Course Design

Eight Indispensable Rules for Course Design

A Center for Teaching Excellence guide for teachers

The Rules

1. Start with the course you want to teach.
2. Give them responsibility for learning; take responsibility for teaching.
3. Know what you want them to learn: content and/or skills objectives.
4. Always be clear about what you want from the students.
5. Be organized but not over-complex in your organization.
6. Make sure understanding builds.
7. Plan the unexpected.
8. Don't overreach: fewer objectives can mean more critical and intense understanding that reproduces itself.

Course Design Basics

Use this convenient worksheet as a guide to construction of your course. The most important section is #3 on learning objectives - these are the guide posts to everything you plan to teach, assign, and evaluate in the course.