Why are you here?
- Do you struggle with students knowing where to be in your course (Canvas or Classroom)?
- Are you frustrated with students not understanding how to interact with peers collaboratively using technology?
- Do you want to keep building an online component of your course but make it manageable?
- Do you have homebound or frequently absent students?
If you answered YES to any of the above questions, then blended course best practices can help you take some of the stress off.
What is a Blended Course?
A blended course is one that uses face-to-face and online content. It can be 50/50 or 70/30. Some courses meet for only labs but are online for the lecture and assignments. In a high school, a blended classroom can be one using an learning management system (LMS) like Canvas, Blackboard, Google Classroom, Moodle, etc.
Course Design
You’ve probably taken a bad blended or online-only course. The objects were unclear, you never know how you were graded, you didn’t know how to find things, content was unreadable, you were frustrated with teacher instructions and/or expectations. I could go on, but I think you get the idea.
Course design looks at how the student sees the course and explains:
- what they need to know
- why they need to know it
- when they need to do things
- where the things/work are
- who does the work
- how they need to do it
Course Overview & Introduction
Instructions should be clear on how to get started in the course. Students should know where to find various course materials.
Introduce the purpose and structure of the course to students, you already do this in your classroom and likely in a syllabus. Make this part of your online presence.
How many times have you received a “text” email. It’s rude, but your students don’t know better. State what your etiquette & expectations are for emails, discussions, and messages.
If you have items that are on your syllabus such as pre-requisites or requirements (technology, course, etc.), include them front and center for students to see.
Learning Objectives
If I could make any one speech about course design, it would be about the importance of learning objectives. Without the objectives, you don’t really know where your students are going. You don’t know how to measure their performance. They don’t know what’s expected of them. It’s frustrating for everyone.
Like good classroom best practices, learning objectives are measurable and clearly stated. When building learning objectives, they should be…
- Clear for the course
- Clear for each module
- Clear for each lesson or activity
- Aligned to state or content standards
- In student-friendly language
Assessments
We need to evaluate learner progress. Assessments are integral to the learning process. They measure your objectives. And if they don’t, take a look at your objectives for the course, module, lesson/activity. It’s ok to modify an assessment, change objectives, add objectives or delete an assessment. Try to remain consistent during the course and instruction, but feel free to modify on the next go-around.
Use multiple methods or different assessment strategies. Don’t forget to clearly state what it means to successfully complete the course and earn their grade (grade calculation).
Instructional Materials & Activities
When we design or choose instructional materials or activities, we should do so purposefully. Don’t jump on the newest, shiniest bandwagon in town. Take the time to evaluate what the purpose is for your students and if the tool, activity, or materials help students achieve learning objectives.
Remember, students should be able to clearly see the connections between lessons/activities, the module, and the course.
Integrate your materials and activities into lessons. Make the intended use clear to students. Think about the breadth, depth, and currency of the materials/activities.
We should model for our students. Cite your sources!
Our students are our audience. Any materials or activities should show cultural diversity and be free of bias.
If you’re using outside sources, avoid advertisements or suggestive/adult content.
Accessibility & Usability
Do students view the navigation as logical, consistent, efficient, intuitive? They’ll be navigating in the course and they need to find what they need efficiently and intuitively. You know how unlikely it is for them to reach out to you for help.
Are you designing the course for all learners or most learners?
Give information about the accessibility of all required tech in the course. Provide alternative formats for course materials or alternative modes of access for tech tools. Make the course as readable as possible.
Use multimedia to enhance the content.
Try the course out on multiple devices and operating systems. Is it easy to use, intelligible? Are the multimedia usable across devices?
Course Design / Redesign Guiding Questions
When designing a course or redesigning a course, consider using these guiding questions to help you think through your choices.
Learning More
If this seems like something that is interesting to you, I encourage you to look at getting trained in using the Quality Matters rubric to improve your courses.
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