OC.3 9/09 Draft
Online Course Construction Plan
This checklist is to help you in the development of your course. The items listed are based on “best practices”
from other courses and instructors and are important elements to teaching a successful online course.
Instructor:____________________________________________________________________________
Course number and name: ______________________________________________________________
1) Course type: (choose one)
 Hybrid (part online, part face-to-face)
 Online only (no face-to-face)
Course Information and Communication
Welcome message and instructions to students (audio, video or text-based?)
Instructor introduction and contact information
Name
Office hours and announcements (and how best to contact instructor if
computer or software system is down)
Office location
Phone and fax number
Email (including expectations of instructor response time)
Photo
Start-up steps are defined: (IE: “Welcome to Week 1 of English 101. If you
have never participated in an online course before, please complete the
online Student Blackboard Tutorial. This week you will need to read Chap 1
in your textbook. Watch the video entitled “English 101” and participate in
the graded weekly discussion group.”)
Syllabus
Course description: (Semester, course title, course #, section #, credits, CRN #)
Course text and other required materials:
Text:
Course Pack:
CDROM:
Other online/external resources (please list): (IE: Course Compass, Exam
View)
Software/hardware/skill requirements:
Technology skills needed? (IE: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Photoshop, etc.)
Online Student Blackboard Tutorial location provided
Help Desk/Distance Learning office contact info
Complete course schedule
Grading
Clearly stated expectations defining minimal levels of student participation
Attendance: (NOTE: If a student does not “login” to the course within the
first 2 weeks of class, they can be dropped from the course.)
Grade book location and release of grades
Feedback to students/turnaround time
Extra credit
Tests and quizzes
How to access on Blackboard
Schedule
Yes
No
N/A
OC.3 9/09 Draft
Missed exam policy
Syllabus Continued
Assignments
Instructions/requirements
Schedule/due dates
Late work policy
Discussion board sessions
Introductory discussion session
Schedule
Guidelines (IE: Complete sentences, responses to instructor, responses to
other students)
Online etiquette/netiquette guidelines
Contributing to the course in a meaningful way
Compose course assignments, e-mail messages, chats, and discussion
board postings using appropriate tone, language, grammar and spelling
Avoid cheating, plagiarism, or giving or receiving unauthorized assistance
on tests or assignments
Student rights and responsibilities
Other information:
Bookstore information (available under Cameron Links)
Computer lab and library information (available under Cameron Links)
Integrity Statement/Academic Dishonesty Statement
Harassment Statement
Special Needs Students (ADA compliance statement)
Nondiscrimination Policy
Course Evaluations available
Student Services/Student Handbook link
Withdrawal/Add/Drop policy and Refund policy
Weather policy (I.E. What can students do if there is a power outage at a
proctoring site?)
Interaction and Collaboration
Statement regarding degree to which students and instructor will interact with each
other via asynchronous and synchronous tools.
Deliberate attempt is made to establish a learning community using strategies such as
group projects and discussion groups.
Ongoing instructions to students regarding daily and weekly due dates, test dates,
readings, benchmarks, etc. are clearly communicated on the “main page” of the course.
Indicate which communication/collaboration tools are used in the course.
Discussion board
Email
Chat rooms
Student presentations
Whiteboard
Student homepages
Other (please explain):
Assignments
Clearly communicated instructions, expectations and due dates
Assignments encourage students to employ critical thinking strategies
Alignment with course competencies
Quizzes and Tests
Quiz features used where appropriate
Alignment with course competencies
Students provided opportunities for self-assessment
Yes
No
NA
Yes
No
NA
Yes
No
NA
Yes
No
NA
OC.3 9/09 Draft
OC.3 9/09 Draft
General
Students are provided with grading criteria and ongoing update of grades with the
course
Variety of assessment activities are included in the course
Indicate which other assessment tools are used in the course:
Research and writing
Peer review
Case studies
Student homepages
Readings
Online research
Group projects
Interviews
Other (please explain):
Yes
No
NA
Yes
No
NA
Content
Content Availability
Course competencies are included or linked to the course and communicated to the
students.
Content is made available to students in manageable segments.
Content is presented in a logical progression.
Content is easily navigated
Content is made available via:
Content modules (I.E. Unit folders, week folders. Try to not have your folders
more than 3 deep.)
Links to external sources
Content modules are enhanced through the appropriate use of tools
Discussion boards/chat rooms
Links to external resources
Self-testing
Video (Link preferred)
Glossary
Audio (Link preferred)
Quiz
Other (please explain):
Course rigor is appropriate for given number of credits and comparable to similar faceto-face courses.
Course enables critical reflection and analysis of content.
Copyright information is documented.
OC.3 9/09 Draft
Design
Design
Yes
The Course menu MUST follow the best practices standard. The proper order and
names of the menu buttons are as followed:
Announcements
Course Information
Staff Information
Course Documents
Assignments
Discussion Board
Communication
External Links
Cameron Links
Tools
Announcements MUST be the course entry page.
Course Information contains ONLY informational materials about the course (I.E.
syllabus, course calendar, tentative schedule, etc.).
Staff Information MUST be complete and include contact information. Also include
the best way to contact you if the network or software system is down.
Course Documents contains ONLY course content information (I.E. lecture notes,
PowerPoint slides, handouts, etc.).
Assignments MUST contain the following folders:
Exam or Test folder (must be on top)
Quiz folder
Assignment or Homework folder
ADA Compliance Guidelines
Is there a high contrast between the background color and font color?
Fonts
No more than 2-3 font types are used. Preferably only one. Use of san serif
fonts such as Arial, Verdana, Georgia, etc. Limited use of all CAPS, italics or
bold text. No use of underline for emphasis (can be mistaken for links).
Do your images have descriptive tags?
Is your video close-captioned or have an accompanying text-based script
that describes what is happening in the video?
Are your audio files available in text versions?
Do you have animated or blinking images or text?
Have you included a text cue whenever color cues are used?
General Guidelines
DO:
Keep image file sizes small.
Make sure all links are working.
Maintain high contrast between background color and font color.
Proofread and spell check all text.
Align your images and text all to the left or all centered.
Use bold and italics sparingly.
DON’T:
Use extremely bright or neon colors for your font or background colors.
Change the location of your navigation.
Use mouse animations, animated images or blinking text.
No
NA