Planning: Turning Design Principles into a Learning Journey
How to Achieve High-Quality Online Courses (Part 5)
High-quality online courses emerge from a clear plan for the learning journey. Before teaching materials are written or media is produced, the learning designer and subject-matter expert need a shared understanding of how the module will unfold, week by week, and how students will progress toward success in the course.
This blog focuses on the role of course planning in that process. Planning is the stage where the design principles explored in the earlier posts in this series are brought together into a coherent structure for the module. Note that I’m using ‘module’ and ‘course’ interchangeably because a lot of our work is with higher education institutions, where ‘module’ is common.
Previous articles in this series have examined several important foundations of high-quality course design. Start With Outcomes emphasised the importance of clearly defining what students should know or be able to do by the end of a module. Designing With Cognitive Load in Mind explored how courses must be structured in ways that support the way learners process complex information. Designing Activity-Based Online Courses for Meaningful Learning highlighted the role of purposeful learning activities. Most recently, Designing Assessment to Drive Quality examined how assessment shapes how students approach their learning.
Each of these principles informs the design of a course, but they only become meaningful when they are brought together into a structured learning journey. The module planning stage is where that integration happens.
At Learning Design Solutions, this work is captured in a Module Planning Document (MPD). The MPD describes how the module will function as a learning experience before any detailed teaching materials are produced. It acts as the blueprint for the course.
Planning as a Collaborative Process
Developing the module plan is a collaborative activity between the learning designer and the subject-matter expert (SME).
The SME brings disciplinary expertise and a deep understanding of the subject. The learning designer brings expertise in pedagogy, online learning design, and the practical realities of structuring learning experiences in a digital environment.
The process normally begins with the module specification, which defines the approved module learning outcomes as part of the programme validation process. These outcomes provide the anchor for the design and ensure that the module aligns with the wider programme.
From there, the planning process develops through discussion, questioning, and iterative refinement. Rather than beginning by listing lecture topics or content, the conversation focuses on the student experience of the course and the intellectual work students will need to undertake.
A central question often guides these discussions:
What do students need to do in order to be successful in this module?
This question shifts the focus away from content coverage and toward capability development. It encourages both the SME and the learning designer to think about the kinds of thinking, analysis, and application students must demonstrate in order to achieve the outcomes.
Designing the Weekly Learning Journey
The outcome of these discussions is a structured plan that describes how learning will unfold across the teaching period.
The module is planned week by week, reflecting the way the course will actually be delivered. This allows the design team to see how ideas develop across the module and how each stage of the learning journey contributes to the overall outcomes.
Within the Module Planning Document, the design typically includes:
mapping module learning outcomes to weekly learning outcomes
identifying the key topics or concepts addressed in each week
designing the learning activities students will undertake
identifying the content and media required to support those activities
showing how each week contributes to preparation for the summative assessment
By structuring the module in this way, the design team can see clearly how the course progresses and how each element contributes to the overall learning goals.
Designing for Sufficiency
An important principle that emerges during planning is the idea of sufficiency.
When designing a module, the goal is not to include as much teaching content as possible. Instead, the aim is to provide sufficient material for students to complete the learning activities effectively.
Content exists to support learning tasks. It provides the explanations, examples, or resources students need in order to engage meaningfully with the activities designed for the course.
Thinking in terms of sufficiency helps prevent the common problem of content-heavy courses where students are expected to consume large volumes of information but have limited opportunities to apply what they have learned. By focusing on what students need in order to carry out the activities successfully, the design keeps the emphasis on learning rather than simply on teaching.
Working Within the Available Learning Time
Another important element of module planning is ensuring that the course fits within the expected learner effort hours.
In UK higher education, module credit values correspond to a defined amount of study time. The design team therefore needs to consider how much time students will realistically spend engaging with materials, participating in activities, and preparing for assessment.
Planning the module week by week allows the learning designer and SME to distribute this effort appropriately across the duration of the course. This helps ensure that the module remains both academically rigorous and achievable for students who may be balancing study with work and other commitments.
The MPD as a Guide for Development
By the time the Module Planning Document is complete, the learning designer and SME have a shared understanding of how the module will work. The learning journey is visible, the relationship between activities and assessment is clear, and the expected workload is realistic.
However, the MPD is not intended to be a rigid document. In practice, it functions as a guide that supports the development process rather than constraining it.
As development progresses and the detailed teaching materials begin to take shape, it is common for aspects of the design to evolve. Sometimes the changes are small adjustments; occasionally they involve more significant shifts in how a particular week or activity is structured. What matters is that the MPD provides a clear direction of travel for the module, ensuring that development remains aligned with the overall learning goals.
With this structure in place, the design team can move into the next stage of development: translating the module plan into detailed teaching materials.
The next article in this series looks at how storyboarding builds on the Module Planning Document, allowing learning designers and subject-matter experts to develop the learning experience in detail, week by week, as the course is prepared for delivery in the online learning environment.
Discuss Your Online Course Development
If your institution is developing new online modules or redesigning existing courses, thoughtful planning is the foundation of success. At Learning Design Solutions, we work closely with academic teams to translate disciplinary expertise into coherent, engaging online learning experiences.
If you would like to discuss how this approach could support your programmes, get in touch with Learning Design Solutions to start the conversation.