Curriculum Tips for Modifying a Course

Many of us are trying to reconceive our face-to-face courses in order to complete the term remotely. While the task may initially seem overwhelming, especially if you’ve never incorporated any online teaching in your previous courses, there are some things to consider that should make it less stressful.

Only include new content that's essential for the students to feel adequately prepared in their courses next term. It’s time to cut any “but-I-wish-they-knew” or “they-may-eventually-need” content or activities. It’s not necessarily going to prepare students to achieve your definition of “success” in the next part of their program, but any noticeable gaps can be addressed in the other courses.

Ask yourself: “Where does my course fit in the program?” and “What knowledge, abilities, and values will students absolutely need in the next semester?” Let the answers to these questions guide your planning. Perhaps you teach in an accredited program that’s strategically scaffolded to ensure students achieve mandatory levels of competency success. I encourage you to meet with other faculty members at the end of the term to assess what learning outcomes and competencies will require reinforcement in next semester’s courses. Right now, your primary concerns should be making the best of an unusual situation, and reducing as much stress and burden to your students as possible.

Consider your initial hopes for the course. They might already be articulated in your syllabus as outcomes, objectives, or goals. How have students already fulfilled them? Are there any that still need to be reinforced or accomplished? If there are outcomes that students haven’t yet met, consider whether they’re essential. If the outcomes are absolutely necessary, can they be incorporated in an activity in the Learning Management System? The use of discussion boards can be useful for student reflection, student development of cases, or student creation of questions. These activities don’t need to be long and burdensome as long as the task requires students to demonstrate contextual thinking and integration of course materials. I’ve used visual activities in the past by asking students to submit a photograph and one-sentence description of how the picture connects to the course concept. It’s possible to quickly assess and provide feedback to each student.

I'm working on my course right now and most of my classes are reliant on active learning exercises, so I don't have any lecture notes. I'm planning on transitioning to 8-minute “lecture” or instruction videos that occasionally incorporate some short student “to do” posting activities through the Learning Management System. The remainder of my course won't be perfect, but it should fulfill my outcomes and meet the needs for my students as they continue the rest of their academic program.

Here are some useful resources:

“Temporary Remote Teaching” Dalhousie University,  https://www.dal.ca/dept/elearning.html

Hong Wang, “Eight Ways to Increase Social Presence in Your Online Classes” Faculty Focus https://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/online-education/eight-ways-to-increase-social-presence-in-your-online-classes/