Perhaps you’re a classroom teacher who is looking for alternative ways to use your professional talents. Perhaps you’ve been an online instructor for a class that you feel could be improved upon. Maybe you are looking for a new challenge to extend your experiences, or you are hoping to pursue online teaching/course development activities that will lend itself to a more flexible working schedule. Whatever your reasons, online course development raises many questions, such as:

o What will my students use as a textbook?

o What other resources will I use to supplement the textbook?

o How will the student obtain information on starting the course?

o How can I make the online experience “student friendly”?

o Where in the Learning Management System will the student have access to obtaining and submitting assignments?

o How will the student be graded?

o How will the student access his/her grades?

o Will the student be able to view his/her overall progress?

o How will the student communicate with the instructor?

o How will the students communicate with each other?

o What deadlines does the student need to be aware of?

As a course developer, online instructor, and former student who obtained my masters degree online, I have several practical suggestions and tips for successful online course development.

o Remember the three most important parts of teaching in a course in miracles   both face-to-face and virtual environments are:

1. communicate

2. communicate

3. communicate

o Therefore you want to establish methods for student-friendly correspondence. A Discussion Board that allows you to post ongoing tips and deadlines will be helpful for both you and the student.