An online course shell is a template or framework that includes common components and a consistent structure that instructors can customize to fit the learning objectives and content of their course. Course shells often include a course overview and syllabus and a module structure that follows a regular presentation of learning objectives, materials and activities, assignments, and assessments. The purpose of a course shell is to streamline the course creation process, ensuring consistency and quality while allowing instructors the flexibility to personalize the content and activities to meet their unique teaching goals. Course shells do not replace instructional design; they are a starting point that provides a structure with common elements that faculty members can use to facilitate the design process and help meet certain course quality criteria. Course shells are appreciated by students and faculty alike (Bougemenket et al., 2013; Grotrian et al, 2022; Sanchez & Winzeler, under review).
How might instructors benefit from using a course shell? Konstantinidis (2022) acknowledges that designing an effective online course requires specialized knowledge and skills separate from an instructor’s subject matter expertise. A course shell developed by instructional designers can take the guesswork out of how to present a course most effectively in an LMS. Designers can provide input on UDL by incorporating features like consistent nomenclature, a section to orient students to the course, and LMS blocks for Student Services and “Meet the Instructor.” Beginning the design process with a course shell frees instructors from basic design work and invites collaboration (instructor-instructor, instructor-instructional designer) as discussions occur around course organization, active learning opportunities, UDL, and teacher presence. Using a course shell can also help instructors grow professionally as they develop their knowledge of online course design principles (Konstantinidis,2022), especially when accompanied by an explanation of appropriate instructional design principles and strategies to facilitate learning (this can be done in a user guide that accompanies the shell).
How might students benefit? Course shells set up learning environments with a clear structure and elements that facilitate navigation and accessibility and may lead to better engagement and learning. The consistent navigation encouraged by a course shell reduces extraneous cognitive load (Outlaw et al., 2016) involved in finding items, navigating the structure, and getting help; students can focus on the course content instead of how the course works. If adopted widely at an institution, a course shell can increase consistency across courses lowering even further barriers to getting started quickly and engaging with course content (Tramell et al., 2018; Konstantinidis, 2022).
Instructional designers can also benefit from building a course shell. At our institution, we found that rich discussions about how best to implement good course design within our own LMS were spurred by the iterative process of creating the shell. Feedback from instructors and students about their experiences helped us improve not only our course shell but also our general course design recommendations.
Strategy Implementation
Course shells can be developed and maintained by instructional support staff and designed to help courses comply with quality standards (e.g., Quality Matters, Online Learning Consortium), Universal Design principles, other specific university requirements, and general instructional design best practices. We recommend the following features for consideration, many of which are common in online course shells (Konstantinidis, 2022).
- A Course Resources section to help students navigate easily to important items they will need to access all semester. Suggested items include the syllabus, a course map, and an announcements forum.
- A clearly labeled “Start Here” section to orient students when they first access the course. Guidance, templates, and/or examples of relevant content can be included in the shell.
- An “Introduce Yourself” forum that can help to build a course community.
- An overview section for each module that tells students what they will find there, the module learning objectives, and a task list for the module.
- Elements and labels with consistent names and designs, created with accessible text.
- Guidance on providing transparency in course design, such as how learning materials and activities relate to course objectives.
- A “Meet Your Instructor” element that can help establish instructor presence and humanize a course.
- A Student Services block that is centrally updated and maintained, providing quick links to university services students may need.
Example implementation
To support our instructors at NC State, we developed a Quick Start Course Shell User Guide and a video walkthrough on YouTube. When our university moves to a newer version of Moodle that affects any design recommendations, the Quick Start Course Shell is updated and changes are publicized in our widely-distributed newsletter. We also regularly update the shell based on changes to the Quality Matters rubric and feedback we have received from instructors.
We have enabled anonymous access to a copy of our Quick Start Course Shell for interested parties to view. (To view the Quick Start Course Shell click on the link, and on the lower right side of the resulting screen, click “Use Anonymous Access.”) If you are a Moodle user, please feel free to download a backup of NC State’s Quick Start Course Shell to restore to a course in order to explore, use, or modify it.
Scholarly Reference(s)
Borgemenke, A. J., Holt, W. C., & Fish, W. W. (2013). Universal course shell template design and implementation to enhance student outcomes in online coursework. Quarterly Review of Distance Education, 14(1), 17-23.
Grotiraqin, S., Parriott, L., Griffing, B. & Leininger, K. (2022) When technology becomes a student lifeline: Impacts of a pandemic on student success. Educational Research: Theory and Practice, 33(1), 29-32.
Konstantinidis, A. (2022). Analysis of design elements in universal course shell templates of high-ranking universities. Knowledge Management and E-Learning 14(3), 344-359.
Outlaw, V., Rice, M. L., & Wright, V. H. (2016). Building quality online courses: Online course development. In K. Shelton & K. Pedersen (Eds.), Handbook of research on building, growing, and sustaining quality e-learning programs (p. 301). Hershey, PA: IGI Global
QM Higher Education Rubric, Seventh Edition, 2023. Quality Matters. Used under license. All rights reserved. Retrieved from MyQM.
Sanchez, R. P., & Winzeler, B. (under review). Quality Catalyst: The far-reaching influence of faculty course design training. Journal of Applied Instructional Design.
Trammell, B.A., Morgan, R., Davies, W., Petrunich-Rutherfprd, M.L., & Herold, D. (2018). Creating an online course shell: Strategies to mitigate frustration and increase student success across multiple campuses. Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Psychology, 4 (3), pp. 164 – 180.
Citation
Anderson, J., Sanchez, R., Mendoza-Moran, A., Winzeler, B., Cranford, C. (2024). Providing a Quick Start LMS Course Shell. In deNoyelles, A., Bauer, S., & S. Wyatt (Eds.), Teaching Online Pedagogical Repository. Orlando, FL: University of Central Florida Center for Distributed Learning.