2) Course Design and Quality:

This section is divided in two parts.

The objectives of Course Design and Course Quality section are:

Course Design
Course Quality

Course Design

EC online courses should be simple to navigate, contain access to course materials, and should follow the schedule listed on the course's syllabus.

Using the Modules tab on Canvas to list weekly tasks (e.g. "Module 1" = "Week 1"), online articles, grading rubrics, assignments, content pages, URLs to other media content, quizzes, and discussion boards, is a great way to streamline your students' online experience.

Placing each of your course content in easily-accessible places (like the Modules page) prevents students from getting lost in the Files tab or Announcement areas of your course Canvas page. All of the files (articles, images, & the syllabus), URLs (including YouTube links, Google Drive links for files/videos, and additional websites), discussion pages, and quizzes your students will need should be clearly listed on your Modules page and published so that your students have access to the content when they are needed.

Listing the tasks students are required to complete in each Module/Unit/Week on the Course Schedule of your syllabus is a great way to have all of the students' requirements in a downloadable file that they can access at any time. By using a "Planning Map", instructors can show what tasks a student must complete prior to the Module they are about to engage, the tasks involved in this Module, and what they will need to do to prepare for the next Module. The Planning Map is designed to help you structure and plan your course by weeks/units/modules (Canvas uses the term “Modules” which would be most appropriate for labeling on your syllabus). It will guide you in the planning of your content and assessments for each module, making sure the tasks align with the course learning objectives for each unit and for the course as a whole. Below is an example of module map for a week’s tasks in a class:

An example of a Module layout is below:

Course Quality

Courses should be seamless and offer efficient access to all course components (e.g. the course syllabus, links to files, lectures and videos, and to assignment submission areas). By having links to all resources provided on a Modules page on Canvas, students will be less likely to get lost on the course Canvas page. Instructors should verify that all content, links, and dates are adjusted so that students can access the required Canvas areas when they are asked to. All content areas that students need to access must be "Published".

All faculty teaching online (new instructors and returning instructors) are expected to:

Create a Canvas page that is simple to navigate
Create a Canvas page that contains access to all required course materials (files, articles, images, websites, lectures, videos, etc.)
Create a Course Schedule on the course's syllabus that can be accessed by students even while offline
Instructors must verify that all content, links, and dates are adjusted so that students can access the required Canvas areas when they are asked to

Please click on the link below to acknowledge your agreement to abide by the standards listed above:

Competency 2