Designing a course can be daunting. Do you get an instructional designer involved? Do you incorporate backward design or even a hybrid approach? Is there a course design template out there that fits your course needs perfectly? Most likely not, but it doesn’t mean you can’t find a course design process that works for you, your course, and your students. From organizational tips for planning your course to converting a face-to-face format to a hybrid format, you’ll find tips and tricks for all. Whether you’re a new instructor or well-versed in the field of pedagogy, this course design resource guide will present creative ideas and strategies that you can start implementing right away.
Browse the following topics for resources, programs, seminars, free reports, and articles to help guide you in your course design process:
Instructional Design
Backward Course Design
Blended Course Design
Hybrid Course Design
Online Course Design
Instructional Design
Sometimes, faculty don’t have the support of an instructional designer to help plan their courses. In fact, many faculty never have any help from an instructional designer whatsoever. So, where do you start?
The following resources go through instructional design principles, approaches, and processes that can help guide you in your course design process. You’ll learn the first steps in the instructional design process and other systematic approaches you can utilize. These resources, programs, articles, and free reports will identify the elements faculty should consider when planning a higher-education course and provide step-by-step processes to follow, resulting in a course plan that is ready to build.
Free articles
- Implementing Instructional Design Approaches to Inform Your Online Teaching Strategies
- Course Design: Aligning Learning Expectations, Instruction, and Assessment
- Instructional Design: Who’s Playing First in My Course?
- Instructional Design Basics
- The Rhythms of the Semester: Implications for Practice, Persona
- Instructional Design: Six Strategies to Make Courses More Learner Centered Without Sacrificing Content
- Instructional Design: Designing Courses and Assignments That Promote Deep Understanding of Essential Concepts
Teaching Professor articles (requires paid subscription)
- Instructional Design Based on Cognitive Theory
- What Does It Mean to Design a Course?
- Building an Activity Catalog to Improve Course Design
- Developing Online Courses with Course Design Cards
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Backward Course Design
If you’re not sure where to start with backwards design, start here! Learning outcomes and objectives are the first step in backwards design. One starts with the end—the desired results (goals or standards)—and then derives the curriculum from the evidence of learning (performances) called for by the standard and the teaching needed to equip students to perform. Backwards design can provide relevant and meaningful learning experiences; ensure the required course outcomes are met; and prepare learners to perform successfully on their final assessment.
If you’d like to start planning a course with backwards design, check out our free articles and products for templates and processes in backward course design.
Free articles
- Backward Design, Forward Progress
- 11 Steps to Planning a Course You’ve Never Taught Before
- Planning a Great Online Class Through Roundabout Design
- Performance-Based Learning: How it Works
- Advancing a New Mindset About Curriculum Design
- Creating a Roadmap for Success by Beginning at the End
- Designing Meaningful and Measurable Outcomes: A First Step in Backwards Design
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How Do I Align Learning Objectives with Technology Using Backward Design? 
How Can Backward Design Make My Courses More Accessible? 
How Can Educational Programs Use Backwards Design to Drive Learning and Student Success? 
Getting Started with Backward Design: Meaningful and Measurable Learning Outcomes 
Backward Design: Aligning Outcomes to Activities and Assessments
Blended Course Design
So you’re interested in shifting your classroom from face-to-face to a blended or flipped classroom? You’ll need actionable ideas, strategies, and assignments to effectively make this transition. Here, you’ll find the secret sauce for blended course design, advantages to blended learning, and tried and true approaches from blended learning instructors. Additionally, you’ll find out how you can blend courses the ADDIE Way: Analysis, Design, Development, Implementation, and Evaluation.
Free articles
- Eleven Alternative Assessments for a Blended Synchronous Learning Environment
- Getting Started with Blended Learning Videos
- Formative Assessment: The Secret Sauce of Blended Success
- Designing Blended Courses the ADDIE Way
- Course Redesign Finds Right Blend of Content Delivery and Active Learning
- Getting Started with Blended Learning Course Design
- Putting the Learning in Blended Learning
- Blended Learning Course Design Creates New Opportunities for Learning
Teaching Professor articles (paid subscription)
- Blended Course Design: Tips for Getting Organized
- Getting Started with Blended Learning Videos
- Informal Assessment Activities for Blended and Online Courses
- The HyFlex Approach to Blended Learning
Free Report
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Hybrid Course Design
Hybrid classes are no new topic for you, but do know the best practices in hybrid course design, or how to effectively design and teach a hybrid course? If not, fear not. We cover the process of online course conversion, from initial course review to working with technology. Learn a step-by-step approach to maximizing the educational benefits of hybrid course design—in a minimal amount of time make the most of what you’re already doing and learn to use technology to enhance student engagement and learning.
Free articles
- Lecture Capture: A New Way to Think about Hybrid Courses
- Nine Tips for Creating a Hybrid Course
- Seven Tips for Teaching Hybrid Courses
Teaching Professor articles (paid subscription)
- Planning for Success in Remote, Hybrid, and Online Classes
- Would a Hybrid Be More Efficient?
- Flipped and Hybrid: Some Interesting Results
- Asking ‘Y’ of Professor X: An Analysis of Nontraditional Students in Hybrid Classes
- A Game-Day Approach to Hybrid Course Design
- Tips from the Pros: Using Air Sketch in Hybrid and Online Courses
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Each 20-Minute Mentor is $19 for individual, on-demand, one-week access, and each Magna Online Seminar is $39 for individual, on-demand, one-week access.
Online Course Design
You’re designing your first online course, or maybe you’re redesigning your current online course, but where do you start? You start typing in, how to design an online course or maybe you search, best practices in online course design and delivery. Instead check out these articles, free reports, and seminars that will help get you started on the essentials of online course design. From using a simple, navigable LMS course design to planning an online class with roundabout design, you’ll forge ahead with all the tools, tips, and tricks tasked with designing an online class.
Free articles
- Seven Things to Consider Before Developing Your Online Course
- Planning a Great Online Class Through Roundabout Design
- What Students Want: A Simple, Navigable LMS Course Design
- Multi-Faculty Collaboration to Design Online General Studies Course
Teaching Professor articles (paid subscription)
- How to Design and Facilitate Online Discussions that Boost Student Learning
- Put Function Over Form when Designing Online Courses
- Three Strategies to Improve Online Course Quality
- Top Online Course Design Mistakes
Free Reports
- A Resource Guide for Transitioning Your Class Online
- Designing Online Courses 101
- Promoting Academic Integrity in Online Education
- 11 Strategies for Managing Your Online Courses
- Distance Learning Administration and Policy: Strategies for Achieving Excellence
- 10 Tips for Designing an Online Learning Environment that Supports Your Students
Magna Products
Each 20-Minute Mentor is $19 for individual, on-demand, one-week access, and each Magna Online Seminar is $39 for individual, on-demand, one-week access.
