Online Course Design Framework

QM is a good start. DQP, OLC, and AAC&U have all produced rubrics and frameworks, but for our online course design team, we were looking for more. None of these tools seemed to reach far enough down into the weeds of online course design to produce the kinds of results we were looking to accomplish, especially related to multimedia design.

With appreciation for the work of Quality Matters, AAC&U, and others, we created a new framework for online course design. Our "Good, Better, Best" rubric recognizes that a first attempt at an online course can fall in the "good" category and produce a good learning experience for students. We also recognize that the faculty authors we work with want more. They are creative innovators who consistently want to push into the "Better" and "Best" categories to motivate their students and inspire others to love their disciplines as much as they do.

This framework leans on research around High Impact Practices, Mayer's principles of Multimedia Design, Quality Matters, and instructional design principles in general. It seems to be helping our teams and faculty authors establish a shared understanding of expectations. We would love to know what you think.