Course Content

Your course content is where you include the materials to support the learning experience. The content builds from your syllabus ensuring alignment with the learning objective. You may start by asking yourself how you want to present the information so it is most meaningful to the learners. Some strategies for organization and presentation support learning and reducing cognitive load. Content can be presented in many ways including lectures (live or recorded), readings, videos, guest speakers, links to outside sources, podcasts, interactive activities, and many other ways. Presentation of content in various ways supports Universal Design for Learning. Consideration must be given to the accessibility of the content and copyright (UMA Libraries resources on copyright).

Considerations

When designing online courses several important aspects should be considered to ensure effective content delivery (Mintz, 2020 and Pappas, 2015).

Clear Learning Objectives: Clearly define the learning outcomes and objectives of the course. This helps students understand what they will gain from the course and provides a roadmap for content delivery.

Structured Course Materials: Organize course materials in a logical and consistent way such as modules or units, to facilitate student learning. Provide resources like readings, videos, interactive multimedia, and quizzes to enhance engagement and understanding. Include descriptions of each module to prepare learners for the content included.

Chunking: Organizing content by chunking is a great way to make the content more manageable and reduce cognitive overload. Chunking is breaking down larger content or materials into smaller learning opportunities - chunks. For example, a one hour video lecture can be broken down to several shorter videos based on topics. This helps with attention span and with organization. Learners can look up specific topics if they need to revisit them.

Engaging Multimedia: Incorporate multimedia elements like videos, animations, infographics, and interactive simulations to make the content more engaging for students. These multimedia resources can enhance comprehension and retention of the material. Be sure the multimedia relates and support the topic of the content.

Interactive Learning Activities: Include interactive activities that encourage student engagement and promote active learning. These can include discussions, group projects, case studies, simulations, and virtual labs, which allow students to apply their knowledge in practical scenarios. Relevant learning experiences that relate to learners need to know are more authentic and meaningful due to the ability to apply to the "real world".

Assessments and Feedback: Implement a variety of assessments, including quizzes, assignments, and exams, to gauge student understanding and progress. Provide timely feedback on their performance to guide their learning and address any misconceptions or gaps in knowledge.

Clear Navigation and User Experience: Design a user-friendly course and ensure easy navigation within the Brightspace. Use consistent layouts and naming protocol to support the user experience and facilitate seamless access to course content. Use the tools in Brightspace to link the learners directly to the assessments in the content area rather than requiring them to click an additional tab to access.

Accessibility: Ensure that the course content is accessible to all students. Ally is built into Brightspace and can help support accessibility. All documents loaded to Brightspace must be formatted for accessibility. For additional information and resources see the Accessibility tab.

Return to Top

Video Content (Click to Expand)

Videos can be an important part of your content. You can record your own videos or include videos from experts in the field or professional organizations. A video is a great way for you to provide a weekly description of the upcoming content and helps build a connection with your students. Think personalization. Videos are also a way to record live lectures or capture recorded lectures. Videos are valuable in your courses for several reasons (Ferriman, 2020; Pandey, 2022).

Enhance Engagement - Videos can gain the attention of the students in a more engaging way than text. Learners receive material in a visual and auditory way to help maintain focus and reduce cognitive load. Be sure the videos are not too long as they can have the opposite effect of leading to boredom and inattention.

Visual Learning - Videos can help with the comprehension of complex information. Videos can be use to demonstrate, animate, or include graphics in which you or another subject matter expert can explain to assist with understanding.

Support Authentic Learning - Videos can demonstrate real life examples, case studies, or scenarios to connect learning to real life.

Support UDL - Videos are another way for students to access information and engage with their learning. Students can also use videos as a way to submit work or develop a relationship with their instructor/classmates. Ensuring your videos are captioned support accessibility and allow learners to view the videos when they need the sound turned off due to the need to be quiet or because they are in a public location.

Active Learning - Videos can be active learning experiences by permitting learners to pause recordings to take notes, practice, and reflect as well as participate in embedded quizzes or activities.

Flexibility and Convenience - The option to access content asynchronously allows students to view (and review) at their own pace and at a convenient time. Students can view the lectures in a time that is convenient for them (think working parents) and they can revisit information if needed.

Personalization - Content can be delivered in a more personal manner with the opportunity for students to get a glimpse of their instructor's personality and view body language and voice inflection. Brightspace also offers the opportunity for video notes as a way to record right in any text box and reach out to individual students with support or feedback. This can support the relationship between the student and instructor.

Resources for including video content in your courses.

How to Use Mayer's 12 Principles of Multimedia (DeBell, 2019)
Mayer's 12 Principles of Multimedia Learning (Digital Learning Institute, 2024)

Return to Top

Public Domain and Design Resources (Click to Expand)

Making Course Graphics Using Word - This 14 minute video demonstrates how to use Microsoft Word to creates simple design elements with drawing tools and templates.

How to Find Free Copyright Images for your Online Course - This 20 minute video provides helpful tips for locating high quality images and graphics for your online courses.

For public domain and creative commons licensed images, check out the following websites:

Pexels.com
Pixabay.com
Unsplash.com
Library of Congress
Flickr - Use the Creative Commons image search

If you are looking for tools to create or edit your design elements, try:

Return to Top

References:

DeBell, A. (2019). How to use Mayer's 12 Principles of Multimedia. water bear Learning. Retrieved from https://waterbearlearning.com/mayers-principles-multimedia-learning/

Digital Learning Institute. (2024). Mayer's 12 Principles of Mulitmedia Learning. Retrieved from https://www.digitallearninginstitute.com/blog/mayers-principles-multimedia-learning

Ferriman, J. (2020). 7 Benefits of E-learning videos. LearnDash. Retrieved from https://www.learndash.com/7-benefits-of-e-learning-videos/

Mintz, S. (2020). Pedagogy and course design need to change. Inside Higher Ed. Retrieved from https://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/higher-ed-gamma/pedagogy-and-course-design-need-change-here%E2%80%99s-how

Pandey, A. (2022). Benefits of video-based learning. eLearning Industry. Retrieved from https://elearningindustry.com/benefits-of-video-based-learning#:~:text=Unlike%20text%20or%20infographics%2C%20video,an%20attentive%20and%20captive%20audience.

Papas, C. (2015). Writing learning objectives for eLearning: What eLearning professionals should know. eLearning Industry. Retrieved from https://elearningindustry.com/writing-learning-objectives-for-elearning-what-elearning-professionals-should-know

Page updated

Report abuse