Best Practices Course Template and Homepage

The EXCITE committee has the goal of recommending alternative approaches to use technology in the academic process. I would like to update you on an initiative we started through our sub-group, Develop Course Shell Templates. Thank you to the following faculty members and instructional designers that provided their insight through their proficiency in the online modality:

  • Jennifer Bell
  • Jasmine Checchi
  • Sarah Desormeaux
  • Bill Harrison
  • Michael Mckeown
  • Dacia Milescu
  • Anindya Paul
  • Diana Tata
  • Richard Vollaro
  • Nabeel Yousef

Our Goal

Our goal was to produce a template that illustrates best practices in online teaching and follows the standards from the Rubric for Online Course Design. The template is a simple starting point for either new faculty that may not have honed these best practices or perhaps, faculty seeking to achieve an exemplary score on a specific standard of a peer review.   Best Practices

 

Our Focus

We focused on the course homepage and some design options within the Content tool. We created multiple homepages so we could weigh the balance of too much material on the page vs. too little information.  As a result, we decided we would provide you a homepage that has all the bells and whistles and let you determine which layout and communication methods are best for your course.  

Your Choice

You require a design that functions with your pedagogy. So, we present you with the choices for a framework for your content. The examples are in chapter, weekly, and project formats. In addition, there are examples of module outcomes and activities in the description field that reflect standard #5 of the rubric for online course design.  
The following videos:

  1. Introduce the elements of the homepage, the content structure, module outcomes, and potential layout. 
  2. How to:
    1. Import the template file into your course
    2. Copy the Best Practices Homepage Template
    3. Copy and edit the virtual office hours widget
    4. Edit the Best Practice Homepage Template 
    5. Make the Best Practices Homepage Template active  

 

Resources:

 

aaron sunday

Aaron Sunday
Instructional Designer, Division of Online Studies
aaron.sunday@daytonastate.edu| 386-506-3209