When we start to plan out course content and assessments, backward design is a very useful model for planning out your course map. Rather than starting with the content, backward design starts with the outcomes, or results, you would like to see, and can be approached in three simple steps.
Steps
Identify Desired Results
What should students know and be able to do at the end of the course/module?
- These are your learning objectives.
Determine Acceptable Evidence.
What evidence would indicate that students have achieved these learning objectives?
- These are your formative and summative assessments.
Plan Your Content
What learning experiences, instruction, and resources will help students achieve the learning objectives?
- These are your course content and resources.
These same steps can be used to plan content at the module level as well. For a module, once you have decided the module's learning objectives, you'll need to think about your assessment plan, and then the learning activities and materials needed to support your students in reaching the module learning objectives.
Templates
A course map template is available to help you plan out your module structures:
Course Map TemplatePlanning your course map is a pivotal step towards successfully teaching your course. Once you have finalized planning, you can start to build your course. We have course design templates for both face-to-face and online courses to assist with building your course.