Quality Framework for the Design of Online Courses (QF-DOC)

Audience Level: 
All
Institutional Level: 
Higher Ed
Streamed: 
Streamed
Abstract: 

Designing an online program requires expertise in instructional design. However, most existing design frameworks do not provide explicit support to the instructional designers for the creation of pedagogically sound and engaging courses and programs. The Quality Framework for the Design of Online Courses (QF-DOC) is based on principles of UDL and the Community of Inquiry and provides a practicable approach to course and program design and development.

Extended Abstract: 

To support the pedagogical development of online courses and programs using a team-based approach to online course design, Teaching and Learning Services (TLS) at McGill University developed the Quality Framework for the Design of Online Courses (QF-DOC). The Framework is intended for use by instructional designers in the (re)-conceptualizing of academic courses for online learning.

After a review of course quality rubrics and guidelines, we opted to create our own framework with embedded principles derived from the Community of Inquiry (CoI) framework,  Universal Design for Learning (UDL), and guidelines for web accessibility based on the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) which TLS operationalized in checklists for course design teams in 2019.

Whereas the traditional distance education approach focused on recreating the face-to-face classroom, and the “lone ranger” method relies on an individual instructor’s own expertise, the CoI takes a philosophically different approach to online course design.  Developed in 1999 by Garrison, Anderson and Archer, CoI promotes the use of social, cognitive and teaching presence to create deep and meaningful (collaborative-constructivist) learning experiences. The CoI framework is at the core of our online course design methodology. 

UDL is an educational framework that provides a set of principles to design learning opportunities for all types of learners.  WCAG provides technical criteria for creating online experiences that allow access to and interaction with online content by people with disabilities. 

The principles of CoI, UDL, and web accessibility guidelines for instructional designers are at the heart of QF-DOC. It is not a model or a method and it is not prescriptive. It is a framework for quality course design that promotes deep learning and allows for the use of various learning theories and teaching strategies to create engaging, interactive, and rewarding learning experiences. 

Our goal in presenting QF-DOC at OLC is to explore with our colleagues if our work resonates with them and to assess the Framework’s application in contexts other than our own. After a presentation of QF-DOC, we plan to engage in a discussion with participants on its usability, adaptability and potential areas for further development.

References

Abdous, M'hammed. (2020). Designing Online Courses as a Team: A Team-Based Approach Model. International Journal of Online Pedagogy and Course Design. 10. 61-73. 10.4018/IJOPCD.2020010105. 

McAlvage, K., & Rice, M. (2018). Access and accessibility in online learning: Issues in higher education and K-12 contexts. From OLC [Online Learning Consortium] Outlook: An environmental scan of the digital learning landscape. Retrieved from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED593920.pdf

 

Conference Track: 
Instructional Design
Session Type: 
Discovery Session
Intended Audience: 
Design Thinkers
Faculty
Instructional Support
Technologists