drawing on a whiteboard elements of online course

Online Course Design Academy


Dates

The Online Course Design Academy will be offered next early in the Spring 2023 semester.

Location

Online - The Online Course Design Academy is facilitated through a course in Blackboard, which will become available shortly before the start of the academy.

Modality

4-week, Asynchronous
1 optional synchronous meeting on the first Tuesday of the academy

The online academy incorporates active learning strategies, encourages interaction among peers, and includes assessments to guide you through the design of your own course.

Online registration is closed.

Overview

During the four-week online academy, you will learn the practices and principles of effective online course design, including quality standards, and apply them to an online course you will develop. Throughout the academy, you will experience a variety of methods of online delivery firsthand. The online academy experience allows participants to gain an online student’s perspective.

Each participant will be partnered with a staff member from the Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning to guide the design and development process.

By the end of the online academy, you will be able to:

  • Incorporate active learning and engagement strategies
  • Align objectives, assessments, activities, and content
  • Select technologies appropriate for your course objectives
  • Apply Universal Design for Learning principles to online content
  • Demonstrate cultural competencies to improve access, retention, and success for all students
  • Partner with an instructional design professional

In addition, participating in the online academy will help you connect to a community of peers interested in online course design and gain confidence in your ability to design and deliver an online course.

Beyond the Online Course Design Academy

The partnership model established during the academy will continue beyond the four weeks of the academy. Partners will meet at mutually convenient times both during and after the online academy.

Registration Information

This online academy is open to all NIU faculty, including tenured, tenure-track, instructional, clinical, and research faculty, as well as teaching staff.

Registration for the summer academy is closed.

Frequently Asked Questions

Questions? View answers to commonly asked questions below.

How will I know that the Online Course Design Academy is right for me?
The Online Course Design Academy is ideal for faculty and instructors developing an online course for the 2022 summer or fall semester. The academy is meant for true online courses and not just courses that are employing remote teaching strategies. However, the lessons learned will be helpful to those continuing to explore remote teaching methods.
I’m interested in learning more about the partnership model. Who would I be assigned as a partner, and what is the purpose of having a partner?
Each academy participant will be partnered with a Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning staff member. During the academy, you and your partner will discuss your course design, how to incorporate the NIU Quality Online Course Essentials, as well as educational technologies that can enhance the online student experience. Beyond the academy, your partner will continue to work with you on your course development and support your professional development in online teaching excellence.
I participated in the Online Course Design Academy in 2020. Why should I take it again?

The Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning has been facilitating an Online Course Design Academy for many years. In 2020, we adapted the academy to support the pivot to emergency remote teaching. If you completed one of the 2020 Online Course Design Academies, you were introduced to the most relevant strategies and quick start techniques. However, emergency remote teaching is different than quality online course design, development, and delivery.

This next generation Online Course Design Academy will dive deeper into researched-based course design techniques, strategic use of educational technologies, and student-first teaching methods. If you are interested in taking your course design, technology integration and online teaching to the next level, the academy is right for you.

Can the Online Course Design Academy help me to be eligible for the Excellence in Online Teaching Award?
Yes, it can. Not only can it help you develop a quality course, the academy can also help you identify areas for good-to-great improvements in your online teaching. Collaborating with a CITL design partner also allows a CITL staff member to recognize your exemplar online pedagogies and potentially serve as a reference during the nomination process. Learn more about the Excellence in Online Teaching award.

Contact Us

Center for Innovative
Teaching and Learning

Phone: 815-753-0595
Email: citl@niu.edu

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