Constructing a Course Outline or Syllabus
Title your lessons: title your lessons so your students actual want to complete them – make them mouthwatering, sexy, and click-worthy. Now that you have your course outline locked and loaded – it’s time to start creating! Download ConvertKit’s Online Course Outline Template to take the next step in your course creating journey.
Write the course outline Design competency-based course objectives/learning outcomes Select subject matter content Create learning activities Design assessment activities yCorrelate (()p ymatch) competency-based course objectives with your course assessments
Below are some tips that should be considered when writing a Course Outline; Focus on the topic – Always remember to stick around your chosen topic. For example, information about a certain discipline should not be mixed up with another.
Feb 25, 2017 · Step 1: IDENTIFY YOUR CUSTOMERS STARTING POINT. This is your customer’s current reality. The only reason someone would purchase a course is to solve a problem they are currently facing or if they believe it will improve their life in some way. Therefore, your first step is to identify their current pain-points.
When creating your course outline there are some essential pieces that you need to include:Course Description from the Academic Calendar. ... Course Goals. ... Student Learning Objectives/Outcomes. ... Assessment Overview. ... Assessment Plan. ... Schedule of Activities. ... Plagiarism Announcement. ... Reading List.
A Course Outline defines the course aims and learning outcomes, course requirements, textbooks, and assessment dates and criteria. It also contains contact details for the Course Coordinator and tutors.Feb 8, 2019
What Is a Course Outline? The course outline is defined for purposes of Middle States Accreditation as the official, approved document that outlines what students are expected to learn in a course and what they can expect in the way of instructional methods, activities, assignments and grading methods.
A course outline should include the following sections: Course Name, Number, Credits and Description. ... Course Evaluation Process, Policies and Grading Scale. Classroom Rules/Code of Conduct Expectations.Jun 9, 2016
Course Outline is a word document that you can use instead of a full syllabus. It contains the Higher Learning Commission's required information as part of the university's accreditation. The same information is also critical for students during the course registration process.
How to Outline Your Online CourseIdentify Modules. ... Break Each Module Down into Core Steps. ... Brainstorm the Details. ... Building Your Outline. ... Add Worksheets and Bonuses. ... Validate Your Outline.Jul 18, 2018
Course outlines, or syllabi, are an integral part of course design.
Each course consists of one or more sections often called topics. The course sections (topics) are learning content holders of the course lessons and study material. Each course has one Common resource section which holds common course resources like URLs, Files, Videos.
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.
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.
Assessment plans fall in line with learning objectives. While your learning objectives identify what the student will learn, the assessment allows you and the student to have a clear picture of how well they have mastered the objectives. Your outline will identify the types and frequency of assessments.
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.
Like with everything, there are tools you can use to help you outline your course. You can definitely use a pen and paper for this exercise, but it's really nice if your outline is already on a device where you can work with it later. That way you can expand on it when you go from outline to your actual content.
A good course outline allows students to assess the course for fit with their learning needs, clearly understand what is expected of them and how they will benefit from the instruction.
A course description is an important part of the course outline. The course description needs to reflect exactly what will be covered in the course and how learning will be assessed by assignments and/or tests.
Learning Outcomes. The learning outcomes are the goals of the course i.e. what the course is meant to teach students. Often it is the learning outcomes that help a student determine if the course will meet their needs. It is important to use language that does not make false promises.
Prerequisites/Co-requisites. If the course is at an advanced level, it may be wise to request a prerequisite (a course that must be completed prior) or a co-requisite (a course that is taken concurrently). This ensures that students have a foundation level knowledge of the topic before completing the more advanced course.
With your two main questions answered, now is time to get clear on the steps. If “Sam” wants to go from A to B, i.e. their current location, where they don’t know what to do, to this fancy schmancy destination, how are you going to get them there?
Inside each module there are going to be things your student needs to know to progress on to the next step. Don’t assume anything about their previous knowledge or experience. Break down a single step into smaller bit size chunks that give them the literal roadmap.
At this point you should know the main objective of your course. You should have defined all the modules and all the lessons. But now you need to think about what you will actually teach in each particular lesson.
A course outline is a document that benefits students and instructors. It is an essential piece when designing any course. The course outline has a few purposes. A syllabus is a planning tool. Writing it guides the instructor’s development of the course. Through the development of a syllabus, instructors can set course goals, ...
Course Description from the Academic Calendar. The University Calendar has a description of your course that gets published every year. It is a good idea to take a look at this description because this may be the description your students are using to determine if they wish to take your course or not.
The outcomes are usually statements that are verb oriented and directed at the students. For example: “Students will be able to identify key geomorphological formations on a Southern Alberta map.” This example uses the verb identify, which is a lower level thinking skill. A higher order thinking skill is incorporated in the next example: “Students will be able to read and analyze population maps interpreting any trends the data may show.”
The assessment overview is a grading guide that allows students to see what weightings can apply to the different assessment elements of a course. An example of an assessment overview is below.
Assessment Plan. Assessment plans are built in line with student learning objectives. Student learning objectives state what students will learn while your assessment plan states how you, as an instructor, will gather evidence for achievement of the objectives.
Reading List. It is a good idea to put the readings for the course within the syllabus. What you include may simply be a reference to a textbook, or it may be many references to online readings. Listed readings will allow students, administrators, and other educators see what content will is to be covered within the course.
Due to student privacy issues, if you wish to submit your student’s work through a plagiarism detection service such as Turnitin, you must inform your students that you are going to do so. Furthermore, if students request an alternative method of plagiarism detection because of privacy concerns, you must provide them with an alternate option.
Creativity is another key issue that needs to be observed. Unique always does not go away without notice. People will always go for an exclusive content. Also, think about your target group. For example, a course outline template for high school should be made in an easy way to help high school students understand.
When any reader wants to develop a training course outline, it is wise that you organize entire document or syllabus. All your work should be easy and simplified to make entire work understandable. People always like presentable work, so to impress them; your guidelines should be in a format that is well to be seen by everyone.
An orientation course provides an overview of all the courses you offer. If you are offering many courses in your Academy, create an orientation course to build student engagement and interest with the course contents and let them get acquainted with the goals of your Academy.
Presell courses serve as a storefront of an upcoming course. They can rapidly validate a course idea and start building an email list of your potential students before officially releasing a course.
Instructional design is a thoroughly researched subject I suggest you study to get lots of insights into your course design.
You can schedule a series of (live) interviews every three months or two weeks, for example, and ask for payment from the beginning.
Anthea is a Course designer and Content Creator for the LearnWorlds team. She holds years of experience in instructional design and teaching. With a Master of Education (M.Ed.) focused in Modern Teaching Methods & ICT (Information & Communications Technology), she supplements her knowledge with practical experience in E-Learning and Educational Technology.
Mini-courses are short to consume summaries (teasers) of a full-sized course. Like presell and orientation courses, they serve as teasers that make students enroll in a course. However, in contrast to the other two categories, Mini-courses provide real educational value: A full summary of what will be taught in the full-sized course .
Professional training courses serve in building knowledge, skills, and competence in a group of individuals or a team. Companies are used to promote job quality, efficiency, and effectiveness while also motivating employees to make a formal commitment to growing with the institution and being more productive.
The only reason someone would purchase a course is to solve a problem they are currently facing or if they believe it will improve their life in some way. Therefore, your first step is to identify their current pain-points.
A study in the December 8 issue of Educause Review Online (ERO) by Harvard University researcher, Justin Reich, reveals that completion rates of online courses range, between 2 and 10 percent.
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.
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.
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.
Rubrics help you measure student achievement by comparing it to certain levels that you've set. Most rubrics operate on a points or letter-grade scale, such as A/B/C etc.
Some typical ways of assessing learning include: Quizzes and exams. Learning activities (fill in the blank, practice equations, etc.)
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.
However, syllabi commonly include sections on: Basic information (course title and/or number, meeting times, office hours, contact information) A course description.