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Constructing a course outline represents a vital yet frequently overlooked stage within the entire journey of developing educational content.
Numerous creators tackle this phase by drafting a minimal structure containing just a few main topics, related subtopics, and basic points, considering the task complete. Nevertheless, a truly useful course outline should serve a far greater purpose.
A truly effective outline captures the essence of your educational goals, specifies all the components of your course, and functions as the strategic plan for your course creation project. Therefore, dedicating the effort to perfect it is essential.
This guide is designed to walk you through the process of building a course outline step-by-step. Following that, we will provide a free course outline template along with several real-life examples for inspiration.
Shall we begin? Let’s dive in.
A course outline functions as a roadmap detailing the educational journey your students will undertake within your online program. It should precisely articulate the specific stages they will navigate to arrive at the desired learning destination.
The most fundamental aspect of any online course outline is its course structure. Therefore, your plan must meticulously enumerate all the distinct modules and individual lessons that constitute your course content.
This kind of course curriculum is the natural result obtained from the outline development process.
Beyond just the basic framework, a comprehensive outline must also incorporate your specific learning objectives, any prerequisite course requirements, and, crucially, the methods you intend to use for lesson delivery.
At this point, it should be clear that a well-crafted outline serves as the essential blueprint for developing a truly outstanding online course.
A high-quality outline is grounded in solid course design principles, guaranteeing that your program effectively provides the intended value to your learners. Additionally, it aids significantly in enhancing student engagement.
Furthermore, it enables you to maintain structure amidst the potential complexities of course development and proves invaluable when organizing your complete course creation project.
As an illustration, the outline can be utilized to define specific tasks within your project management software; subsequently, these tasks can be allocated to yourself or other team members, complete with assigned completion deadlines.
Are you finding it challenging to craft your course outline? Leverage our Course Outline Generator; it facilitates the rapid and straightforward development of a comprehensive outline featuring both modules and lessons.
Before you begin constructing your outline, there are several important principles to remember. Adhering to these will guide you in preparing an outstanding outline and make the development process smoother.
When you distinctly pinpoint the ultimate achievement your course offers and weave it into each part of your planning, the overall framework, educational materials, and individual lessons should cohesively steer students toward fulfilling the intended learning outcomes.
Initiate this by clearly stating what learners will be capable of doing after finishing your course. You might find this structure helpful:
We assist [Target Audience X] to accomplish [Result Y] by utilizing [Method Z].
As an example, suppose your course instructs individuals on composing a story in English. Your guiding phrase could be formulated as:
We guide aspiring writers to compose a story in English through dedicated practice in grammar and sentence structuring.
This serves purely as an illustrative example. Your specific learning objectives will be entirely contingent upon the particular type of online course you are preparing to teach.
With this defined goal, you can then strategically align all your course resources toward that endpoint.
Detail the very last task or skill a student needs to master right before concluding your course. From there, progressively work backward, identifying each prerequisite step, until you determine the most suitable starting point for your students.
Your course outline should adhere to the principles of Sound Course Design Principles (SCDPs), a methodology focused on evaluating learner requirements and subsequently implementing a strategy to fulfill those needs. Typically, SCDPs emphasize five key areas:
Sound Course Design Principles
Consequently, integrating the Sound Course Design Principles into every stage of your outline, from its initial conception right through to the final elements, is critically important. This methodology will noticeably boost the engagement level of your course and prove instrumental in guiding students toward achieving the specified learning objectives.
Your course’s architecture generally consists of three distinct layers. Initially, you identify the overarching major themes or topics, which are subsequently organized into smaller, logical segments. These segments effectively become your modules.
After establishing your modules, the next step involves breaking each module down into more granular, sequential steps. We typically designate these as lessons, and it’s within these lessons that you’ll specify precisely what content and skills will be covered.
Finally, it’s important to remember that each individual lesson should possess its own coherent internal structure and flow.
An example of lesson structure
Regarding the organization of your modules, adopting a “less is more” philosophy is generally beneficial. Keep in mind that student engagement is a critical factor in the success of your online course. Presenting a curriculum with, for example, fifteen distinct modules when the material could be effectively organized into five or six might seem excessive and potentially discourage learners.
Because maintaining a manageable course duration is vital for student retention, we typically advise structuring your content within a range of five to ten modules.
Similarly, striving for an optimal balance in the number of lessons within each module is crucial. You need to avoid including an excessive number of lessons, as this can feel overwhelming to students. Conversely, having too few lessons might result in each one lacking sufficient depth or specificity.
The journey of crafting a course outline frequently commences with basic bullet points, an arrangement of sticky notes adhered to a wall, or perhaps a somewhat untidy visual representation.
As you dedicate effort to refining it, this initial draft transforms into a comprehensive, full-on document that captures all the essential details of your course, covering everything from the starting point to the final elements.
You have the flexibility to download or print this finalized document, utilizing it during live presentations, marking it up with notes, and turning to it for guidance whenever uncertainties arise.
Next, employing a dedicated tool becomes crucial to help you effectively manage and stay organized with all the distinct sections of your outline. There are several capable—and often complimentary—tools available that offer everything required to accomplish this task smoothly.
For instance, you’ve undoubtedly heard of Google Sheets. We ourselves have utilized this versatile tool to construct many detailed outlines, similar to the illustration provided below.
A sample online course outline using Google Sheets
Within the fourth module of her program, Amy guides you through developing a truly compelling offer. This involves clearly defining your course pricing strategy, structuring the package, selecting valuable bonuses, and outlining any additional support options in a manner that generates genuine enthusiasm.
Additionally, she provides detailed, step-by-step instructions on constructing an effective sales page. This page will be designed to proactively address potential concerns from your audience, clarify their queries, and ultimately persuade prospective students of the essential value your course delivers.
This online course outline template is available for download right here.
Thanks to its inherent grid structure and numbering system, Google Sheets stands out as an excellent choice for maintaining a well-organized and structured outline. Moreover, it offers the flexibility to include as much detailed information as required. You can customize cell colors for easy categorization, incorporate distinct headings and subheadings, and implement various other organizational features.
The platform is also remarkably user-friendly and facilitates effortless collaboration by allowing document sharing with multiple contributors. While direct embedding of attachments or videos within the sheet isn’t supported, a practical workaround involves uploading your files to Google Drive and simply inserting the corresponding URLs into your outline document.
An alternative approach involves utilizing a dedicated project management system, such as ClickUp.
With a tool like ClickUp, you can not only construct your outline but also oversee the entire course creation workflow. It provides features for building comprehensive task lists, enabling you to neatly arrange all your modules and lessons within a single, unified dashboard.
Upon selecting a specific task item, you gain the ability to populate the essential lesson information, append relevant attachments, generate associated subtasks, and allocate these responsibilities to respective team members.
We generally don’t advocate procuring a project management tool exclusively for the task of outlining your course. Nevertheless, if you happen to employ such a system already for managing other aspects of your work, it serves as an effective and practical choice for this purpose as well.
Let’s now focus on constructing your actual course outline. We have segmented the outlining procedure into six straightforward steps, complete with illustrative examples, to furnish you with a comprehensive understanding of the tasks involved.
The initial phase in constructing your course outline involves dissecting your overarching course objective into distinct learning milestones.
Think of milestones as the significant achievements or key competencies your students will attain throughout their participation in your course. These are directly derived from the intended learning outcomes you’ve established for the program.
For instance, imagine you are designing a course focused on Instagram marketing. The key milestones for such a course might logically include:
You can simply list these milestones initially using a basic tool like Google Docs. There’s no need for excessive complexity at this stage; a straightforward list similar to the one above is perfectly adequate:
Keep in mind that this is purely illustrative; you can certainly create a more elaborate version of your chart by ensuring there is sufficient space allocated beneath each milestone to meticulously list the specific steps required to achieve it.
For your learners to successfully attain the established milestones, they must follow a series of distinct actions. Consequently, your next task is to precisely define the specific activities required to accomplish each milestone.
These individual actions will constitute your lessons. Designing them to be practical and actionable is essential, as this ensures your students are actively learning and making tangible progress through the material.
Returning to our Instagram marketing course illustration, let’s consider the “Monetizing Instagram” milestone. The necessary steps contributing to this achievement could encompass:
At this point, you need to meticulously detail the specific content for each lesson, clarifying exactly what you will teach. This step allows you to flesh out every crucial element that will be addressed within the lessons.
For every individual lesson, consider these key questions:
To illustrate, if a lesson focuses on crafting a brand pitch, the content could encompass the ideal pitch structure, crafting the introduction and body, appropriate language use, and the best format for sending it.
This stage is also crucial for deciding the delivery method for each lesson. Will the content be presented as a video lecture? Perhaps an audio-based interview? A live, interactive session? Or maybe a formal assessment?
Video content is frequently favored for course delivery due to its highly engaging nature and the fact that many individuals find visual learning most effective.
Below, you’ll find an instance of an engaging video designed to introduce a module exploring the history of video games.
Throughout your course, certain sections might benefit significantly from supplementary materials. Specifically, identify areas where providing downloadable assets such as workbooks, quick-reference guides (cheat sheets), checklists, templates, or similar items could enhance the learning experience.
The most effective types of resources will vary based on the subject matter you are teaching and the methods that best facilitate your learners’ success.
It’s crucial to evaluate how each potential resource will genuinely aid student advancement versus what might not contribute substantial value. Ideally, your resources should:
The image displayed below shows a segment of a worksheet originating from Amy Porterfield’s Digital Course Academy program. Participants in her course have the option to download this PDF file and complete the required information directly.
Sample worksheet from Digital Course Academy
It’s generally not essential to pair every single lesson in your course with a downloadable resource. Remember to be selective, ensuring you only incorporate them where they truly add value for the learner.
When your supplementary materials are carefully planned, they can potentially allow for shorter instructional videos, cater to students who prefer different learning styles, and enhance the actionability of your lessons.
After finalizing your course framework, obtaining constructive criticism is a crucial next step.
You might, for example, connect with trusted friends or professional associates, inviting them to evaluate your structure.
Should you already possess a community following, contacting your most active followers is another excellent avenue. Consider arranging a video conference, perhaps via Zoom, to directly discuss their thoughts regarding your proposed course content.
Incidentally, your prepared course structure may serve effectively as a promotional instrument as well.
Develop a summarized edition, carefully omitting excessive details, and incorporate this into your email marketing efforts to pique the interest of prospective learners.
Require some guidance crafting your educational course plan? Our unique Course Outline Generator assists you in rapidly and efficiently developing a complete structural layout, including both modules and lessons.
Your finalized course framework represents a significant asset in its current form. Nevertheless, incorporating a few supplementary components might elevate its overall effectiveness and appeal.
Consider these potential additions that could be paired with your course structure to better encourage prospective learners to invest in your educational program.
Defining clear learning objectives is fundamental for all educational courses. Doing so informs students about their expected takeaways upon completion, serving as a powerful motivator for signing up.
Place this vital section near the top of your sales page and outline because it holds prime importance. This mirrors the standard approach used by Udemy for courses featured on their platform.
Udemy displays the learning objectives toward the top of the landing page
This area is your primary chance to convey the intrinsic worth of your educational offering to your students, so ensure the learning outcomes are thoroughly articulated.
Be sure to establish learning outcomes for every distinct module and for the complete course as a whole.
You might even consider defining objectives for individual steps within lessons. This isn’t always essential, yet it could prove beneficial, contingent upon the specifics of your course material.
An exceptionally crafted course overview can significantly influence a potential student’s decision between your offering and that of a competitor. Frequently, it stands as one of the critical elements in attracting new learners.
This element will constitute a crucial segment of your course structure, warranting dedicated effort in its composition. Far too frequently, course descriptions lack engagement, leading potential students to navigate away before fully reading.
Here are several suggestions to enhance the appeal of your course descriptions:
For further details regarding this topic, consult our comprehensive resource on how to compose a compelling course description.
Articulating the course prerequisites is essential so prospective students understand the necessary preparations and can determine their suitability for the program.
Presenting these requirements transparently will greatly minimize future interactions needed to address potential issues stemming from unmet prerequisites.
The prerequisites ought to be straightforward and reasonably attainable. Simply consider the foundational knowledge students need beforehand to successfully navigate your course content.
Here is an illustration showing the course prerequisites for a program focused on mastering Airbnb operations:
As you can observe, meeting these particular prerequisites is typically straightforward for students, even if they lack prior familiarity.
Here is an additional example illustrating requirements, specifically for a course designed to prepare participants for a cybersecurity certification:
Hootsuite’s Social Marketing Certification Course presents a widely acknowledged professional validation for individuals aiming to establish themselves as experts in social media.
The course material is arranged into six chapters, typically containing eight to ten lessons and associated quizzes. On occasion, individual lessons are segmented further into smaller learning bites.
Hootsuite’s Social Marketing Certification Course’s outline
Concluding the course content, participants need to successfully complete the Social Marketing Certification Examination. Upon successful completion, they will receive their digital credentials electronically via email.
Ali Abdaal’s Part-Time YouTuber Academy operates as a real-time, group-focused digital learning program.
Instruction unfolds across a four-week timeframe. Every week commences with an interactive live session, complemented by daily practical workshops and opportunities for questions and answers. Although the primary curriculum is conveyed via lessons, the workshops delve into particular subjects emphasizing practical application.
Part-Time YouTuber Academy’s curriculum
The creator responsible for the Camera Basics for Filming Videos program is Caleb Wojcik. This particular offering qualifies as a mini course, characterized by a brief curriculum consisting of merely a few distinct modules.
The Camera Basics for Filming Videos course curriculum
Based on our evaluation of countless premium courses, this particular online program appears to be the most content-rich we have encountered so far.
This guide has detailed the essential information required for constructing an effective course outline.
Should your course framework distinctly lay out the modules, lessons, and any supplementary mini-lessons, you will achieve superior organization and possess a robust foundation upon which to build your instruction.
It is vital to acknowledge that the ultimate triumph of your course hinges not solely on the structure but significantly on the specific content included; consequently, thoughtful planning of content delivery methods during the outlining phase is crucial.
Remember to acquire a version of our suggested course outline framework.
We genuinely trust this resource has proven beneficial! Should any inquiries arise, please share them with us in the comments section below.
Daniel NicFounder, SellingOnliceCoursesGuide.comis an entrepreneur and digital education specialist who founded sellingonlinecoursesguide.com, a platform dedicated to helping creators and educators successfully navigate the online course marketplace. Through his website, he shares insights and strategies for developing, marketing, and monetizing online educational content. His work focuses on empowering course creators to build sustainable online businesses while effectively sharing their knowledge with students worldwide.
Selling Online Courses Guide is supported by its audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn affiliate commissions. However, this doesn’t influence our reviews or product listings. All opinions are based on our tests and personal experience with a product/service.
Copyright © 2024 by SellCoursesOnline
Daniel Nic is an entrepreneur and digital education specialist who founded sellingonlinecoursesguide.com, a platform dedicated to helping creators and educators successfully navigate the online course marketplace. Through his website, he shares insights and strategies for developing, marketing, and monetizing online educational content. His work focuses on empowering course creators to build sustainable online businesses while effectively sharing their knowledge with students worldwide.
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