The Online Educator: People and Pedagogy Course - The Open University
FutureLearn
Key Information
Campus location
Online United Kingdom
Languages
English
Study format
Distance Learning
Duration
4 weeks
Pace
Part time
Tuition fees
USD 74 / per course *
Application deadline
Request info
Earliest start date
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* you can learn it for free or upgrade the course and have extra benefits for $74
Scholarships
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Introduction
Design engaging courses, make your teaching more inclusive, navigate online research ethics and shape your digital identity.
Enhance your online teaching with strategies from educational technology experts
As e-learning becomes ever more widespread, online educators are being required to design learning experiences that engage and meet the needs of very diverse learners.
This course, developed by The Open University’s Institute of Educational Technology, explores four myths: that learning design is about technology and content; that innovation and accessibility are incompatible; that researching online learning is an ethics-free zone, and that educators’ online identities are irrelevant.
Studying the course will help you enhance your practice through videos, quizzes and discussion with peers.
When would you like to start?
Start straight away and learn at your own pace. If the course hasn’t started yet you’ll see the future date listed below.
- Available now
- 18 October 2021
What software or tools do you need?
To take part in this course you need an internet connection. No specific software is required.
Who will you learn with?
Leigh-Anne Perryman I lead The Open University's Online and Distance Education programme. My research specialisms include the impact of open pedagogies on learning and wellbeing and gender equity in the developing world. | Martin Weller I am a Professor of Educational Technology at the OU. My interests are in digital scholarship, open education, OER and MOOCs. | Lesley McGrath Hi, I've worked at the OU since 2009. Currently in strategy and governance but taught for many years. I'm interested in issues of equality. |
Who developed the course?
The Open University
The Open University (OU) is the largest academic institution in the UK and a world leader in flexible distance learning, with a mission to be open to people, places, methods and ideas.
Admissions
Curriculum
What topics will you cover?
Week 1 - Disruption and design
- Current developments in online teaching
- Navigating the hype about disruptive innovation
- The relationship between content, technology, people and pedagogy in learning design
- The challenges of meeting diverse students’ needs
- The use of personas in creating relevant online courses
Week 2 - Innovation and accessibility
- Myths about accessibility and digital innovation
- Types of digital exclusion
- Finding and evaluating accessibility guidelines
- Applying accessibility guidelines to your teaching
Week 3 - Ethical evaluation of online teaching
- Myths about researching and evaluating online teaching
- Evidence and ethics
- Navigating the hype around educational technology innovation
- Evaluating research reports
- Evaluating your own teaching innovations
- Ethical considerations when researching online teaching
Week 4 - Who am I online?
- Myths about online identity
- The value to educators of a carefully constructed online identity
- Evaluating your own online identity
- Using Twitter to build an identity online
Accreditations
Ideal Students
Who is the course for?
This course is suitable for anyone involved in online education or training, including teachers, trainers, course designers and researchers. While it will help to have a current practice setting to draw on, this is not essential.
Career Opportunities
What will you achieve?
By the end of the course, you‘ll be able to:
- Develop personas to inform the online learning design process.
- Apply accessibility guidelines to online teaching contexts.
- Reflect on your existing digital identity and plan for its future development.
- Discuss the relationship between technology, content, people and pedagogy in online courses.
- Identify the ethical considerations involved in researching online teaching.
- Identify key accessibility issues related to online learning.
- Explore ways of shaping a digital identity as an online educator.