designed for Adult Learners

2011 ◽  
pp. 918-921
Author(s):  
Bonnie McCall Ordonez
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Adult Learners ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Online Course ◽  
University Faculty ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Professional Students ◽  
College And University

Web-based courses have currently surpassed all other forms of distance education in the higher education field. One of the main reasons in growth is the demand from adult and professional students looking for a convenient yet quality education (Kearsley, 2000). College and university faculty members are a key component in the development and delivery of online courses. Many studies have been conducted on effective course design, and student achievement and outcomes (Kearsley, 2000, p. 46), but less research is available on the instructional techniques necessary to facilitate an online course.

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