InterPro - UW Showcase 2016 - Use Active Learning to Design and Deliver Successful Online Courses and Degree Programs

Our instructional design model focuses on active learning, encourages authentic and meaningful learning, and incorporates a balanced mix of asynchronous and synchronous online interaction.
The Department of Engineering Professional Development (EPD) is responsible for 11 fully online degree programs within the College of Engineering at UW-Madison. We have been tuning and continuously improving our instructional model since our first online degree program launched in 1999.

Although the tools and technologies have changed over the years, pervasive active learning has remained at the core of our instructional model. This model is based on a combination of research and best practices from the teaching and learning literature, as well as years of experience and feedback from our online students. As a measure of independent validation, our online graduate engineering programs have been ranked in the top 10 by U.S. News & World Report since it first started ranking online engineering programs five years ago.

Our instructional design model focuses on active learning and multiple modes of interaction. This affords multiple opportunities for students to engage with course materials through the Absorb-Do-Connect model, interact with each other, as well as the instructor. Another key component of our model is the use of regularly scheduled synchronous (live) web conferences, which help to create community and engender social presence in the course.

The poster below features the components of our online active learning model and provides several examples of what active learning actually looks like within a fully online learning environment.

We thank you for visiting our poster during the session, and invite you to contact us with additional questions!



EPD UW Showcase Poster 2016