how to design a course module

by Forest Stokes 3 min read

Modular Course Design

  • Identify key topic areas. Each module should point to important categories of content or conceptual pieces in your course that help guide students to recognize the big ideas.
  • Label your modules clearly and consistently. Ideally, your module titles should be roughly the same length and adopt a parallel structure. ...
  • Create modules of consistent structure. The consistency of your modules shouldn’t merely be in their titles, but also in the structure: the length of time, the amount of work, and ...

Modular Course Design
  1. Identify key topic areas. Each module should point to important categories of content or conceptual pieces in your course that help guide students to recognize the big ideas. ...
  2. Label your modules clearly and consistently. ...
  3. Create modules of consistent structure.
Aug 16, 2017

Full Answer

How do I create modules for my course?

Each course is different depending on goals, disciplines, or methodologies. As a result, there is no single best strategy for how to create your modules. Nonetheless, creating a consistent course structure will greatly help your students navigate the course, manage their time, and know what to expect.

What is modular course design?

Modular Course Design The term module means different things to different people. For our purposes, modules are containers—organizational units or buckets of content—that you use to organize the components of your course.

Can you design a whole module or course in higher education?

Having the opportunity to design a whole module or course in higher education can seem simultaneously daunting and exciting. Susan Toohey explains that: How different elements of a module fit together. Teachers in Higher Education retain a very significant advantage over teachers in other branches of education: their control over the curriculum…

What should I think about when designing a course?

Considering the course in context (department, institution, sector) Finally, it’s important to think about what might affect the design of a module in your context. This is likely to change the way you think about designing outcomes, learning activities, and assessment. Think about:

How do you develop a course module?

How to create the best training modulesStep 1: Establish your training objectives. ... Step 2: Define your audience. ... Step 3: Decide on the right content format. ... Step 4: Create your training module template. ... Step 5: Test and test again. ... Step 6: Upload and launch your training module.

How do you design a course curriculum?

To design an effective course, you need to:Consider timing and logistics.Recognize who your students are.Identify the situational constraints.Articulate your learning objectives.Identify potential assessments.Identify appropriate instructional strategies.Plan your course content and schedule.

How do I create a training module template?

Here are a few steps on how to create a training module:Step 1: Define your objective and audience. ... Step 2: Choose the right content format. ... Step 3: Create your training module template. ... Step 4: Share with your learners and track the results.

What is modular learning design?

Modular Learning Design is a flexible framework for curriculums in K-12 Education. Purpose of this Design ensure the realisation of lifelong, whole and meaningful learning fits 21 st Century.

What are the 5 curriculum designs?

Curriculum design is a term used to describe the purposeful, deliberate, and systematic organization of curriculum (instructional blocks) within a class or course....Types of Curriculum DesignSubject-centered design.Learner-centered design.Problem-centered design.

What are the 4 design of a subject-centered curriculum?

Subject-centered designs include subject designs, discipline designs, broad field designs and process designs. Learner-centered designs comprise child-centered designs, experience-centered designs, romantic designs and humanistic designs.

What should a training module include?

Types of Training ModulesInformational e-course. An informational course is a popular training format that typically represents a set of slides with text, pictures, and “Next” buttons. ... Interactive assessment. ... FAQ interaction. ... Video lecture and screencast. ... Dialogue simulation. ... Microlearning module. ... Digital job aid.

What does a training module look like?

1:125:17How to Create a Training Module - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipThis is a training module that typically consists of slides with text pictures. And next buttonsMoreThis is a training module that typically consists of slides with text pictures. And next buttons this provides learners with information on a specific topic. It's a good fit for delivering.

What is a course module?

A course module (often abbreviated 'cm') represents each of the activities and resources found in a course. It contains information about which course and section the activity / resource is displayed on, as well as details about the visibility, group and completion status of the activity.

How do I create an online teaching module?

How to develop an online training moduleKnow your audience. First up, you need to focus on who'll be taking the course. ... Break your topic into modules. Now you've identified your audience, it's time to think about how to organize your course content. ... Plan your content formats. ... Add knowledge checks. ... Responsive course content.

What are the three factors which show the importance of module characteristics?

The existing literature emphasises three main factors contributing to module choice: intrinsic motivations, extrinsic motivations and module characteristics. These are discussed in turn.

What are the objectives of modular learning?

Modular teaching is concerned for each student as an individual with his/her own special aptitude and interest, goal of helping each student to think for himself, and allowing the individuality to each learner.

What is a course module?

A course module is a learning unit that is part of a larger course. Generally, a learning module covers one concept or knowledge area. Course modules are connected into sequences, building understanding step by step. The learner has a module guide that walks them through each step.

What is a quiz in a course?

Quizzes are interactive elements that help learners retain key points. You can scatter questions throughout a course module and include a brief wrap-up quiz at the end. Requiring the learner to answer correctly before moving on further enhances the retention of important concepts.

Adding Content to a Module

Adding items to a module is a simple as clicking the Plus button in the top-right corner of the module.

Designing Your Module

You can organize modules in a variety of ways. Often instructors will organize modules based on specific periods of time (one week of coursework, for example) or based on course topics/themes. When designing your module, be sure you organize material in a way that will move the students through the material in a logical way.

Using Text Headers

You can use text headers to further organize material within a module. For example, you may wish to organize material by topic or material type.

Indenting Items in a Module

Indenting items in a module allows you to further organize your module content. For example, some instructors like to create an Overview Page in their module and then indent items below the overview. You may also wish to indent items below a text header.

What is a successful module?

A successful module is one in where the stated learning outcomes or objectives align with teaching activity and assessment (what has been called constructive alignment). In other words, in the context of the learning outcomes, what learning activities do you want your students to engage with? What kinds of activities would lead to achieving the learning objectives? What content will be needed to achieve learning outcomes? What support will the learners need to achieve the learning outcomes? What is the best way to assess how far students have achieved the learning outcomes? How might you review or evaluate the course to find out if it has successfully aligned learning outcomes with activity and assessment?

What are learning outcomes?

Learning outcomes are statements of what skills, knowledge, or learning a student will have once they have completed the module.#N#Many learning objectives are based on a hierarchical model of learning first articulated by Bloom in the 1950s. Bloom’s model has been critiqued and modified since then, but it is still useful for thinking about learning outcomes.

Is designing a module a privilege?

Designing modules is a great privilege, but also a responsibility. It can be difficult, when starting out designing modules, to know where to begin. For me, there are three key things to think about when designing a module that you can apply to any teaching subject. 1.

What is modular course design?

Modular Course Design. The term module means different things to different people. For our purposes, modules are containers—organizational units or buckets of content —that you use to organize the components of your course.

What should each module point to?

Each module should point to important categories of content or conceptual pieces in your course that help guide students to recognize the big ideas. Think about the topics that you really want to stand out as students scan the overall structure of your course.

How long does a synchronous course last?

Time: If you have a synchronous course, each module will likely last the same amount of time (often one week). It would be less than ideal for your students to have, for example, one module that takes them a day to complete and another that takes them three weeks.

Should module titles be the same length?

Ideally, your module titles should be roughly the same length and adopt a parallel structure. For example, if you start your module titles with a verb, try to do that for all of them. This will make for a much cleaner presentation in both your syllabus and the learning management system, and will allow students to more easily identify the course structure.

What is a training module?

A training module is a building block of an online course or the whole eLearning program. This is a learning content item designed to teach a specific topic or skill. There are different types of training modules, such as an informational online course, quiz or assessment, video tutorial, point-and-click interaction, or demonstration.

What is the first draft of a training plan?

The first draft is known as the alpha draft. An experienced training designer should be able to create an alpha draft that is about 75-80% correct. This is typically where you will get the most feedback from your SMEs. The revised second version is known as the beta draft.

What is specific training?

Specific – the learner knows exactly what they will learn or do as a result of the training; Measurable – learners will use this knowledge consistently for each report; Achievable – the learner will be able to do the tasks listed; Relevant – the training will focus on job-essential skills and knowledge;

How to write a smart objective?

Step 2: Write a SMART Objective. A training goal or objective confirms the reason for learning and communicates the focus of the training module. The goal should specify the skills, knowledge, or benefits the learner will gain as a result of training. For the best results, think SMART and create a goal that is: ...

What is the first rule of training success?

The first rule of training success is: Solve the right business problem! High-quality training starts with communication. To solve a business problem, you need to understand the issue and how it affects on-the-job performance.

What is smart training?

SMART training objectives are specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-based. The secret to building great training is to match the right kind of module to the learning task. Avoid the tendency to make all of your online training modules look, sound, or feel the same.

What is a training module?

A training module is a segment of an overall elearning course that focuses on a specific topic or objective. Think of it like a chapter of a book. Each training module (or chapter) acts as a step in a learner’s journey, each time edging closer to completing the overall course.

How to create the best training modules

Here are our recommended steps to follow when building effective training modules:

Creating training modules with Elucidat

Produce high-quality training modules aligned with your goals and needs up to 4x faster with Elucidat. Leverage our Learning Accelerator feature to access our extensive template library and get inspiration for your next project.

What is the lesson in Module 1 of Marketing?

Module 1: Marketing. Lesson 1: How to choose the right marketing strategy for your business. Topic 1: Why choose Facebook marketing. By using the modules, lessons, and topics for each new idea, you will create a system that is simple for your learner to follow.

What is the purpose of an outline in a course?

Creating an outline that serves as a guide to the course is useful for both learners as well as for you so you can develop a more effective course .

How long should a microlearning lesson be?

Depending on how far down the path of microlearning you are going, lessons might only need to be a couple of minutes up to 10 to 15 minutes in length. There's not too much content in a 2-minute lesson so you really need to get at the heart of the topic and do so quickly if you're going that route.

What is the best tool to use to outline a project?

These are great, but with most, you will have to manually re-type your ideas into other software to use them later on. However, if you're a visual learner, mind mapping is probably the best tool for you. You can also use Trello or other productivity software to outline and manage your projects.

How long does it take to create an eLearning course?

The idea behind rapid eLearning is where you use every tool and strategy you can to potentially create a course in 2 to 3 weeks instead of taking several months. So within your lessons, outline the exact content you will cover.

Why do you need a script for a video lesson?

You don't want to lose your audience because you are rambling from topic to topic with no clear direction. Outlining will also help with lesson planning.

Why is it important to have an outline?

Having an outline allows you to organize these topics in a way that will make sense to your students. In addition, it prevents you from forgetting to add critical information that is relevant to the topic. Writing out what you plan to cover will also help you generate ideas.

What is a module record?

Module Records summarise the learning experience and teaching methods that will be used for each ‘building block’ of the curriculum. All modules need to be approved on the standard University Module Record form available from the Quality assurance Handbook.

What does it mean when a course is constructively aligned?

If your course is constructively aligned it describes and links together:  what the course is for (aims)  what level it is at  what students will learn (outcomes) the content and se quence  how it will be taught  the assessment design  student support and learning resources  methods of evaluation.

What is the purpose of the programme outcomes map?

The programme outcomes map is part of the Programme Specification and is used in programme approval and review . It also ensures that the award is both appropriate and valid and it will be checked in review procedures for consistency with learning and assessment activities .

What is programme learning outcome?

Programme learning outcomes are an essential part of the programme specification. They apply to all undergraduate and postgraduate awards, including HND and Foundation Degrees. They are broader and more generic than module outcomes and will represent clusters of outcomes from more than one module.

What is a level descriptor?

Level descriptors describe generic characteristics of learning at each level of an award. They reflect how our expectations of students will increase between levels as they deepen their knowledge and understanding and develop their skills.

What is the process of putting paperwork together?

After you have put the paperwork together, you will meet with a scrutiny team who will examine the documents and list any updates, amendments or changes that need to be made. Following the meeting those changes must be made before you go forward to the formal approval process.

Is dual accreditation required for a course?

This is normally where there is dual accreditation from a professional body or a requirement for licence to practice. In many areas there is no such requirement but where they exist they must be used in course design.

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