Course Development
Designing a course is more than just assembling materials and
assessments—it's about creating a structured, engaging, and meaningful
learning experience for students.
This guide walks you
through a clear, step-by-step process to develop your course, ensuring
that every element aligns with your intended learning outcomes and the
realities of your chosen mode of delivery.
How the Course Development Process Works
To create an effective course, we have created a structured approach that moves from big-picture planning to detailed implementation. The process consists of the following phases (click a step to see more):
Mode of Delivery
Determine the most effective mode of delivery for your course.
Courses follow different formats: In-Person, Online Synchronous, Online Asynchronous, or Blended. Your chosen mode shapes student engagement, interactions, and learning experiences.
Learning Experience
Ideate to shape the learning experience you want for your students.
Think beyond content—focus on how students engage, interact, and connect. A meaningful learning experience is dynamic, memorable, and tailored to your delivery mode.
Course Map
Develop a structured plan for how your course will be organized and delivered.
A Course Map turns your vision into a structured plan, ensuring assessments, activities, and materials align with course outcomes, providing a clear pathway for success.
Develop Content
Create and curate all course materials.
Build and curate instructional materials that support student learning, ensuring all content aligns with the course's objectives.
Develop Assessments
Design, write, and build all course assessments and evaluation tools.
Create assessments that effectively measure learning outcomes, keeping students engaged and on track toward their goals.
Quality Assurance
Use the Course Quality Assurance Rubric to review and finalize your course.
Before launch, review and refine all elements for consistency and effectiveness. Using Sheridan's Quality Assurance Rubric, confirm alignment and support for student success.
A Flexible Process
While this process provides a structured approach to course design, it does not need to be strictly linear. Instructors may move through the phases in different ways, depending on their workflow and planning preferences.
Throughout the process, Course Learning Outcomes (CLOs) should remain a central focus, ensuring that assessments, activities, and instructional materials align with the intended goals of the course.
To support this alignment, the Sheridan College Online & Blended Course Quality Assurance Rubric should be referenced at the start of the project and throughout development to help maintain consistency and meet institutional expectations.
Explore the Course Development Process
Use the links below to explore detailed guidance and resources for each step of the process:
- Modes of Delivery - Learn about the unique characteristics of In-Person, Online Synchronous, Online Asynchronous, and Blended courses and how they shape course design.
- Instructional Design Strategies: Access the following mode-specific guidance for designing the learning experience, planning course structure, and developing content and assessments:
- Quality Assurance Resources - Ensure your course is aligned with institutional standards and best practices before launch.
By working through all phases of this process, you'll ensure your course is well-organized, engaging, and built for student success—right from the start.