Title: Activity 2.6: Consider your Course Characteristics / Features
Course: Stage 2: Course Design and Technology > Section: 3. Moodle Tools, Course Characteristics / Features

What would you like the learning experience to be for your students?

This is a high-level design activity that will assist you in moving forward with your course design.

Purpose: to consider the characteristics you want to include in your course, which will determine not only the look and feel of the course, but also the nature of the learners’ experience.

Timing: 60 mins

Tools: Forum; MS Word doc

Resource: Course Characteristics Template with Explanations (.doc)

Notes:

- Throughout the 7Cs Learning Design process you will be focusing on a course you want to redesign. You will be using various dedicated forums to share and keep track of your progress.
- Work individually or with the co-teacher/s on your course. If you are not co-located then make a plan or work individually and reconcile/negotiate the chosen cards in the 2 versions later on.
- While you are working on this, bear in mind the approaches and theories that we have discussed recently.

Task (a): Identify your course characteristics/features, bearing in mind the approaches and theories explored previously. These 'cards' will guide you towards appropriate design.

- Download the Course Characteristics template provided.
- Save it with a new name on your personal device.
- Place the coloured digital  'cards' into the three columns (by dragging and dropping each card into the appropriate column):

Column A: Major - This will be a key feature in my/our course

Column B: Minor - This will feature but in a minor way

Column C: Not my focus - This won't necessarily feature in my/our course

- You are free to add up to three new features that are not included in the cards, if you think they are necessary for your context.
- Now choose only 12 cards (comprising Major & Minor) that represent the most important features that you want to see in your course. Everything else goes into the “Not my focus” column.

Task (b): Now review the characteristics (cards) you have selected:

- Are any colours of cards missing or less well represented?
- If so, what might be the impact on the student experience?
- Are there any other cards you would like to swap in?
- What new cards could you add?

The colours on the cards represent the 4 course aspects described in the image below.

Figure 2.3: Course Features / Map Guidance (Carr, 2020 based on Conole 2013, p145)

- Review your course characteristics now that you know how they influence your student learning experience.

Response:

- Save your completed Course Characteristics document and upload it as an attachment to your new discussion forum topic.
- In your contribution, make sure to write your course name and level in the subject header so that others can view your chosen features in context.
- Highlight WHY you have chosen certain features / characteristics, and/or explain any dominance of a particular category (colour) within the context of your course.

Then:

- Explore the contributions from colleagues about their courses.
- Give your constructive feedback to one or two colleagues by posting a reply to their contribution.
- Consider & revise your own selection in response to any feedback provided.
- Upload this revised high-level design doc to your 'Private Files' area.