To date, we've had nearly 1,000 members of our community graduate our professional development courses. We are now very proud to offer our newest certificate course CD501: Foundations of Online Course Development. With the addition of this course to our line-up, AdjunctWorld members are not only set up to a) teach online well and in keeping with today's best practices (OT101) and b) find and confidently apply to online teaching jobs (OnRamp), but they can now say they have extensive training in creating effective, student-centered online courses.

If you are interested in learning more about CD501, including a full course description, learning objectives, course start dates, pricing, and FAQs, please head on over to our CD501 Course Description and FAQ page. Here are some of the kind things our early adopters have said about their experience in CD501.

CD501 Reviews

From Val P: CD501 was my first attempt to step back into the role of a student, and I feared a bit of performance anxiety could arise for me. However, Dr. Shriner quickly set the tone for the community, introducing herself as Brooke and suggesting we all do the same. I relaxed. The course was well-paced and collaborative. Brooke gave candid and encouraging feedback to prepare us for the upcoming lesson. Not only did we always know where we stood from a grade perspective, but, more importantly, we knew if we nailed the assignments or had something suggested we should consider before proceeding.

It is evident that Brooke cares about each student and invests a lot of time to ensure everyone has the best opportunity to learn and succeed. One of the other surprise benefits I did not expect was that I am about 80% done developing my first online course! Thank you, Adjunctworld, and thank you, Brooke!

From Marjorie B: Brooke was a terrific instructor and I learned so much about online course design. The readings were relevant and the assignments took us on a course design journey that allowed us to develop our own online courses. It was challenging at times juggling this course with FT work but it was worth the effort. I gained some valuable new skills.

From Heather S: The course is very well organized, with each week's learning building on what we've covered in previous weeks. The discussion topics were engaging and encouraged a lot of interesting class engagement, and the weekly assignments pushed me to think critically, to apply course concepts to my own situation, and push myself to try new things. Brooke is super responsive, kind, funny, and her feedback has been invaluable to me. CD501 is thorough, thoughtful, thought-provoking, and encouraging!

From Shannon B: I strongly endorse Brooke’s CD:501 Foundations of Online Course Development. Brooke has taken all the ambiguity from creating a course and developed a determinate process that renders a high-quality course if followed. For example, I have been trying for 20 years to build a course curriculum on a subject that is hard to measure. With Brooke’s suggestions, I was able to break through that bottleneck and come up with a week-by-week course outline, determine the topics for each week, and build the curriculum I will be passing out. I also learned how to best leverage discussion boards, measure performance, and importantly, keep students engaged in an online class.

In following Brooke’s methodology, you not only create a course, but you will also be able to facilitate the creation of a student learning community online. I received my doctorate in Organizational Leadership from Pepperdine’s Education and Psychology Department and this class matches and exceeds the learning theory I was taught through my coursework there (and that was quite excellent). Brooke has extensive experience in curriculum building and created this course from the ground up. It is thoroughly researched and includes foundational theory as well as current learning theory elements. I can’t thank Brooke enough. This course will allow me to now create many more classes using her best practices. Thank you so much Brooke. I can’t wait to see what class/es you create next!

From Shay B. (Email written to Brooke, permission given to publish as testimonial): I just read your feedback for the first assignment. I am floored. You not only created a program within which your students apply what they are learning AS THEY LEARN IT to then complete a version of the very thing you knew not much or not at all about!!!! The only other program that literally taught me the skill at the same time I was applying it was learning how to drive and learning how to ride a motorcycle.

I came into this class desperate to increase my ability to be well-prepared and even better suited to apply for Adjunct professor positions. At first, I took it for granted that they would give me a chance because I had a Master's and enough passion for success. Now that I'm learning AND applying, you are accessing those kinesthetic learners like me, as opposed to and in addition to only auditory or visual. My confidence will exponentially increase if I come out of this class having written my very first online course!!!! AGGGGGG!!!! Tremendous!! Thank you so much Dr. Shriner.. I am grateful for your caring so much and being so genuine about meeting my needs and helping me on my way to make a very long-desired, almost given up on, dream come true!

From Steve C: There are many strengths to CD-501. I greatly appreciated how the assignments were meaningful and acted as building blocks each week. The readings were clear and concise and the discussion boards allowed for learning to take place between all of us. Most importantly, Dr. Brooke provides explicit feedback. Her feedback is like having a conversation about what your passionate about and turning it into an online course. By the end of the six weeks, I am confident that I can teach as well as develop an online course. Thanks Dr. Brooke !

From Megan R: I think one of the greatest strengths was the readings being written by the instructor. It was not your typical "read from the textbook" kind of course.

Other Reviews for CD501

Given anonymously on the end-of-course survey/evaluation:

The course was student-centered and created a lot of community feel where everyone was engaged. The discussions were great. The strength of this course is the conveyance of the course materials. All information and writing assignments are aligned well with all learning objectives. The pacing was consistent throughout the course, which made managing my time much easier. The lessons were written well and were easy to comprehend. I was worried that I wouldn't be able to comprehend the material at first because I am more of an aural learner, but I had no problem understanding the written material. Dr. Brooke has a contagious positive demeanor that shines through her written words and motivates her students. Her feedback has always been friendly and encouraging. She offers a well-organized course that offers a clear path from the start to get to your educational goal smoothly and successfully. It has been an excellent 6-week learning experience! I would love to be in another class in the future, either to brush up on my present skills or learn new ones. Thank you, Dr. Brooke!

The worksheets were very valuable and Dr. Shriner was extremely knowledgable and put together a well-thought out and cohesive course. I thought the assignments enabled me to outline a strong and organized course. They were in-depth and built on each other. As I move forward with the course development, I can revisit learning objectives, discussion questions and assignments to streamline the course for students.