Online Course Development Process
Design Phase
During the design stage, the instructional designer storyboards the course and answers the following questions:
- How will the content and activities be sequenced, presented and reinforced?
- What are the objectives of each session/unit?
- What skills or outcomes are you hoping to achieve for each?
- What methodology will you use to achieve each objective?
- What media/resources will be used in the instruction?
- How will you assess the students' understanding of the material?
Depending on the situation and how well articulated the project is, graphic design of the overall "look & feel" and page templates needed to create an "alpha" version for formative evaluation are done at this phase.
PROCESS:
- Instructional objectives by unit
- Specify instructional interactions
- Contract outside vendors
- Graphical/Screen design
- Flowcharts
- Storyboarding
- Prototyping
- Write scripts specifications
- Format screen templates
- Conduct formative reviews
TEAM:
- Project manager
- SME(s)
- Instructional designer(s)
- Project evaluator(s)
- Programmer(s)
- Graphic designer(s)
- Video producer(s)
PRODUCTS:
- Design document/Treatment description
- Instructional archetypes
- Vendor contracts
- Flowcharts
- Informational/Instructional architecture
- Scripts
- Format sheets
- Prototypes
- Improvement specifications
TOOLS:
Unless indicated otherwise, these tools are in Word format.
- Sample Agenda. This is tool I adapt to perform both Analysis and Design. The second half focuses on some Design issues and objectives-setting.
- Sample Graphical Flowchart/Site Map. (Online image format) This is a sample of a preliminary content flowchart I created for a CME-credit genetics course being developed by the March of Dimes. The purpose of this chart is to show overall site flow, not specific learning objectives and instructional architecture, which are generally done in outline text format (the outline is proprietary and cannot be shown here). This map was created using the Inspiration flowcharting tool.
- Project Estimation Worksheet. Used to calculate the temporal, financial, and personnel resources required for a interactive multimedia design project.
- Request for Proposal Template. The Request for Proposal (RFP) is your "official" statement to vendors about the services you require.
- Plan for Bidder’s Session. A bidder's session is a meeting in which you present all potential vendors with your Request for Proposal (RFP). The bidder's session can help you concentrate all your question and answer time into one efficient meeting.
- Vendor Contract. Process & key areas to include.
- Expert Review Checklist. A tool that will help assure that instructional design experts reviewing your interactive program focus on the variables of most interest to you.
