Moodle: Plan a course

As soon as you have begun to master the nuts and bolts of Moodle, you need to think about the kind of course you want to create. You may find these modest suggestions helpful. For example, if you are trying to reduce the amount of paper that you and your students are shuffling, your course will probably include assignments for your students to upload or to compose online. (Yes, we are keeping this very simple!)

Objectives

Why are you creating a course? Jot down a simple statement about what you are trying to accomplish. While this can be brief and informal, it is very important.

Information

You will probably start by posting information and documents for your students and their parents. This may include lesson plans, study guides, your syllabus, links to resources, class notes, etc.

Interaction

The next step is to add some interaction. You may ask your students, for example, to vote on some things, to discuss course-repated topics in forums, etc.

Collaboration

After you and your students have become proficient Moodlers, you will want to encourage collaboration. You may, for example, require students to work together on research projects or Web Quests

Other considerations

As you constantly improve your course, you will keep in mind many of the same considerations that are important in your face-to-tface instruction: Bloom's Taxonomy, learning styles, differentiated instruction, multiple intelligences, etc.

By taking the above into account right from the start, it is likely that you will create a course that serves your students well.