EMPOWER COVID-19 webinar week, How to Design an Online Course by Henri Annala (Tampere University of Applied Sciences)

How to Design an
Online Course
Staff Training in
Designing Online
Learning
Henri Annala, Senior Lecturer & Digimentor, henri.annala@tuni.fi
Tampere University of Applied Sciences (TAMK), Finland

WHO I AM
7.4.2021 | 2
Online Education during & after COVID-19, 8.4.2021
• Language educator
• Analog/digital pedagogue
• International handyman
https://www.linkedin.com/in/henriannala

HDOC IN A NUTSHELL
7.4.2021 | 3
• A fully online staff training course that focuses on the
pedagogical dimensions in designing online learning
• Part of the services provided by the Digimentor
network: https://sites.tuni.fi/digitaltoolkit/digimentors/
• Developed at Tampere University of Applied
Sciences (TAMK) and originally offered as a training
course for TAMK staff, later also for Tampere
University and worldwide as a paid course
• Contents: online pedagogy, learning design theories,
21st century tools, collaborative working methods
• 2-3 facilitators who scaffold the course design
process through a tailored framework
• Running since 2016 with excellent feedback
Disclaimer: All images on this slideshow
© How to Design an Online Course

THE ORIGINAL VERSION: OUTLINE
7.4.2021 | 4
• 10-week structure; designed to be taken
along with working
• Weekly tasks, workload appr. 8-10 h every
week
• Participants design and build their own
courses during the HDOC course
• Small groups offer peer support and
feedback, and each group has a designated
facilitator
• The course in itself gives the participants a
practical example of what a pedagogically
sound online course can look like
• The first three topics give theoretical
perspectives, the last four focus on
developing the participants’ own courses
• LMSs: Moodle and WordPress for blogging

THE ORIGINAL VERSION: BADGES
7.4.2021 | 5
Online Course Designer
Top Performer
Digital Encourager
Creative Educator
This badge is awarded to
students who complete the
course.
students who complete the first
half of the course within
deadlines.
students who encourage
others and give them positive
feedback.
students who show exceptional
creativity and think outside the
box.

1. Welcome, general info, using the WordPress blog
• TASK 1.1: Pop-in Video Call 1 (Optional)
• A chance to test equipment, ask questions and meet with the facilitators and the other participants
• TASK 1.2: Story about Yourself as an Online Teacher and Learner
• A short video discussion where the participants can introduce themselves and their backgrounds
• TASK 1.3: Visualisation of Your Course Idea
• A visual presentation of the participants’ course ideas
Online Education during & after COVID-19, 8.4.2021 7.4.2021 | 6

2. Various sources (videos/articles) and essential concepts related to online pedagogy & collaboration
• TASK 2.1: Discussion on Online Pedagogy
• Reflecting on and discussing the source the participants selected
• TASK 2.2: Online Tools
• Collecting useful tools in collaborative way
• TASK 2.3: Forming Small Groups
• The participants form the groups themselves based on their course ideas, personalities and interests (tasks 1.2 &
1.3)

3. Scaffolding online learning, classroom vs. online learning
• TASK 3.1: Name and Rules for Your Group
• Getting to know the other group members and deciding on how the group works together
• TASK 3.2: Best Practices in E-classrooms
• Comparing face-to-face and online learning with the help of selected sources and the participants’ own experiences

4. (2 weeks) Crystallising the leading idea of the course and creating a rough framework for its structure
• TASK 4.1: Pop-in Video Call 2 (Optional)
• A chance for the participants to ask questions about their own course ideas
• TASK 4.2: Vision
• Creating an inspiring vision for the course that can serve as the end goal for the development work
• TASK 4.3: Storyboard
• Putting together a visual plan on the different parts of the course (meetings, tasks, materials, tests) and laying it out on a time
scale
• TASK 4.4: Setting up the Course Platform
• Creating a space for the course in the selected LMS and making sure others can access it

5. (2 weeks) Making clear and meaningful tasks
• TASK 5: Course Demo
• Creating a wireframe of the course with placeholders and a few finished tasks
• Using a form tool to create a feedback form that the other participants can use to evaluate their course demo

6. (2 weeks) Looking at other participants’ courses and giving them feedback
• TASK 6: Feedback
• Giving feedback to the participants’ own group and one other group according to the given framework
• After receiving feedback, reviewing the participant’s own course

7. Finalising the course design process and giving course feedback
• TASK 7.1: Finalise Your Course
• Submitting a plan on how to finalise the course based on the feedback received from peers and through completing
the TAMK eCourse Evaluation Form
• TASK 7.2: Course Feedback
• Giving feedback on the HDOC course

THE 2020 EDITION
7.4.2021 | 13
Kick-off webinar, Jun 2020
• Introduction to learning
design theories/models,
digital literacies, how to
scaffold online learning, and
quality criteria for online
learning
• Breakout room discussions
and summaries
• Preparation and voluntary
homework for those taking
the five-week online course
next autumn

THE 2020 EDITION
7.4.2021 | 14
Five-week online course, Aug-Sep 2020
1. Orientation & small groups
- Kick-off Zoom with introductions
- Division into small groups
- Online pedagogy
2. Storyboarding
- Creating detailed course plans
3.-4. Course demo
- Implementing the course demo in Moodle
5. Feedback
- Feedback on the other participants’ course
designs & demos
- Feedback to the facilitators
BUKA Online Seminar, 20.1.2021

THE 2020 EDITION
7.4.2021 | 15
One of the big differences to the
original version was that Microsoft
Teams was used as the other
LMS instead of a WordPress blog
• Private channels for each
small group
• Task-specific channels for
sharing and discussion
• A well-working mobile app
 Result: participant engagement
and activity was enhanced

THE 2021 EDITION
7.4.2021 | 16
WEBINAR 1:
Pedagogical
Script & Learning
Design
WEBINAR 2:
Tools &
Resources for
Learning
WEBINAR 3:
Different Modes of
Learning &
Facilitating
WEBINAR 4:
Quality in
Planning &
Implementing
Online Learning
Mentoring
workshop 1
Mentoring
workshop 2
Mentoring
workshop 3
Mentoring
workshop 4
• Offered as part of the activities of the TUNI Teaching & Learning Centre (https://www.tuni.fi/tlc/), which
is a intra-university network providing pedagogical and technical support
• Webinars are open for everyone and partly interactive
• In the mentoring workshops, the participants can discuss any questions or problems they have with
their existing courses or course ideas and receive feedback and guidance

WHAT WE HAVE LEARNED
• There is an increasing need for this kind of training, as designing online
learning is fundamentally different from designing classroom learning
• Completion rate evolved from 31% to 91% in the course of 4 years
• The key driver behind this development: focusing on the first few weeks by
establishing an active facilitator presence and a sense of community through
frequent interaction and collaboration
• Some considerations:
• Authenticity: A course that focuses on designing online courses should be an
online course in itself, because 1) it puts the participants in the student’s shoes
and 2) it gives a practical example of what a good online course could look like
• Collaboration: One of the fundamental concepts in successful online learning, but
requires careful planning because of different skillsets, interests and schedules
• Flexibility: Teachers are busy and it’s hard to commit to a training course that has
a lot of deadlines and requires hard work
• Incentive: Most teachers have been eager to participate because they feel the
course is useful to them, but some teachers might benefit from a more top-down
incentive (specifically allocated resources)
• Relevance: The course should meet the pre-existing needs of the participants
• Quality: Important to give the participants access to different angles to view their
courses from
7.4.2021 | 17
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
2016 2017/I 2017/II 2018/I 2018/II 2019/I 2019/II 2020
Completion Rate

BUKA Online Seminar, 20.1.2021 7.4.2021 | 18
QUESTIONS?
IDEAS?
THOUGHTS?

EMPOWER COVID-19 webinar week, How to Design an Online Course by Henri Annala (Tampere University of Applied Sciences)

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