3
What is a Course Design Pattern?
When faculty design and develop a course, they often generate a repeated sequence of learning activities and assessments that occur every one or two weeks. These repeated weekly activities form a course design pattern. A course design pattern helps faculty to (a) clarify their thinking about the overall plan for the semester, (b) establish a balanced workload for both students and themselves, and (c) ensure the course meets accreditation standards. The pattern of activities may also be adapted as a checklist for students. Although the primary purpose of the course design pattern is to help faculty in the initial stages of their course planning, it can also be used as a tool to analyze an existing course and find ways to improve it. Furthermore, it can be used as a reference for creating various menus of navigation links within the learning management system.
In this learning activity, you will propose a course design pattern for your online course. Note that this exercise may be better suited to instructors who have been teaching their course for some time, and have already identified the sort of activities and assessments they would like to use. For those of you with brand new courses, consider your design pattern as more of a mental warm-up activity. After reviewing the information provided, please proceed to the Design Task Activity that follows. Your course design pattern will be reviewed with your instructional design consultant during one of your scheduled meeting times.
Example of a Course Design Pattern
The course design pattern below represents only one possible sequence of learning activities. There are many other options that you have for creating a unique pattern that best fits your own needs. You are welcome to adopt and adapt this pattern in any way you would like.
This course design pattern shows a 1-week sequence of events for a three-credit, fifteen-week on-campus course with a total of 7.5-9.0 hours of instruction per week. Note that the pattern does not begin with the first week of a course. This is because the first and last weeks of a course typically have unique patterns that are not repeated throughout the rest of the course.
Module 03
Due Tuesday (2.5-3.0 hours)
Module Introduction (5 min)
Exam (50 min)
Reading and Quiz: Chapter 00 (90-120 min)
Due Thursday (2.5-3.0 hours)
Homework (60-90+ min)
Research (30+ min)
Group Discussion: Initial Post (30 min)
Due Saturday (2.5-3.0 hours)
Group Discussion: Reply Posts (30 min)
Exam Prep (60-90+ min)
Reading Preview (30 min)
Module Self-Evaluation (10 min)
Please notice that the course design pattern contains a brief descriptive title for each of the learning activities and assessments. The estimated time that students will spend on each activity is written in parentheses. In the design task below, you will create a similar course design pattern for your own course.
Design Task: Draft a Course Design Pattern
Please complete all of the steps listed