Functional Course Design Endorsement Program
Earn an Endorsement Certificate in Functional Course Design
Elevate your course design with a collaborative approach tailored to meet today’s diverse teaching and learning needs. The Functional Course Design Endorsement Program is designed for WMU instructors who want to use Elearning to make teaching and learning more manageable across any modality.
Program Overview
Functional Course Design is a human-centered, systematic approach to course design that is focused on the creation of aligned, navigable, accessible, and interactive experiences for learners. In this program, you’ll collaborate with WMU’s Instructional Design team and fellow instructors to develop concept-focused rather than content-focused courses that leverage Elearning. Functional course design supports instructional flexibility, enhancing self-directed learning, engagement, and accessibility across all learning modalities.
Program Benefits
Through this endorsement, you will learn to:
- Examine ways to identify and address the needs of learners by employing an empathetic approach to design.
- Develop intentionally flexible, adaptable, concept-centered courses that support in-person, hybrid, HyFlex, and synchronous or asynchronous online instructional modalities.
- Design courses that meet WMU, Department of Education, and research-based best practice standards.
- Create/curate accessible course materials and activities using Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles.
Who Can Participate?
This endorsement is open to any WMU board appointed faculty member or instructor of record who is teaching, or plans to teach, a 7-week or 14-week course within the next year and is interested in enhancing course design for any instructional modality.
Program Structure
Participants can expect a blend of in-person and online synchronous workshopping meetings, along with asynchronous collaboration with instructional designers and peers.
Spring 2025 Program Schedule:
- Friday, Jan 17: 1 to 3 p.m. (Synchronous online)
- Friday, Jan 24: 1 to 3 p.m. (In-person, Kalamazoo)
- Friday, Feb 7: 1 to 3 p.m. (In-person, Kalamazoo)
- Friday, Feb 14: 1 to 3 p.m. (Synchronous online)
- Friday, Mar 14: 1 to 3 p.m. (In-person, Kalamazoo)
- Friday, Apr 11: 1 to 3 p.m. (In-person, Kalamazoo)
During the semester, participants will:
- Work collaboratively on course design with ongoing input from peers and instructional designers.
- Develop a concept-centered, flexible course that meets best practice standards for functional design.
- Gather and apply feedback from peers and learners to create an actionable iteration plan for future course development.
Upon successful completion, participants will earn a WMU Endorsement Certificate in Functional Course Design.
Get Started
Ready to earn your Functional Course Design Endorsement Certificate? Register by December 20 to secure your spot in the Spring 2025 program. Seats are limited—sign up today to reserve your place in this collaborative new program.