Magna 20 Minute Video | How Does Consistency Improve Quality in Online Courses and Programs?

During this Magna 20-Minute video, Dr. Brian Udermann provides a good overview about the various advantages that having a consistent course design for online courses produces for an institution. He begins by stating that consistency does not need to imply that all courses look exactly the same, but they should have certain elements that make them look similar. Dr. Udermann also feels it is important for institutions to strike a balance between course consistency and providing a certain amount of autonomy for instructors with course design.

Dr. Udermann describes how students, faculty, and the institution can all benefit from having a consistent structure in their online courses. Students feel more comfortable when their online courses look and feel the same. This familiarity allows them to focus on engaging with the course content and not struggling with navigation or trying to find certain materials. Having some standard course design principles can also help faculty develop online courses by providing some guidelines. However, faculty should have some leeway to include certain design components and content they feel is important. The advantage for the institution is that some uniformity in course design can facilitate data collection for assessments and course evaluations.

Dr. Udermann feels that one of the ways to increase course consistency is by offering professional development opportunities for the instructors, which includes recommendations for reliable course design. Institutions could also consider producing syllabus templates and course shells. He also believes that having a course evaluation rubric is important for promoting quality as well as certain similarities across course components. Viewing this video offers many insights into the value of common course design considerations, including Dr. Udermann’s recommendations to base these decisions on a team approach that includes faculty and other members of the campus community.

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