Long range planning
Gather materials
Each faculty member plans courses in different ways, but the process begins by getting together appropriate information. Look up the course description in the catalogue, determine how the course fits into a larger course sequence, and find out what knowledge and skills are expected of students who have successfully completed the course. Locate past syllabi for the course or a similar course on your campus and others, and browse curriculum archives and stockpiles online or in curriculum libraries. Gather books and journals on course topics, determine what supplies, technologies, teaching support materials, and representations of concepts are available. Seek out existing modules, units or assignments to stimulate your thinking. Dig out notes and readings from similar courses you took in graduate school. Once you have exhausted many sources, create a bag or box of pertinent materials.
Do research
Once you have gathered up a substantive number of quality materials, it is time to begin studying them. Read, review, and evaluate the materials you have gathered, make note of which are appropriate to the course, and which you might save for a later course. Determine the latest thinking on the issues the course addresses. Seek advice from other faculty members who have taught the course, discuss their successes and challenges. Visit university bookstores at a variety of campuses and browse their course books to see if there are any more appropriate than those you have gathered, talk with faculty members teaching related courses to discuss the degree of articulation needed, if any. Immerse yourself in the subject matter of the course, and begin to create an outline of topics to include.
Map out the big picture
Using the topic outline, create a map of the course timeframe in week by week segments, noting days and times the course meets across the semester or quarter. Decide in which sequence the topics flow best, and block out the amount of time needed for each, either a course session or portion of a session, or a couple of sessions as the topic necessitates. Some faculty members use a large erasable calendar for this, others a planning book or online planner, still others a simple calendar or a yellow pad with dates listed. Use a method that works for you, and is flexible, easy to revise, and with a clear view of the entire timeframe at a glance. This big picture view forms the backbone of the course onto which the more detailed components can be hung. When this is complete, each topic to be addressed should be assigned to a date, the components of the syllabus should be gathered together, and you should be ready to determine student learning outcomes.
Beginning with the End in Mind
Understanding by Design
Wiggins & McTighe (2005). Expanded 2nd Ed., ASCD.
This book explores backward design of courses by beginning with what we want students to know and be able to do.
On Stupidity, Part 2: Exactly How Should We Teach the “Digital Natives?”
Benton, T.H. (September, 2008). Chronicle Careers, An Academic in America, The Chronicle of Higher Education
This article is a commentary on the basic skills faculty should expect from students in their classes.
Course Planning Guides and Tips
Course Planning and Design
Teaching Support Services. University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada
A number of helpful tips on getting started and planning a course are outlined.
Course Planning and Design
Blackboard Faculty Manual, Oregon State University
This section of the manual offers step-by-step instructions on setting up a course on Blackboard as an online component or entirely online course.
Course Planning Guide
Duke University Libraries
There are many services the library offers to faculty as they plan courses. This site outlines some of the possibilities, then look to your campus library to see what services they offer to faculty.
Comparing Introductory Course Planning Among Full-time and Part-time Faculty
Lowther, M.A., et.al.(1990). Research in Higher Education, Vol. 31, No. 6
Using survey data of faculty teaching introductory college courses, this exploratory study compares course planning procedures in eight academic fields.
Designing your Course: Instructional Design, Course Planning and Developing the Syllabus
Mihram, D. Distinguished Faculty Fellow (2007). Center for Excellence in Teaching, University of Southern California
This powerpoint outlines a step-by-step process for designing a course.
Preparing Future Faculty
Council of Graduate Schools, Washington, DC
The Preparing Future Faculty (PFF) program is a national movement to transform the way aspiring faculty members are prepared for their careers.
Creating a Hybrid College Course: Instructional Design Notes and Recommendations for Beginners
Hensley, G. (2005). Assistant Professor of Theater and Dance, Appalachian State University Journal of Online Teaching and Learning, MERLOT
This case study explores the steps taken to create a hybrid college course.
Teaching Mathematics Graduate Students How to Teach
Friedman, S. Boston College
This manuscript describes the Boston College Mathematics Case Studies Project funded by the U.S. Department of Education and the National Science Foundation. The project was developed case studies for use in TA training programs for mathematics graduate students.
Teaching Handbooks
Links to Teaching Handbooks
Center for Teaching Excellence. University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey
Numerous links to handbooks for teaching faculty along with planning and teaching ideas are compiled for this site.
Teaching @ Ohio State: A Teaching Handbook
University Center for the Advancement of Teaching, Ohio State University
This comprehensive guide is designed for Ohio State faculty, but has many very helpful links about who students are, how students learn, teaching contexts, course preparation, classroom strategies, technology in the classroom, evaluating learning, assessing teaching, and the scholarship of teaching.
