At Northwestern, we ascribe to extremely high educational quality standards, and this of course extends to the online courses and programs we design, implement, and maintain for graduate and undergraduate adult learners. But, what does a quality online course … Read More
As members of an evolving and diverse learning community, it’s our responsibility to pay attention, stay informed, build cultural competency, and hone our digital literacy skills. It’s our responsibility to know and understand the implications of local, national, and world-wide … Read More
[This post was originally titled “Amping up Your Blue Jeans Session with a Guest Presenter.” As of June 15, 2020, Blue Jeans is no longer a supported web conferencing platform at Northwestern University.]
A few weeks ago I wrote a … Read More
Dr. Ray Schroeder recently gave a presentation on active learning strategies for NUIT’s Teachxpert Speaker Series. He describes active learning not as a theory, but as “a teaching method that supports learning. The method uses techniques…that promote analysis, synthesis … Read More
In every job I have had, my job description varied depending on the day or the project or who was on my team. That holds true for being a Learning Designer as well, where I am project manager, trainer, researcher, … Read More
One of the hallmarks of a quality online course is alignment among learning objectives, instructional materials, and assessments to ensure critical course components work together so learners can achieve desired learning outcomes. This post illustrates how alignment drives the … Read More
Online course design and teaching presents a unique set of challenges and rewards. There are dozens of new variables to consider, like course structure, content delivery, and synchronous sessions. There’s no face-to-face classroom interaction or collecting students work in real … Read More
As much as we like to think our online courses are perfect, there is always room for improvement. Our job is never done. On the Distance Learning team, we are first and foremost concerned with partnering with faculty to develop … Read More
Whatever our role might be in the course design process, we are charged with creating an exemplary learning experience for our adult learners. One way to ensure we create the highest quality and most engaging courses is by designing learning … Read More
