Designing a Course

Begin the process early and don’t go it alone. Successful courses require careful planning and take time to design. Don’t be shy about seeking out models and guidance, particularly if you are new to teaching or to the particular course. Consult with colleagues who have taught the same or similar courses to learn from their strategies and their general impressions of the students who typically take the course. If you are team-teaching, you and your teaching partner(s) should begin meeting well in advance to discuss course learning objectives, teaching philosophies, course content, teaching methods, and course policies, as well as specific responsibilities for each instructor. 

Move from learning objectives to assessment, then to content. This approach, often called backward design, can help clarify your priorities and give structure to your course planning. We’ll walk through the steps one-by-one below. 

Define course learning objectives. A learning objective, sometimes also called learning goal or outcome, is a statement of what your students should know or be able to do as a result of successfully completing your course. These objectives help your students understand course expectations, and we know that a sense of clear purpose improves motivation. Dedicating some time to crafting them can also save you time and effort down the line. Having learning objectives in mind will help you focus your attention and make decisions about which content to include, which teaching methods to use, and what kinds of assignments and exams are appropriate.

As you draft your learning objectives, keep in mind that effective learning objectives are: 

• Focused on students and describe what students will know and be able to do 
• Are actionable, visible, and measurable 
• Clear and understandable to students as well as instructors 
• Neither too specific nor too generic 
• Often focused on high levels of thinking and learning 
• Appropriate for the course level and/or students’ background 
• Conducive to authentic and motivating tasks 

Based on the above, you can see that to write effective learning objectives you should learn about the students who typically take the course (their level of preparation, their majors or academic interests, etc.) in order to think about how your course will help this group of students build their knowledge and understanding of the topic. 

One classic tool to help write learning objectives is Benjamin Bloom’s Taxonomy of Educational Objectives (1956). It’s a helpful tool for thinking about the types of cognitive processes you’d like students to engage in, and there are many useful action verb lists to make your objectives more specific. 

Below are some examples of learning objectives from courses across a variety of disciplines, addressing different types of cognitive tasks. A common preface is “At the end of this course, students will be able to…” 

• Identify and name the muscles of the lower body 
• Interpret a mortality graph, including what kind of demographic trends it shows 
• Choose the correct mechanism of inheritance to explain a case-study 
• Use the PAPER framework to analyze the context of a primary textual source 
• Identify the strengths and weaknesses of the methodology section of a chemistry paper 
• Recommend a fiscal model to analyze the performance of an organization 
• Compose a script for a soap opera in German using the present and perfect tenses

Determine how you will evaluate student learning. The evaluation must go hand-in-hand with learning objectives. For example, if one goal is to improve problem-solving skills, an exam should not contain only questions that ask students to recall facts; it should contain questions that ask students to solve specific and well-chosen problems. By the same token, homework and class activities leading up to that exam must include some questions that require problem-solving skills. Consider the following questions: 

• Do assignments reflect and help achieve learning objectives?
• Do exams and quizzes reflect learning objectives? Do they measure the extent to which students are achieving the learning objectives you have set out for the course? 
• Will the students have an opportunity to acquire and practice the skills that are required for exams and major assignments?

Determine course content. Your learning objectives should help you select the major topics and determine the order in which you will teach them. A few tips to help you in this process: 

• Select the main topics to be covered. For some courses, there might be broad consensus on what core topics, examples, and concepts are; for others, you’ll have more latitude to choose your own emphasis. Perusing textbooks or comparing notes with colleagues might help you develop your list. Define your list by considering your learning objectives, your assessments, and the characteristics of your students. At the same time, use the desired content to refine the objectives. 
• Pare down your initial list of topics. Instructors often plan initially to teach more material than they can meaningfully cover in the allotted time. 
• Determine the structure of the course; arrange the topics in a logical order. Developing a rationale that guides the structure of the course can help you explain the material more clearly and helps students follow along. You can choose to organize the topics in a variety of ways, whether chronological, topical, conceptual, survey-oriented, or process-oriented. You can ask yourself if students need to learn a skill before discussing applications; or if learning one concept helps understand another one, etc. 

Develop teaching methods and tools. Once you have determined the learning objectives and content, think about how students can best learn it. Select and develop teaching methods and tools that are 1) appropriate for the size of the class and 2) consistent with your goals. Consider the following questions and suggestions: 

• What is your teaching style? How will you apply or adapt your style to suit the course goals, the size of the class, and the types of students who are likely to enroll? 
• Which types of teaching methods will best fulfill your course goals? 
• When deciding whether or not you will use technology in your teaching, identify specific goals that technology will help you reach. 
• Whenever possible, use a variety of approaches to maximize opportunities for students to practice and engage with the material, such as groupwork or a range of discussion strategies. 
• Plan to use teaching methods that require and measure active student learning. 

Select texts and other materials. If you are using texts, decide whether the learning objectives will be best met by using a published text or a course reader that compiles material published elsewhere (and unpublished material, if applicable). Take into account the cost of all materials. Consider placing some of the material on reserve at the library so that students can borrow, photocopy, or download the material themselves; or look into Open Educational Resources. Order texts early and call the bookstore about a month before the course starts to ask if the texts have arrived. 

If you are compiling a course reader, consider copyright issues (see the University’s resources on copyright and fair use). If relevant, make sure to order films, software, or other types of materials well in advance. 

Tend to additional logistics. Before the semester begins, take stock of any remaining tasks, such as contacting guest speakers, arranging field trips, or preparing to use instructional technology or multimedia equipment. Your department will mostly likely secure a classroom for you, but make sure are familiar with the room and its equipment before the first day of classes. 

Define course policies. Determine how you will grade all required work, including all assignments, papers, exams, and, if applicable, class participation. Decide ahead of time how you will deal with such issues as tardiness, attendance problems, work turned in late, and requests for extensions or the rescheduling of exams. Learn the Policy on Academic Integrity and develop strategies for preventing and responding to plagiarism and cheating. Include all course policies on the syllabus and plan to review them with students on the first day of class. 

Develop the course schedule. The tendency is nearly always to try to accomplish too much during each class period. Allow time for active learning to occur during class and for students to complete major assignments and prepare for exams. When preparing the schedule, consult the relevant academic calendars, and keep in mind major religious holidays and significant campus events. 

Write the course syllabus. Once you’ve designed all the moving parts of your course, it’s time to put them together in a syllabus! Our syllabus page includes up-to-date information on what should be included. 

Refine the course design. Course planning is a cyclical process: as you start teaching your course, you’ll have ideas for things to adjust. Make a habit of quickly jotting down notes each week so you’ll have a pool of ideas to draw on for next time!