What do I need to consider while planning assessments for my online course?

Most of the assessments you already use in traditional, classroom-based courses can be translated online; concept-check quizzes, exams, papers, final projects, and more. Because students are often working asynchronously, it’s important that your assessment requirements are explicit and clear. You should also clearly describe how formative feedback is designed to help student learn, and how culminating assignments/projects help students demonstrate what they’ve learned.

“By the time [students] reach the high stakes exams, they know where they've been and they know what's expected of them.”

- Angela Cordle

How do you scaffold your students’ online learning to help them incrementally advance toward mastery of course learning outcomes? How do you help them connect course concepts to practical applications such as personal experiences and potential scenarios in future workplace settings? As you begin designing your online courses, it’s crucial to focus on developing activities that stimulate students’ critical thinking skills through information exchange, connecting ideas, and applying new concepts (Garrison, Anderson, and Archer, 2000).