This post features a more specialized e-learning site, one that will guide you in creating and deploying your own e-learning materials for an online course you may be asked to teach some day. And yes, the course is 100% free of charge.
Online Instructor Training is one of many free subjects offered by the OpenCourseWare division of the University of California at Irvine. The course encompasses 10 areas of study in a completely self-access mode of instruction. No registration is required. Simply visit the site and click on “Begin Course.”
A new window will then open and present you with 10 study modules encased in a Moodle interface. Subjects range from “The Online Course Syllabus” to “Facilitating an Online Course,” and may include text (Word/PDF), audio, video, or other media to support the instruction. Two of the modules are dedicated to using Moodle. This is icing on the cake. Not only are you learning how to teach online, but acquiring basic proficiency in Moodle as well.
As you move through the modules, you can’t help but appreciate how much time and effort are required to develop a professional online course. At UC Irvine, for example, online instructors must build the following components into each lesson:
- Lesson introduction
- Learning objectives
- Special readings or terminology
- Topic 1, Topic 2, Topic 3
- Discussion prompts
- Homework assignment
- Lesson Summary
Teachers must also be “visibly” present to the class through regular content postings and updates, forum discussions, and other communications. Download a more detailed overview of UC Irvine’s course development guidelines here.
For anyone seriously considering teaching online, this training program should definitely get you moving in the right direction for planning, building, and eventually facilitating your course.