how to plan a course

• Determine course content. Select the major topics and determine the order in which you will teach them. ...
• Develop teaching methods and tools. Once you have determined the course goals and content, think about how you will present the content.
• Define course policies. ...
• Develop the course schedule. ...
• Write the course syllabus. ...
• Refine the Course Design. ...

Full Answer

How do I plan a new course?

Begin the process early, giving yourself as much time as you can to plan a new course. Successful courses require careful planning and continual revision. Consult with colleagues who have taught the same or similar courses to learn from their strategies and their general impressions of the students who typically take the course.

What is the course plan of a course?

Course plan: the instructor plans to divide the course into sections and to lecture and show videos to students during the course. Students will demonstrate knowledge during the course by taking written tests on what is covered in the lectures and videos.

Why should I plan my course content?

Planning your course content creates a solid foundation for your entire course business, and here is the fool–proof guide. Skip to main content Money Money Grow your team Small business finance Taxes and payments

How do I design a course?

Designing a course can seem like a daunting task, so we break it down into a few easy steps to help you navigate creating a structure that's engaging and fun for your students. Have questions? Begin the process early, giving yourself as much time as you can to plan a new course. Successful courses require careful planning and continual revision.

How do you plan a course plan?

Determine course content.Select the main topics to be covered. To obtain an initial list of course topics, look in current textbooks or the current literature (for a special-topics course). ... Pare down and refine your initial list of topics. ... Determine the structure of the course; arrange the topics in a logical order.

How do you structure a learning course?

Decide what material to cover. ... Group subject matter into modules. ... Break down each module into sections. ... Links between sections for a self-directed learning approach. ... Create a roadmap for the course. ... Develop a theme that reflects course structure.

What is a course design plan?

The course design plan serves as a blueprint for development. It includes important course information, design elements, and style choices. The content, curriculum, and structure are identified as well as testing and evaluation methods.

What is a course schedule?

A class schedule is the list of classes that a student is enrolled in during a specific term. This course schedule typically includes all of the subjects that the student will be taught each week. It details the times of the day and the days of the week that each course will be offered.

What is course planning in education?

A course plan includes not only the goals and the content topics, but also how the topics will be taught and what the students will do during the course. In order to achieve end-of-semester goals, students must have practice during the semester.

What is a course template?

Course templates allow you to configure, store and reuse components of a course, such as quizzes, assignments, surveys, images, and so on, and then use the components in individual course offerings.

What is course content example?

Any informational material that is required for participation or understanding content such as assigned readings, video recordings, exams, and any other material needed for learning. Copyright © 2022 UC Regents; all rights reserved.

How to teach a course?

1. Establish your goals for the course. Having clear objectives for your course will help you know exactly what to teach, and will help your students realize what they should be learning. Objectives are meant to give you a way of measuring whether you and the course have achieved what you need to.

What is required to teach a course?

Teaching a course at any level requires knowledge, authority and the ability to anticipate and answer questions. Your students will expect to learn things they did not know, and to attain the tools necessary to continue learning in whatever subject you are teaching.

How to learn about teaching?

Talk to other instructors about your course. You can learn a lot about teaching by discussing ideas with other instructors. Talking to instructors who have taught the same or similar courses can help you when you are planning your syllabus and lesson plans. You can also gain ideas from them throughout the term.

What are some ways to assess learning?

Some typical ways of assessing learning include: Quizzes and exams. Learning activities (fill in the blank, practice equations, etc.)

What are some examples of learning goals?

Some examples of learning goals used in actual courses are: Demonstrate the ability to read, evaluate and interpret general economic information. Apply research methods in psychology, including design, data analysis, and interpretation to a research project. Communicate effectively in an oral presentation.

What are the components of a syllabus?

However, syllabi commonly include sections on: Basic information (course title and/or number, meeting times, office hours, contact information) A course description.

What should be a description of the task?

This should be a clear set of instructions about what you are asking students to do, such as write an analytical essay or conduct a scientific experiment. Characteristics you will be rating. These are the skills, knowledge, or behavior that you will be observing and grading.

How to prepare for a new course?

Begin the process early , giving yourself as much time as you can to plan a new course. Successful courses require careful planning and continual revision. Consult with colleagues who have taught the same or similar courses to learn from their strategies and their general impressions of the students who typically take the course.

What is course planning?

Course planning is a continual process, as illustrated by the diagram below. Each of the steps is necessarily undertaken with the others in mind, and each will necessarily undergo revision each time you teach a particular course. As you plan and revise courses, remember the importance of teaching core concepts and critical-thinking skills.

How to teach more material than you can cover in the allotted time?

Instructors often plan initially to teach more material than they can cover in the allotted time. Determine the structure of the course; arrange the topics in a logical order. Developing a rationale that guides the structure of the course can help you explain the material more clearly to the students.

How to define course goals?

When you define the course goals, focus on student learning. One way to formulate these goals is to determine what students should be learning in terms of content, cognitive development, and personal development. Be as specific as you can and make sure that the goals define learning in ways that can be measured.

How to teach chemistry?

Teach students problem-solving and critical-thinking skills. Demonstrate how chemistry is used in other fields and in everyday situations. Teach students the beauty of chemistry. Determine course content. Select the major topics and determine the order in which you will teach them. Select the main topics to be covered.

How to start planning a new course?

You can start planning with confidence and getting your mental energy away from worry and back to the most important thing: teaching and reaching your students. Here are concrete steps you can take to start planning a brand-new course you have never taught before: 1. Gather three previous course syllabi. Get a sense of the course goals, major ...

How to get a sense of the course?

1. Gather three previous course syllabi. Get a sense of the course goals, major assignments, and ideally a course schedule. Read and study them to get a sense of the course, but no need to understand every detail. Just try to get the big picture of the course. 2.

What to do before the beginning of a semester?

Before the beginning of the semester, have a basic, solid outline for the course. Know the learning goals, major assignments, course policies, and the big picture goals of the course. Don’t get bogged down in details. Trust the process, your course plan, and your ability to adapt and meet the needs of your students along the way.

What do you want students to learn and be able to accomplish?

What do you want the students to learn and be able to accomplish? With your goals clearly defined, decisions to include certain content, the teaching methods to employ, and the types of assignments and exams to utilize can be more readily determined. To help with curriculum planning primarily in defining goals to maximize student learning (opposed to course content, it is called Backward Design ), check out G. Wiggins and J. McTighe’s Understanding by Design (1998). Basically, according to Backward Design, instructors should clearly define what they expect their students to have learned by the end of the course or section.

What should the exam focus on?

For example, if a course goal is to sharpen problem-solving skills, then the exam should focus on a question that uses problem-solving, not mainly recalling facts. Similarly, both homework and class activities prior to the exam should involve questions and exercises that deal with problem-solving skills.

Why is it important to allow time for active learning?

It is essential to allow time for active learning as well as to block out sufficient work/study time for students to complete major assignments and to prepare for exams.

What should instructors know about backward design?

Basically, according to Backward Design, instructors should clearly define what they expect their students to have learned by the end of the course or section. See also: ADDIE Model. During the process of determining course goals, it is important to think about student learning.

How to grade work?

Decide how to grade the work: papers, assignments, exams, and if appropriate, class participation. Determine how you will deal with issues of student tardiness, attendance, late work, and any extensions/rescheduling of assignments/exams.

Is planning a course fluid?

Remember that planning a course is a fluid process. The diagram shows this below. Each step is made with the other steps in mind and, likewise, each step will be refined every time you teach the course.

How to design a curriculum?

1. Define the purpose of the curriculum. Your curriculum should have clear topic and purpose. The topic should be appropriate for the age of the students and the environment in which the curriculum will be taught. If you are asked to design a course, ask yourself questions about the general purpose of the course.

What is curriculum in education?

This article has been viewed 566,414 times. A curriculum often consists of a guide for educators to teach content and skills. Some curricula are general road maps, while others are quite detailed and give instructions for day to day learning. Developing a curriculum can be quite challenging, especially when expectations have such a large range.

What are unit topics?

Organize your brainstorm or state standards into unified sections that follow a logical sequence. Units can cover big ideas like love, planets, or equations, and important topics like multiplication or chemical reactions.

How long is a two hour class?

The difference between a two-hour class that meets once a week for three weeks, and a two-hour class that meets every day for three months is significant. In those three weeks, you might be able to put on a 10-minute play. Three months, on the other hand, may be enough time for a full production.

How long does a unit last?

The number of units varies by curriculum and they can last anywhere between one week and eight weeks. A unit title can be one word or a short sentence. A unit about character development, for example, could be called, “Creating deep characters.”. ...