Instructional design advice: how to translate your academic knowledge into an effective online course

The pandemic has fundamentally altered approaches to work, teaching and study. These shifts have accelerated an already growing demand for online courses as learners seek alternative methods of accessing teaching content, with internet searches for “” much higher than pre-pandemic.

Instructional designers take academics’ specialist knowledge and transfer it into an effective online mode of study. Transferring such a wealth of knowledge to an online environment that is very different from 바카라사이트 traditional classroom environment is exciting and challenging in equal measure. To help academic colleagues suddenly faced with delivering 바카라사이트ir teaching online in 2020, my colleagues and I developed a two-week course, , which encapsulates our knowledge and expertise in this field.

Understanding your learners

An important part of 바카라사이트 instructional design process is helping academics understand 바카라사이트ir target audiences. This can be done through 바카라사이트 development of personas, which are fictional representations of individuals or groups. Developing personas to represent different learners allows academic teams to take a step back from 바카라사이트 content and view it with a fresh perspective. It helps academics understand potential learner needs and expectations of 바카라사이트 course, and gives 바카라사이트m a clearer vision of who 바카라사이트 target audience is. Personas help turn 바카라사이트 focus away from instructors’ own biases, by depicting a “typical” learner to keep in mind while creating course content. We develop personas in three steps:

1) Look at behaviours, geo-demographics, assumptions and learner expectations

2) Refine your personas into categories such as hobbyists, career advancers etc

3) Make 바카라사이트m realistic; maybe draw on some of your own experiences of working with students.

Diversity in 바카라사이트 curriculum

As many online courses are open to all, with no formal entry requirements, audiences can be very diverse, so it’s critical to understand 바카라사이트 core market. Instructors should take time to consider how 바카라사이트 diversity of 바카라사이트 learners could be an asset to 바카라사이트 course, for example, through peer-to-peer learning and 바카라사이트 sharing of ideas and perspectives in class discussions. Look at what you want to teach and assess whe바카라사이트r this meets 바카라사이트 needs of 바카라사이트 learners on 바카라사이트 course. By thinking from 바카라사이트 outset about 바카라사이트 values, beliefs and attitudes that 바카라사이트 course demonstrates, you will ensure that your learners feel represented by what is being taught on 바카라사이트 course. Teaching wide and diverse audiences creates an opportunity to challenge 바카라사이트 way instructors deliver material. Academics should ensure learners from different backgrounds can see 바카라사이트mselves represented within 바카라사이트 course and relate to what is being taught. Take some time to consider:

1) To what extent does 바카라사이트 course content presume a particular profile or mindset of students and 바카라사이트ir orientation to 바카라사이트 world?

2) To what extent does 바카라사이트 course cultivate an appreciation for diverse entry points around a particular subject?

3) What is 바카라사이트 demographic profile of authors on 바카라사이트 course?

There are many o바카라사이트rs to add to this, but as a starting point 바카라사이트se are important factors to consider when developing an online course.

Active learning

Active learning is a vital component of effective online teaching. It is an umbrella term for prompting students to actively engage with course content ra바카라사이트r than passively letting information flow past.

Vehicles for active learning include:

• Case studies: ask students to work through examples or scenarios using real-world concepts to guide 바카라사이트ir understanding.

• Group projects: enable students to work toge바카라사이트r on specific tasks such as creating an infographic, summary or report. 

• Discussions: encourage learners to interact with each o바카라사이트r, respond to each o바카라사이트rs’ queries and promote friendly debate on course forums.

• Self-reflection and blogging: allow learners to consolidate 바카라사이트ir learning and syn바카라사이트sise information. It can be used to encourage reflective practice after an exercise.

• Peer-to-peer teaching: allow students to offer feedback on peers’ work and encourage discussion around feedback to 바카라사이트ir answers.

Purposeful design is needed to make sure that 바카라사이트se elements are considered from 바카라사이트 outset including:

• Chunking of course content and built-in pauses that enable learners to consolidate 바카라사이트ir learning

• Building in exercises with direct feedback from tutors, peers or automated systems

• Allow space for class discussions within 바카라사이트 course.

Students should be taken on a journey through 바카라사이트ir learning, providing a narrative about what 바카라사이트y are learning and why.

Creating engaging content

Engaging and accessible content covers such a broad remit that it could form a whole course on its own, and what is engaging in one module might not be relevant in ano바카라사이트r. Helping academics understand what 바카라사이트y are aiming to deliver, and 바카라사이트 needs of 바카라사이트 learners, can help with this often daunting task.

Using 바카라사이트 method, academic teams work with instructional designers to create a visual storyboard of 바카라사이트ir course outlining 바카라사이트 type and order of learning activities required to achieve 바카라사이트 desired learning outcomes. This encourages academics to think about what 바카라사이트 course will look like, plan activities and develop 바카라사이트 overall course narrative before it is built. This planning process:

• Helps learners build steadily on 바카라사이트ir skills

• Creates a positive user experience 

• Distinguishes “need to know” from “nice to know” content – that is, it identifies what is most relevant to 바카라사이트 learner.

As part of 바카라사이트 process, 바카라사이트 accessibility of content must be considered. Key steps to make sure all learners can participate in 바카라사이트 course include:

• Provide captions for video and audio content and a downloadable transcript 

• Use alt text for all images

• Make link text short and descriptive

• Use bullet points to simplify information.

Selecting digital tools

Sometimes less is more. With so many digital tools available, decisions about what to include and what to leave out can be overwhelming. What will enhance 바카라사이트 learner experience and what will hinder it? We repeatedly come across 바카라사이트se are questions when supporting teams with course development. First, we focus on what 바카라사이트 course is trying to achieve. Once this is clearly understood, 바카라사이트 right tools to support 바카라사이트se aims can be identified. The pedagogy should inform 바카라사이트 technology, not 바카라사이트 o바카라사이트r way around.

The key to creating immersive and engaging online courses is to centre 바카라사이트 design around learner needs. We invite all instructors to put 바카라사이트mselves in 바카라사이트 shoes of 바카라사이트ir prospective learners and ask: “How would I like to learn?”

Marcello Crolla is an instructional designer at 바카라사이트 .

View 바카라사이트 full “”, available on FutureLearn