Summary
UHCL is committed to delivering high-quality, accessible online learning experiences that meet the needs of diverse learners. Developing a new online course requires thoughtful planning, adherence to best practices, and collaboration with support teams. This guide outlines the process and resources available to faculty for creating a 100% online course.
Environment
Canvas, IDT, Quality Matters (QM)
Content
Launched in 2023 with the cooperation of UHCL academic leadership, the university’s process for the design and development of new 100% online asynchronous courses is designed to provide flexibility for faculty, colleges, and departments as they need to expand the availability of online offerings.
Online Course Development Process Highlights
- Course reviews and "pass/fail" decisions are discontinued.
- Course request deadlines are discontinued.
- Instead of certifying individual courses, faculty will be trained and certified to develop their courses on a schedule that best suits their need.
- Faculty will complete two training courses before developing a new online course: (1) Online Canvas Training, and (2) Applying the Quality Matters Rubric (APPQMR) course. NOTE: Faculty need only complete these courses one time - not every time they want to request a new online course.
- Responsibility for ensuring the quality of new online courses appropriately rests with the faculty members, their department/program chairs, and Deans.
Online Course Development Options
UHCL faculty have the option to design/develop new 100% online asynchronous classes either independently or with assistance from the OIT Instructional Design and Technology (IDT) team.
- Independent/DIY Option Prerequisites – Faculty must complete introductory training on the university’s learning management system (currently Canvas) and the Quality Matters course, Applying the Quality Matters Rubric (APPQMR) Higher Education, 7th Edition. For more information about available APPQMR training formats and dates or to register for the training, please email the OIT Support Center (supportcenter@uhcl.edu) and request IDT team assistance.
- IDT-Assisted Option – there are no prerequisites for working on the design/development of your new course with help from the IDT team; however, the scope of IDT assistance may vary depending on when the new course request is submitted and the team’s existing workload. Therefore, we recommend submitting new online course requests as early as possible.
Online Course Development Process
For a more detailed description of this process, please refer to IDT’s document, Online Course Design Guide: Requesting, Designing, Developing, and Launching Your New Online Course (PDF).
- Submit an Online Course Request Form.
- Kickoff meeting with a member of the IDT team.
- Complete prerequisite LMS and Quality Matters (QM) training [only required for faculty developing a course without IDT assistance].
- Obtain access to a Canvas development shell in which to build the new course.
- Complete the design and development of the new course.
- IDT provides a course courtesy review, providing results to the instructor and their Dean/Associate Dean.
- Project closing meeting.
Additional Resources
Need Additional Help?
On behalf of OIT’s Instructional Design and Technology (IDT) team, we hope this tutorial is useful. If you encounter any difficulties or have questions related to this procedure, please contact our colleagues in OIT’s Support Center to have a help ticket created and assigned to the IDT team. You may contact the Support Center via email (supportcenter@uhcl.edu) or by telephone (281.283.2828). Once we receive your inquiry, a member of the IDT team will contact you as quickly as resources permit.