Description of the Course: Give
an overview of what the student is expected to learn, including the
objectives of the course. This is similar to what an instructor would
explain on the first day of a face-to-face class taught on campus.
Course Format: Is
the course entirely on the web, is information found by reading the
textbook or web, by doing research, or a combination? Are the quizzes
on the web or in a testing center? Will there be discussions in chat
sessions or required bulletin board postings? Are there parts of
the course that are synchronous or asynchronous?
Course Organization: (Instructor-Led
or Self-paced) In some courses (instructor-led), instructors want
students to pace their learning throughout the semester according
to a set schedule, and the student success depends on how well they
can keep pace with the instructor-managed schedule. In self-paced
courses, however, students have the opportunity to set their own
pace and can try to do all the work in a concentrated period, even
during the last few weeks of class. As an instructor, consider if
you want to grade all of the same assignments together or at different
times throughout the semester. Also, consider if you will have time
to grade a student's entire course work at the end of the semester
if the end of the semester is the only deadline.
Start Dates:
Some courses -- usually self-paced -- begin whenever the student enrolls,
or every at the start of every month, and they then run for fifteen
weeks rather than beginning and ending at the usual semester dates.
Whatever type of course you're teaching, it's important that students
understand the type of course it is.
Navigation to Other Parts
of the Course: including the course
content, email, bulletin board, white board, quizzes, calendar, syllabus,
student's grades, etc. How easy is it for students to get from the
homepage to other parts of the course?