Visual Design for Online Learning

by Torria Davis (Jossey-Bass, 2015)

The Light Course

Visual Design for Online Learning focuses on designing online courses that are "light" and effective. A light course avoids activities and resources extraneous to the learning objectives, as well as navigation requirements and add-on technologies beyond a simple path forward. The course's visual design supports this focused environment rather than adding decorative flourishes. The three goals of visual design, according to the author, are to humanize the professor, to make content accessible (UDL principles are in play), and to "provide resources at the point of need." The author recommends four page types (landing, instructional, navigation, and assignment submission), with templates creating a cohesive look and feel.

Discussions with Structure

On interaction, the author offers tips for asynchronous discussion boards, comparing the unwritten social rules of in-class discussion to online behaviors that impede lively posting. Just as students hesitate to speak in class until they are explicitly given the floor, they hesitate to post without a specific assignment. She also suggests limiting a discussion's time span and letting students self-identify their availability, so discussions don't dribble all week and students can count on interacting with group mates who are logged in at the same time.

Lightening Over Time

Reading this book, I recognize my own trajectory: I have lightened my courses over time. The style of dominant online culture changes like any other cultural phenomenon, and we are squarely in the era of TikTok. My past demo videos come from a previous era, as do web pages that address more than one topic. My Business Calculus class uses a very consistent structure in every lesson, and I will shift my Math 1A course in that direction over time.

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